The Sky will have to do all the right things to successfully fill their head-coaching vacancy.
Right off the bat, that’s a tall order for an organization that has become comfortable doing the bare minimum. That complacency needs to end here. It’s the only way they stand a chance of luring a coach who can rescue them from their basement-dwelling reputation in the WNBA.
The Sky’s chances of landing the Sun’s Stephanie White — arguably the best coach in the WNBA next to Cheryl Reeve of the Lynx — are next to zero. But several assistants could be promoted to head-coaching roles, including for the Sky.
The Valkyries got the memo out early that the best head-coach candidates are WNBA assistants when they hired former Aces assistant Natalie Nakase. She’s the first Asian American head coach in league history. They hired her before waiting to see which teams would fire their head coaches, a testament to Nakase’s experience. The Sparks, Sky and Dream were the first to dismiss their coaches. The Wings have since fired Latricia Trammell. According to league sources, there will be more coaching vacancies before the end of the month.
Another product of Becky Hammon’s bench, Tyler Marsh also is being considered for several vacancies. According to one league source, Marsh already has spoken with the Dream and is expected to meet with the Sparks in the coming weeks.
In today’s WNBA, when franchises such as the Aces and Mercury pay their head coaches upwards of $1 million, that’s the starting point for a coach of White’s caliber. In the Sky’s 19-year history, they’ve never given a coach a seven-figure salary, not even to James Wade, who led them to their first title in 2021.
This week, the Sun conducted White’s exit interview while she was dealing with a family emergency. She did not elaborate on what her family was experiencing, but it has her full focus.
“I’m not having conversations right now about anything outside of my family,” White said. “I’m solely focused on my family and getting through this tough time.”
According to league sources, several franchises are trying to entice White to forgo the last year of her contract with Connecticut. If the Sky are unable to land White, their next best option might be to go after one of her assistants.
Briann January served on White’s bench for the last two seasons after a 14-year playing career in the WNBA. She won a WNBA title with the Fever in 2012. Fever senior adviser Lin Dunn was the coach at the time, and White was one of her assistants.
The biggest question regarding January’s potential fit with the Sky is whether she has the experience to handle a young roster. The Sky need a coach who can come in and establish a culture for a team with many strong personalities. This could lead them to go after someone with more experience than January.
Sky general manager Jeff Pagliocca could end up targeting the Lynx’s bench. Reeve’s lead assistant, Katie Smith, was hired by Minnesota in 2020 after serving as the head coach for the Liberty in 2018 and 2019. Before that, she spent four seasons on Bill Laimbeer’s bench with the Liberty.
Smith is expected to be heavily pursued for vacancies after the conclusion of the WNBA Finals on Sunday. The Lynx and Liberty are tied at two games apiece ahead of Game 5 in Brooklyn.
Other assistants likely to receive consideration for head-coaching positions are Rebekkah Brunson (Lynx) and Kristi Toliver (Mercury).
