Patrick Fertitta doesn’t expect major overlap between NBA’s Rockets, WNBA’s Comets

Later this year, the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun will relocate to Houston , where they will begin playing as the Comets in 2027. The Sun are now owned by Tilman Fertitta, who has owned the Rockets since 2017. So, in contrast to the Connecticut structure, the Comets are set to share an arena and infrastructure with an NBA team.

That means two sets of basketball operations teams, all overseeing the same sport and in the same location. While that could lead to some synergies, Patrick Fertitta — Tilman’s son, and a top executive overseeing both franchises — is making it clear that the Comets will primarily operate as their own entity. From the recent introductory press conference at Toyota Center, Fertitta said this after being asked about potential areas of overlap between the Sun and Comets, as well as between the Comets and Rockets: What I can tell you is that they are an operating team, currently.

So, a lot of that team, you will see transition. They’re busy during the season, as they have a job to do every day, now that their season has started. I would imagine that when the season comes to a conclusion, they will actually start physically making that transition.

Regarding the Rockets and what we have here, it would be foolish of us not to use some of the existing infrastructure and support. Not just in the transition, but once they’re here, to help them do their job at the highest level possible. But I think it’s important to say that the Rockets are the Rockets, the Comets are the Comets.