Sun deny Marina Mabrey trade request, prompting agent to fire back - ESPN

The Connecticut Sun denied guard Marina Mabrey's request to be traded, a move that she asked for earlier this month.

Mabrey arrived in Connecticut last summer after requesting a trade from the Chicago Sky prior to the All-Star break. She averaged 14.4 points and 4.1 assists in 2024, mostly operating as the first player off the bench for the Sun, who pushed the Minnesota Lynx to five games in the WNBA semifinals.

Mabrey's agent, Marcus Crenshaw of The FAM agency, fired back at the franchise's decision in a statement provided to ESPN on Tuesday.

«In this current age of women's empowerment and support of the players, the CT Sun threatening to force Marina Mabrey to play for them after her trade request is mind-boggling,» Crenshaw said. «Why would anyone try to force someone to play on their team when they don't want to be there? It's counterproductive in a ton of ways and everyone we have spoken to is perplexed about how they are handling Marina, after trading away Hall of Fame caliber players.

»The coach parted ways. No free agents returned and they are doing all they can to try and force Marina to stay when she clearly doesn't want to be there. It's interesting."

Sun president Jennifer Rizzotti told ESPN that the organization decided it «wasn't in our best interest to move her because of the value that we gave up to get her, but also that we place on her.»

The Sun sent their 2025 first-round pick, a 2026 pick swap, as well as guards Rachel Banham and Moriah Jefferson to Chicago to acquire Mabrey.

«The reasons that we have for not trading Marina are rooted in positivity,» Rizzotti told ESPN. «It's rooted in a desire to build around her, have her here, have her be the catalyst for what we want to do offensively, taking