The Penn State Nittany Lions zeroed in on a new head coach with the hiring of former player Tanisha Wright, the team announced on Thursday. Wright was previously coaching in the WNBA with the Atlanta Dream, and now she is tasked with transforming a Penn State program that has missed the NCAA Tournament in 12 consecutive seasons now.
Penn State’s hiring of Tanisha Wright as head coach comes on the heels of the program’s decision to part ways with Carolyn Kieger. Kieger was at the helm for seven years, but was only able to amass one wining record when the Nittany Lions went 22-13 in the 2023-24 season. This past season, Penn State was bolstered by the addition of Kiyomi McMiller, a high-scoring explosive guard, but the team managed only a 11-18 record, including 4-4 in Big Ten play.
Wright played for Penn State from 2001-2005. She was selected to three All-Big Ten teams as well as winning the conference’s Defensive Player of the Year Award three times as well. She went on to be the No. 12 overall pick in the 2005 WNBA Draft by the Seattle Storm.
Wright’s WNBA career spanned 14 seasons and stops with the Storm, New York Liberty and Minnesota Lynx. She was a member of the Storm’s 2010 championship team.
Upon retirement after the 2019 season, she joined the Las Vegas Aces coaching staff under Bill Laimbeer. She was then hired as head coach of the Dream in 2021, a position she held until the end of the 2024 season when the organization fired her. This past season, she was an assistant under Tyler Marsh with the Chicago Sky.
