rewrite this content and keep HTML tags
UNCASVILLE — As the Connecticut Sun took a water break in between reps during their first training camp practice of 2025 on Sunday, UConn legend Tina Charles immediately pulled rookie center Rayah Marshall to the side of the court.
Marshall, a third-round 2025 draft pick out of USC, hung on to Charles’s every word as the eight-time All-Star demonstrated proper body positioning in the post, and Charles gave the rookie an encouraging pat on the back of the head as she sent her back into the drill.
Advertisement
“I was just trying to tell her about her timing. You know, when to duck in, when to take advantage of when her player is off of the ball,” Charles said. “It’s just taking time, seeing how players respond, what they respond to, where they need help, just trying to help. I think that’s the main thing … I’m thankful at this point in my career that I’m at the age I’m at and had the experiences to be able to help them.”
Charles arrived in Connecticut barely 24 hours before the start of training camp after helping her overseas team Fenerbahce to its fifth consecutive Turkish Super League championship on April 20, so she wasn’t actively participating during the Sun’s open practice period Sunday. But anyone who didn’t know better could easily have mistaken the 13-year WNBA veteran for another assistant coach on the floor, constantly offering feedback and encouragement from the sideline. She spent several minutes chatting one-on-one with first-year coach Rachid Meziane and pointed out observations to director of scouting Darius Taylor as the team ran through its workout.
Though she hasn’t played for the Sun since 2013, Charles is by far the most experienced player on Connecticut’s reconstructed roster: No one else has been in the league more than seven years. Joining a squad with just three returning players, a brand-new coaching staff and seven rookies at the start of camp, Charles is taking her role as a mentor for the team seriously.
“A win for me is just helping the young players, being able to give back to the game that’s given so much to me,” Charles said. “A win for me is making our players better, holding them accountable to a standard to which I held myself at their age. So for me, it’s just about impacting and pouring into them.”
Advertisement
UConn women’s basketball lands 18 alumni on WNBA camp rosters: Where to find the former Huskies
Players get positive first impressions of Rachid Meziane’s system
The Sun hired Meziane as the first European head coach in WNBA history this offseason, and the early feedback from players is overwhelmingly positive as the French coach looks to bring a new style of basketball to the league. Connecticut spent most of its open practice period Sunday working on transition plays and finding opportunities to disrupt defensively, and returning center Olivia Nelson-Ododa said Meziane places a heavy priority on pace at both ends.
“His system is a lot of five out and people moving, more positionless — and just quick ball movement. He really emphasizes that,” Nelson-Ododa said. “Coach even said, (he wants us) crossing the floor before the 20-second mark (on the shot clcok). He’s a run-and-gun coach. He wants us to run a lot and get up the floor, so just being prepared for that and dealing with different sizes of bigs and different levels of physicality.”
Advertisement
First-round draft pick Saniya Rivers felt some typical rookie growing pains on her first day of training camp, especially in dealing with the physicality from more-experienced players. But Rivers also said she can already tell that Meziane’s system will suit her two-way athleticism the same way NC State’s did.
“The pace is definitely faster, but I’m fast. I got these long legs, so I’m using my advantage … and the physicality, like I ain’t no punk or anything like that, but just getting the little bumps I got a bruise or two,” Rivers said with a grin. “(Meziane) wants us to push the ball. He wants us to get in the setup if we can’t get a bucket out of transition … It’s just adjusting to a new system, but it’s the same concept, so I love it.”
Why WNBA Draft picks Aneesah Morrow, Saniya Rivers offer hope for Connecticut Sun amid rebuild
Key players still absent from camp while competing overseas
The Sun has three players on its training camp roster who have yet to report as they finish their seasons in France’s Ligue Feminine (LFB) — the league where Meziane spent the first 19 years of his coaching career. The headliner is 2024 first-round draft pick Leila Lacan, a 5-foot-11 guard from southern France, who remained overseas last season to fulfill her obligations for the Paris Olympics as a member of the French national team. Lacan, 20, has played professionally since 2022, and she is expected to remain in France for at least another week with her team Basket Landes set to compete in the LFB semifinals Wednesday and Sunday. If Lacan’s squad advances, the finals series begins May 10.
Center Kariata Diaby and forward Amy Okonkwo also have not yet arrived in Connecticut after their team Bourges was eliminated in the French Cup final on Saturday. Diaby played for four years under Meziane on Villeneuve d’Ascq from 2020-24, and Okonkwo has been in the LFB since graduating from TCU in 2019, so having more players familiar with his style will help ease the implementation process for Meziane once they join camp.
