The league still must approve the sale, which will be for a record $325 million, and declared Saturday nine other cities which sought WNBA expansion franchises "have priority over Boston."

Pagliuca hoped to purchase the Celtics this past year from fellow owner Wyc Grousbeck, but another ownership group, led by Bill Chisholm, was selected. Now, the longtime Boston sports owner could be bringing women’s basketball to Boston.

Steve Pagliuca, a minority governor of the Boston Celtics, has purchased the Connecticut Sun and plans to move the team to Boston by 2027.