Confronted by the mounting pressure of injuries, the Connecticut Sun cleared roster space and cap money Tuesday by suspending guard Allison Hightower and waiving forward Kelsey Griffin.
The moves give the Sun flexibility to work within the 12-player roster, which must be submitted to the league before Friday's opener against Washington at Mohegan Sun Arena.
The suspension of Hightower, who has played just 35 games over the past two seasons, can be lifted at any point in about a month once she is ready to play. She missed training camp following arthroscopic knee surgery in March.
Selected with the 15th pick in the 2010 draft from LSU, Hightower appeared in 115 games for the Sun over five seasons, averaging 6.