Around the Sun

Inspired by ‘Big M’: Roneeka Hodges Brings Style and Steadiness to a Struggling Sun

By Anthony Price 

Associate head coach Roneeka Hodges watches the game. Photo: Clay Johnson

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​The Connecticut Sun is in the middle of a brutal stretch—a nine-game losing streak and coming off a winless road trip that exposed just how fragile this young roster can be. They are in freefall. 
 
Now 2-15, the team faces even more adversity with the loss of seven-year veteran Marina Mabrey, their second-leading scorer at 15.2 points per game, who is expected to miss a month. 

But amid the chaos, first-year associate head coach Roneeka Hodges remains a steadying force. Stylish, focused and quietly ambitious, she’s helping to keep the team grounded while pursuing her dream of becoming a head coach in the WNBA.
 
Hodges’ favorite thing about coaching the Sun is getting to know the players and building relationships, precisely what this young team needs. 

All Business 
 
With her long braids pulled back and a no-nonsense expression, Hodges carries herself with the poise of someone who’s been through it all. She’s calm, composed—and all business. 
 
“Things have not been going well this season,” Hodges says in a soft but firm voice. “Let’s not sugarcoat that.” She delivers the words like she would to a player in the locker room—direct, but constructive. “We have to understand it is a process, but also continue to show up to work every day with a positive mindset.”
 
Last season, Hodges helped lead the New York Liberty to their first WNBA championship as an assistant coach—a memory that remains her favorite in basketball.

Things have not been going well this season. Let’s not sugarcoat that.

Angel Reese, #5, and Tina Charles, #31, talk. Photo: Clay Johnson

I spoke to Hodges on the telephone on Friday morning, where she was in a hotel lobby in Seattle preparing for the third game of the Sun’s road trip—a game the Sun lost 97-81. 
 
Her journey has been long. After a college career at LSU and Florida State University, Hodges was drafted 15th overall by the Houston Comets in 2005. She went on to play 11 seasons in the WNBA with six different teams and on multiple teams overseas. 
 
After her playing career ended, her coaching career began at LSU, her alma mater, then at Old Dominion University, Colgate University and eventually back to the WNBA with the New York Liberty. 

Fashion 
 
Hodges also enjoys the game of fashion. 
 
Since the pandemic, most coaches have chosen to ditch suits for matching athletic gear, their version of business casual. Not Hodges. She wears suits in a palette of colors, textures and styles to lift her mood. 
 
On June 15th, the Sun played the Chicago Sky at Mohegan Sun Arena. Hodges looked chic in a yellow suit, black t-shirt and small gold chains around her neck. Her black shoes by her favorite shoe brand, The Office of Angela Scott, kept the limelight on her suit. 

That day, I was like, okay, we need a little bit of sunshine! And I felt like yellow was the color.

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Fashion is her release. “I feel like when I wake up in the morning, I just think about how I feel as a person,” said Hodges. “And then I start thinking about what’s happening within the team and what’s happening within my world—like within my circle.” 
 
“That day, I was like, okay, we need a little bit of sunshine! And I felt like yellow was the color.” Hodges stood out, but the team lost to the Sky, 86-83. 

Style Icon: “Big M” 
 
Hodges’ style journey began when she was growing up in New Orleans in the 1980s and 90s, where she lived with her grandmother, Marion Varnado, a small woman in stature. 
 
Varnado, also known as “Big M,” set the standard. Today, she is 87. 
 
“I realized how style played a part in my childhood as I’ve gotten older,” said Hodges.  “I grew up with my grandmother, and she was one of those women who was always dressing up. Whether she was going to church, work, or to hang out with friends.” 
 
To Hodges, Big M was as consistent as the seasons. 

“She was always dressed to the T. She matched and looked good. Didn’t matter the occasion, she looked amazing every single day,” said Hodges. She didn’t think much about it back then, but it has become the standard by which she holds herself. 
 
It wasn’t just the clothes. Her grandmother made sure her hair and nails were taken care of on a regular basis. Her hygiene was immaculate. She had the same high standard for Hodges and her four siblings, picking out their clothes and ironing them in the morning. 
 
Hodge has a twin sister, Doneeka, and a brother, Donald. Two other brothers, Ronald and Magic, are deceased. 

L-R, Ashlee McGee, Sun assistant coach, Roneeka Hodges, associate head coach. Photo: Clay Johnson

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​Tattoos 
 
Hodges has at least 20 tattoos that document her journey.  
 
The tattoo on her left leg features praying hands sitting on wings, accompanied by the acronym "PUSH": Pray Until Something Happens. This image honors her late brother Ronald, who passed away in 2009. 
 
Hodges wore a dark suit jacket and shorts to propose to her then-girlfriend, Tia, an actress. The tattoo on her leg is visible for the world to see on Instagram—in a way, Ronald was there for that moment. 
 
She dropped down on one knee and popped the question. Tia said, “Yes.” A wedding will take place in late 2026 or early 2027, according to Hodges. 

I think that all of my tattoos have come at a time during my life where something happened and I felt a certain way, so I got a tattoo to help me to remember it or to help me to get over a situation.

​“I think that all of my tattoos have come at a time during my life where something happened and I felt a certain way,” says Hodges, “so I got a tattoo to help me to remember it or to help me to get over a situation.”
 
She has learned from her pain. “I’m always one of those people who’s big on just living and enjoying life and also showing love and loving people.”   

Suns Olivia Nelson-Ododa drives. Photo: Clay Johnson

Fashion Show 
 
Hodges has managed to combine two things that mean a lot to her: basketball and fashion.  
 
“I’m one of those people who love to get dressed up, and I do love fashion,” she said. 
 
In a season where wins are hard to earn, Hodges shines bright on the biggest stage of all, life. 
 
Staying the Course
 
In a season defined by growing pains and tough losses, Roneeka Hodges remains a beacon of steadiness and intention—whether she’s coaching from the sidelines or walking into an arena dressed like she already belongs in the head coach’s seat.
 
The wins may be slow to come. But if Hodges is any indication, there’s still plenty of fight—and a little flair—left in Connecticut.

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Anthony Price is an entrepreneur, author and publisher of CT Hoops Magazine. Around the Sun is a weekly column about the Connecticut Sun. ​​