An interesting debate on the UConn fan board about why UConn fans do and do not go to Sun games. The casino understandably is a turn off to some. Others are UConn fans who live in states other than CT. And to some, the allure of the professional game is just not there, irrespective of men's basketball or women's basketball.

Here are the comments I posted back on May 26, 2004:

But remember...the Sun don't need as many fans to make money, with the casinos there. Still, as much as Mike Thibault states that the team is not menat to be "UConn Huskies II: The Pro Version," the fans in Connecticut are much more likely to show up for Sun games against Seattle, Phoenix, Detroit, and Minnesota than other teams (though Los Angeles and New York do draw nice crowds). But why aren't the fans showing up for Ashja Jones and Nykesha Sales? To some, Sales is part of the "old guard" (as one UConn fan put it)...the group that created the initial national interest that generated a large fan base. Sue Bird and her progeny are part of the "new guard," who took the UConn fan base to a different level. Yes, Ashja Jones was a part of "new guard," but Diana Taurasi, Swin Cash, Sue Bird, and Svetlana Abrosimova are far and away the group's most popular members.

Solution? Connecticut either needs to make a trade for a wildly popular member of the UConn new guard (not likely to happen if Abrosimova does not come back healthy) or draft a big-time, non-UConn star who will attract fans. Seimone Augustus, anyone? Of course, if Whalen develops, she could be that player. And hopefully having the All Star game in 2005 will help.