UNCASVILLE, Conn. — After the buzzer had gone off and the Sun’s second-to-last home game against Minnesota had finally concluded, legendary former head coach Mike Thibault stood at center court at Mohegan Sun Arena as he was honored as a Sun legend – a distinction given to those who have made a monumental impact on the franchise throughout the past 23 years.
As the first-ever head coach of the franchise, Thibault isn’t just a cornerstone of the franchise — he helped build it. After the Orlando Miracle relocated to Uncasville in 2003, Thibault was hired to take over the Sun and assemble the team from the ground up. Over the course of nine seasons, he guided the team to greatness – including two Eastern Conference championships and WNBA Finals appearances.
“It’s dangerous giving me a microphone,” Thibault joked during his commemorative speech, which took place after the Lynx defeated the Sun, 101-89. “First of all, I want to thank the Connecticut Sun. You’ve been in a very tough situation this past year, and I want to thank the organization, particularly Jen [Rizzotti, team President] and Morgan [Tuck, general manager]. You’ve been in a tough situation this past year…I thought it was very important to call it the ‘Sunset Season.”
Thibault then went on to reminisce about his days in Connecticut, dropping gems with each story that showed just how much the WNBA – and, really, women’s sports – has grown over the years. Originally, Thibault was supposed to be head coach of the Portland Fire (a franchise that was recently revived ahead of this season), and had even agreed to a contract just two weeks before the team folded. It was then that he heard word that Connecticut wanted to speak to him.
After his introductory press conference, Thibault admitted that he had a moment when the reality of everything finally hit him: he needed to assemble a WNBA roster, and had very little time to do so.
“I [sat] right up there in [the arena], by myself, about 10 o’clock at night, and I’m thinking, what the hell did I just do? I have no players that I’ve seen in person. There are no basketballs, no uniforms, no housing, no anything, and we have two months to get ready,” he recalled.
As he continued his speech, three of his former franchise stars – including Lindsay Whalen, Taj McWilliams-Franklin and Tina Charles, also an honorary Sun legend, sat in chairs adjacent to him on the court, smiling and laughing as she shared memories and memorable moments.
And yet, it was Thibault who also took the time to honor them and their contributions to the game, all while reminding today’s current stars – including members of the Lynx and the Sun, who stood on the court and listened nearby – just what it takes to be great.
“Before you can thank anybody else, the players are what the game’s about…Each of these players here – for those of you that didn’t get to watch us, like these young ones- when big moments came, they were ready. They had calmness and poise in big moments,” Thibault said.
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When it was the former Sun stars’ turn to speak, each of them shared their own iconic Mike Thibault story. Charles recalled one practice where Thibault promised that if the team made a half-court shot, then practice would be finished. When the 6-4 center banked it in, Thibault kept his word.
“I think that was probably the best [situation] ever,” she said with a smile.
Franklin chuckled as she told a story of a time after a loss when Thibault accidentally walked into the locker room at the wrong time – as her teammates were changing. “He walked in and I said, ‘COACH!’ We put a towel over her and coach just ran out,” she said.
“I was there for that same story,” added Whalen with perfect comedic timing. The now Lynx assistant coach then reminisced about a moment during training camp when Thibault got hit in the face by a ball and the medical team had to help him tape his glasses back up.
With each story and lighthearted joke, it’s evident that one of the many reasons that Thibault is so revered is not just because of his success – which includes being a two-time WNBA Coach of the Year (2006, 2008) and later leading the Washington Mystics to their first and only WNBA championship title in 2019 against, you guessed it, Connecticut – but also because of the impact he had on others, especially his players.
“I think one of the things that you know coaches forget sometimes is that the great players want to be coached, and so, sometimes you have to have hard conversations,” Thibault told the media before the game. “Sometimes you have to have motivational [ones], sometimes you have to have kick in the butt ones. Sometimes you have to have just discussions about life in general that have nothing to do with basketball, and I think that you know that was one of the things that I learned before I ever got here as a coach was [that] the players want authenticity. They can smell [a] fraud better than almost anybody…I think I’ve been honest with players about what we needed, what they needed, what I needed, and they could come and talk to me too.”
When current Sun head coach Rachid Meziane took over the helm last season, it was Thibault who took the time to congratulate him. Their careers have seemingly crossed paths, as Meziane coached the Belgium Women’s national team from 2022 to 2024, including at the Paris Olympics, and Thibault recently took over the reins last season. He just recently coached the Cats at the FIBA World Cup.
“He wished me the best when I became, you know, the head coach of the Connecticut Sun, and I wished him all the best when he became the head coach of Belgium National Team,” Meziane told the media before the game. “Everything he’s accomplished, how many championships he won…He’s an example.”
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It’s Thibault’s ability to connect with others that stands out, including right when you first meet him.
Now, as the Sun get ready to conclude their final season, it’s the community that the franchise has had around them – from legendary head coaches and players to the staff and, of course, the fans – that serves as a reminder of just how special the team is.
In Connecticut, the Sun have not only built a historic franchise, but a forever family – and it was Thibault who set the tone from day one.
“We want[ed] our team to be a family,” Thibault said while concluding his speech as his family, including his son and Lynx associate head coach, Eric, was in attendance. “I couldn’t do this without them; I wouldn’t be here without them and I hope that all of you can appreciate or have those moments in life where you look back and you say this was worth it because of the people who were worth it. I want to thank you all today.”
