Lisa Leslie Swears Off Future WNBA Coaching Attempts After 2 Teams Reject Her

It’s hard to imagine that someone in the women’s basketball community would have more wisdom about the sport to offer players than Lisa Leslie.

Of course, Leslie is one of the most decorated players in WNBA history, being a two-time WNBA champion, two-time WNBA Finals MVP, three-time WNBA MVP, eight-time WNBA All-Star, and four-time Olympic gold medalist.

However, since her playing career ended in 2009, the only coaching she has done is in the Big3 3×3 basketball league (where she has also won a championship).

Leslie was the featured guest on the February 13 episode of Angel Reese’s Unapologetically Angel podcast. And at one point, she revealed that she attempted to become a head coach in the WNBA this past offseason — to no avail.

“You know what, I’m gonna say this for the first time: I put my name in a hat to coach this year for two teams, all the way down to the end. I won’t say who those two teams are. But I did not get picked,” Leslie said.

“And I feel like I would never make another attempt to go into coaching in the WNBA,” she continued. “Because, you know, you’ve got to be ten times as great as a Black woman in this industry. And when I tell you that who these people hired is not better than me, and what I can do for this team and players.

“I will never attempt to coach in the WNBA again, period. I moved on,” Leslie concluded.

It would be fascinating to know which two WNBA teams Leslie is referring to. Given that she spent her entire playing career with the Los Angeles Sparks (who hired a new coach this offseason), they seem like a likely place Leslie would want to be.