Brionna Jones, Connecticut Sun agree to terms

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Brionna Jones and the Connecticut Sun have agreed to a multi-year deal that will keep Jones in Connecticut. Rachel Galligan reported it first, and The Next has confirmed this with a league source.

Prior to the 2020 season, many people had doubts about Jones being a starting center in this league, but Alyssa Thomas knew that she would succeed, praising her abilities on a media call in June.

“We have Bri Jones who’s a monster, who I play with in Prague. She has achieved a lot of times in her career and finally, she will have the opportunity to be on the floor and I think a lot of people will be surprised with what she can do and I’m just excited for her to have this opportunity,” she said. 

Jones proved the others wrong and Thomas right, posting career highs in points (11.2), rebounds (5.6), assists (1.0), steals (1.7) and minutes (26.1) per game. She also scored in double figures in five of the team’s seven playoff games, including 15 points and 10 rebounds in a pivotal Game 3 in the semifinals series against the Las Vegas Aces. 

Chiney Ogwumike’s Achilles injury led to the Sun playing Thomas at the four, which led to an expansion of her game. Thomas’ Achilles injury has the potential to force Jonquel Jones to play more minutes at the four. This could potentially expand Jones’ game while also opening up more minutes for Brionna Jones. 

With Jones returning, there is now potential for DeWanna Bonner, Jonquel Jones, and Brionna Jones to all be on the court at once, creating what could be a nearly unstoppable frontcourt that could power through opposing defenses and create problems for opposing offenses. 

The terms of the contract have not yet been released, but Jasmine Thomas was recently re-signed to a multi-year deal and Bonner, Jonquel Jones, Briann January and Kaila Charles represent 44% of the total cap. As the Sun continue to make moves in free agency less and less cap space is available for new signings, this signing could impact what else the team is able to do in free agency.