Half of the teams in the WNBA are now without a head coach.
On Sunday, the Indiana Fever announced that organization was letting go of head coach Christie Sides after two seasons. She is the sixth head coach to be fired since the end of the 2024 regular season.
In 2024, Sides navigated early-season turbulence, from on-court struggles to the off-court spotlight that came with No. 1 pick and eventual Rookie of the Year Caitlin Clark, to led the Fever to a 20-20 record and playoff berth, the franchise’s best season since 2016. Sides was the WNBA’s Coach of the Month for August. She also received a one Coach of the Year vote.
Yet, Indiana, like much of the WNBA, seems infected with a lack of patience, rather than a spirit of perseverance. This posture also diverges from the sentiment expressed by Kelly Krauskopf, who recently returned to the Fever as the franchise’s president after serving as an executive with the Pacers since 2018. At her introductory news conference, Krauskopf appeared to give Sides a vote of confidence, saying:
I was really impressed with the progress that they made and how Christie is a resilient leader. You know, she’s a culture-builder. I know just that she’s got that kind of, you know, stamina to stick to it and stick to her plan, and she’s a good person, and she’s a great leader. I was impressed with the way they finished.
On Sunday, Krauskopf issued a statement that said:
While decisions like these are never easy, it is also imperative that we remain bold and assertive in the pursuit of our goals, which includes maximizing our talent and bringing another WNBA championship back to Indiana. Coach Sides was an incredible representative of the Fever and our community, and we wish her nothing but success in the future.
The Athletic has suggested that the organization’s interest in Connecticut Sun head coach Stephanie White could explain the decision to part ways with Sides. White was a player, assistant coach and head coach for the Fever during Krauskopf’s previous tenure with the organization. She remains under contract with the Sun.
Another interesting nugget was shared by The Next’s Tony East. He noted that Monday, Oct. 28 is set to be new general manager Amber Cox’s first official day on the job. It seems like she’ll be busy.
Timing is fascinating – tomorrow (October 28) is the day new GM Amber Cox is set to officially join the organization, per Fever. So her first order of business is pretty obvious. https://t.co/F4ReWCxoUB
— Tony East (@TonyREast) October 27, 2024
