Seven is a lucky number—unless you’re a WNBA coach.
This season, seven coaches were fired in the WNBA. Tanisha Wright (Atlanta Dream), Curt Miller (Los Angeles Sparks), Christie Sides (Indiana Fever), Eric Thibault (Washington Mystic), Latricia Trammell (Dallas Wings), Stephanie White (Connecticut Sun), and Teresa Weatherspoon (Chicago Sky). Of all seven, Wright had spent the most seasons as a head coach, three with the Dream. Weatherspoon got the boot after a year with the Sky. White, Sides, and Wright were booted after making the playoffs.
Sides helped the Fever win seven more games than they did last year. White won Coach of the Year in 2023, as well as Associate Press Coach of the Year, and was the head coach of the WNBA All-Star Game.
The firing started Sept. 24, five days after the end of the WNBA regular season, when the Sparks parted ways with Miller. Five more coaches were fired within 33 days. Monday, Oct. 28, the Sun (hopefully) wrapped up the coaching crisis by announcing that they were parting ways with White.
Some say it’s the unprecedented growth in the WNBA. This season brought record-breaking attention and viewers to the league. With all eyes on the WNBA, it’s safe to say that general managers and front offices want to keep fans’ attention, by ensuring each team is utilizing their players’ potential to the best of their ability. Unfortunately for the coaches, whenever an owner wants to make a change, the first person to go is the head coach.
One Team’s Fired Coach is Another Team’s Treasure
Days after being fired by the Sun, White was picked up by the Fever. This isn’t her first go-round with Indiana. White was drafted by the now-defunct Charlotte Sting in the 1999 WNBA Draft. After a single season, they traded her to the Fever. She joined the Fever coaching staff as an assistant coach in 2011, before taking over in 2015 for former head coach Lin Dunn. She led the Fever to two playoff appearances before taking a head coaching job at Vanderbilt.
During her time with the Sun, she compiled a 55-25 overall record, and advanced to the second round of the WNBA playoffs each season. She had a 7-7 postseason record.
On Nov. 2, the Sky announced they were hiring Tyler Marsh as their new head coach. Marsh joined the Las Vegas Aces in March 2022 as an assistant coach. He was with the team for their back-to-back championships in 2022 and 2023. In his three seasons, the Aces were 77-29 in the regular season, and 16-9 in the playoffs.
Marsh also has some background with the NBA. In the 2018-2019 season, he won a championship with the Toronto Raptors as a player development coach. He also spent two seasons as a player development coach with the Indiana Pacers.
After a historic year, it’s only right the WNBA does something to start the 2025 season off historically. For the first time since its inaugural year, the WNBA will have seven new faces on the sidelines
