Even though the Los Angeles Sparks are not in the WNBA playoffs, they still managed to grab headlines and attention with the announcement that they had parted ways with head coach Curt Miller. With the Sparks securing the top odds for the No. 1 pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft this season, they will now turn their focus towards selecting a new head coach.

Whether or not Curt Miller deserves the blame for what's gone wrong for the Sparks the past two seasons is neither here nor there. What matters now is who should take the helm and inherit what could be one of the top young cores in the WNBA.

The Sparks already have two lottery talents in place with Cameron Brink and Rickea Jackson. They're poised to add another that could end up being the No. 1 overall pick. That's three potential franchise talents on the roster for the 2025 season. The Sparks need to get this next coaching hire right.

So with that said, here's a look at five candidates who should get consideration as Sparks head coach for the 2025 season.

1. Kristi Toliver

Dallas Mavericks assistant coach Kristi Toliver before the game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Denver Nuggets at the American Airlines Center.
Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Kristi Toliver was one of the most respected veterans and key locker room leaders for the Sparks in 2021 and 2022. While the team was in flux and searching for stability, Toliver was a steady voice on and off the court. She also stamped her place in Sparks lore helping the franchise to its last championship in 2016.

Toliver actually got into coaching while she was still playing. Since 2018, she's been an assistant coach in the NBA for the Washington Wizards and Dallas Mavericks. Once she retired following last year, she joined Nate Tibbett's coaching staff with the Phoenix Mercury.

She's somebody players pay attention to and listen to. She can be a perfect coach to grow alongside the Sparks' young core. If she feels like she's ready to become a head coach, the Sparks would be wise to put in a call.

2. Natalie Nakase

Las Vegas Aces first assistant coach Natalie Nakase reacts during the first half Las Vegas Aces at Crypto.com Arena.
Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Often times in professional sports, coaching hires come from a successful coaching tree. Look no further than the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA. Several assistants under Gregg Popovich have gone on to become head coaches, including Becky Hammon of the Las Vegas Aces in the WNBA. The Aces are back-to-back champs and have been an example of excellence in the league.

Natalie Nakase is currently an assistant coach under Hammon and also has experience in the NBA with the Los Angeles Clippers. She was a finalist for the Phoenix Mercury head coaching job in 2022 before they settled on Vanessa Nygaard. With this next coaching hire, the Sparks should look at a coach who can grow alongside their young core and Nakase fits that bill.

She's been a longtime assistant who is ready for her first head coaching job. She's familiar with the area having grown up in Southern California and having played college basketball at nearby UCLA. And most importantly, she would be coming from a highly successful organization.

3. Olaf Lange

Olaf Lange may not have WNBA head coaching experience, but he has a wealth of head coaching experience overseas. He's a two-time FIBA EuroLeague champion, a five-time Russian Women's Basketball Premier League champion and a five-time German League champion.

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He's no stranger to the WNBA though. He's currently an assistant coach for the New York Liberty under Sandy Brondello. He was an assistant with the Chicago Sky during their 2021 championship run. He was also an assistant with the San Antonio Stars where he was associate head coach in 2010.

And he's actually no stranger to the Sparks. Lange was hired as a team consultant during the 2013 season. He's a highly-regarded coach and could be ready to lead his own franchise in the WNBA. This could be a good opportunity for him to take the helm of a young, rebuilding team.

4. Pokey Chatman

Chicago Sky coach Pokey Chatman during the first quarter in game three of the 2014 WNBA Finals against the Phoenix Mercury at UIC Pavilion.
Jerry Lai-Imagn Images

While the aforementioned candidates have no previous head coaching experience, not only did Pokey Chatman spend nine years as a head coach in the WNBA, she's also been a head coach in the NCAA at LSU when the Tigers made three straight Final Four appearances. She led the Chicago Sky to their first WNBA Finals appearance.

Chatman had the unfortunate luck of landing with the Indiana Fever right when franchise cornerstone Tamika Catchings retired. But in that sense, she has experience with leading a rebuild as well.

She's currently an assistant coach on Noelle Quinn's staff with the Seattle Storm where she's been since the 2022 season. There's no indication that she's looking for a return to the sidelines as a head coach, but she's proven and she's coached in different situations. The Sparks would be wise to give her a call and gage her interest.

5. Cheryl Miller

Team WNBA head coach Cheryl Miller walks the sidelines during the WNBA All-Star Game at Footprint Center in Phoenix on July 20, 2024.
Joe Rondone/The Republic/USA TODAY NETWORK

This one is a little bit outside of the box. Cheryl Miller has not held a WNBA coaching job since 2000 when she was the head coach of the Phoenix Mercury. Her last head coaching stint came at Division 2 Cal State Los Angeles from 2016-2019. But during her WNBA coaching career, she amassed a record of 70-52 and led the Mercury to the playoffs three of her four seasons including a 1998 Finals appearance.

Miller stepped back onto the WNBA coaching scene this season though as the head coach of Team WNBA during All-Star Weekend. While she drew plenty of laughs for her hilariousness and humor, she did lead the team to victory over the Olympic team.

She has the local connection too. She starred at Riverside King High School where she dropped 105 points in a game during her senior year. She's one of the greatest players to ever don a USC Trojans jersey. The only thing is there's no indication that Miller would even want to go back to coaching full-time. While she had a lot of fun at All-Star Weekend, being a full-time head coach is a challenging and often thankless job. But it wouldn't hurt for the Sparks to put feelers out there.