As soon as Veronica Burton felt Odyssey Sims rise up for a short jumper, the Connecticut Sun guard tossed her hands up, smothering the shot attempt of her Los Angeles Sparks matchup. Not a flashy pass or shifty crossover — but exactly the type of defense that’s become the Newton native’s calling card.
As the Connecticut Sun made history Tuesday night by hosting the first WNBA game at TD Garden, the 2018 Newton South High School graduate did too, playing her first game in Massachusetts since her Lions days in the building where she long rooted for her hometown favorite Boston Celtics.
“It’s even better than I anticipated, just seeing so many Bostonians coming out and filling the gym and so many people that I love and grew up with, it’s just been really surreal,” Burton said, “I’m grateful.”
With the TD Garden shedding its signature parquet floor for the Connecticut Sun’s orange, blue, and white, the Sun topped the Sparks 69-61 before a sold-out crowd of 19,145. The Sun (20-7) usually play home games at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, but they took over the home of the Boston Celtics and Boston Bruins to host the first-ever WNBA game at the venue.
So too did Burton and about 100 of her closest friends and family members.
Ahead of her first competitive basketball game in Massachusetts since falling to eventual state champion Braintree in the Division 1 South final to end her high school career, the 24-year-old received plenty of local media coverage. She appeared on multiple podcasts, on television and was profiled in numerous written stories. Many of her family members commented in the coverage, including Burton’s older sister, Kayla, who covered the game herself part of the NBC Sports Boston broadcast team, and her mother, Ginni, who celebrated her birthday watching the youngest of her four kids playing in the world’s best women’s basketball league just a few miles from home. Her father, Steve, narrated a team hype video widely shared on social media commemorating the first WNBA game at the TD Garden.
“I couldn’t have asked for a better situation,” Burton said. “Everything really worked out.”
Nearly two hours before tip, long before a sea of Connecticut Sun orange flooded the arena, Burton sat side-by-side with Kayla, sharing smiles and conversation in an otherwise quiet setting. Shortly after, music blared through the speakers — showtime. Warmup routine. Pregame interview. Sign a few autographs, then gametime.
A 5-foot-9 guard, Burton starred on the Newton South basketball team, nabbing two Boston Globe All-Scholastic Super Team nods before a standout four-year collegiate career at Northwestern University. The seventh overall pick by the Dallas Wings in the 2022 WNBA draft, Burton played a rotation role her first two professional seasons. Waived by Dallas during training camp, Burton signed a rest-of-season contract with the Sun in early June.
She found an immediate fit with the Sun, who rank second in the WNBA’s Eastern Conference. Meanwhile the Wings, who cut her, sit in a tie for last place in the league.
The list of attributes in which Burton feels growth in her game since she last played here includes just about everything, she said. Aggressiveness, basketball IQ, strength, and conditioning. With her patented hard-nosed defense and smooth playmaking, Burton went from little-used reserve to key contributor. After playing no more than seven minutes over her first seven games with the Sun, Burton’s averaged nearly 16 minutes per game in the 11 contests since.
Burton checked in to start the second quarter, making an immediate impact on the defensive end shot that led to a bucket on her assist, a la her favorite Celtic growing up, Rajon Rondo. She played more in the third and fourth quarters, running point and picking up whomever she defended full-court.
A historic day for WNBA, for the Sun and especially meaningful for Burton – a night she and her family will always remember.
“Just soaking it all in, it’s just really incredible to be here,” she said. “Through the ups and downs of this season alone, I think it’s just incredible.”
