The team is bringing the name and legacy back to Houston.
HOUSTON — The Houston Comets are officially returning to the WNBA, nearly two decades after the franchise folded, with Rockets ownership saying restoring the Comets name and legacy was just as important as bringing women’s professional basketball back to Houston.
The WNBA on Wednesday approved the sale and relocation of the Connecticut Sun to Houston, where the team will begin play as the Comets next season.
At a Thursday news conference inside Toyota Center, Rockets vice chairman Patrick Fertitta said bringing back the Comets brand was a priority for ownership from the beginning.
“It was immensely important,” Fertitta said.
The Fertitta family is reportedly paying around $300 million to purchase the Sun franchise and relocate it to Houston.
Fertitta said the investment was about more than simply acquiring a WNBA team.
“There is such a special brand and identity that already exists,” Fertitta said.
The original Comets helped launch the WNBA in 1997 and became the league’s first dynasty, winning four consecutive championships behind stars like Tina Thompson, Cynthia Cooper and Sheryl Swoopes.
However, the franchise folded in 2008 during a much different financial era for women’s basketball.
Former Comets head coach Van Chancellor said the league operated on a far smaller scale in its early years.
“My star players made $50,000 a year. We flew commercial,” Chancellor said.
Now, the WNBA is experiencing major growth with rising attendance, expanding media rights deals and soaring franchise valuations.
Toyota Center will undergo renovations to create new facilities for the Comets, including a practice court, locker rooms, recovery areas and player amenities as part of the “Toyota Center Reimagined” project.
“And now that the announcement is complete, once this is all packed away, work here will start at Toyota Center to turn this into the Comets practice court,” KHOU 11’s Jason Bristol reported during a standup from the Rockets practice facility. “So once again, the Comets are here, and this will be a new old home for the WNBA.”
Renderings shown during Thursday’s event included updated training areas and player spaces, while team officials said logos and uniforms will be unveiled later.
Ownership hopes the next generation of Comets can once again make Houston a centerpiece of women’s basketball.
“I think if there’s anything that we want to replicate, it’s just a success on the court,” Fertitta said. “They built an amazing identity and brand, something that all Houstonians had a right to be proud of.”
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