Patrick Reusse: A look back at the Connecticut Sun’s unique WNBA journey

The Lynx’s worthy opponents in the WNBA semifinals that started Sunday night in Target Center are candidates to represent the most unique franchise in a major professional sports league in North America.

The Connecticut Sun, 73-70 winners in Game 1, still would have to settle for No. 2 on that list for me, trailing the Green Bay Packers, headquartering a franchise in the most wildly successful league in history — in a city of 100,000 that wouldn’t exist without the vital importance of toilet paper.

The NBA started the WNBA with eight teams in 1997, added two teams in 1998 and the Orlando Miracle and the Minnesota Lynx were added to make 12 in 1999. The Timberwolves’ commitment to the effort was considerably more determined than that of the Orlando Magic.

The Miracle folded the operation and the franchise was sold to the Mohegan Tribe, to be located at the Mohegan Sun Casino and Resort. Address: Uncasville, in southeastern Connecticut, surrounded by smallish towns and much water.

This was a complete change of structure for the WNBA — the first franchise that had no connection to the NBA. When the Sun joined as independent owners for 2003, there were 14 teams.

Six of those either folded or moved: Detroit Shock, Charlotte Sting, Cleveland Rockers, Houston Comets, Sacramento Monarchs and San Antonio Streaks. The Mohegan Tribe has remained steadfast.

Among those with a fond memory of that commitment is Lindsay Whalen. For some, it is easy to forget that there was a lengthy gap for this homestate wunderkind between her stardom for the Gophers and her importance to the Lynx dynastic period.

Whalen led her team from ineptitude to the 2004 Final Four during her four seasons with the Gophers, then was taken fourth overall by the Sun in their Year 2. The Lynx were selecting two picks later and took Nicole Ohlde.