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The Phoenix Mercury have named longtime Arizona State women's basketball coach Charli Turner Thorne to their coaching staff, according to a press release.
An Arizona Women’s Basketball icon is taking a seat on our bench.
Legendary @SunDevilWBB Coach Charli Turner Thorne joins the Phoenix Mercury as an Assistant Coach on Nikki Blue’s staff! pic.twitter.com/QOxBqqZYrI
— Phoenix Mercury (@PhoenixMercury) June 30, 2023
Turner Throne was the head coach at Arizona State from 1996 until 2022. Current Mercury interim coach Nikki Blue was an assistant under Turner-Throne with the Sun Devils from 2019 to 2022.
Blue released a statement about Turner-Thorne's addition:
“Charli is one of the top coaches in women's basketball — a proven winner — and I am excited to be able to coach alongside her again,” Blue said. “She brings more than 28 years of experience to the Mercury, and will be invaluable in providing our players with every opportunity to improve individually and as a team.”
Turner Thorne is the winningest coach in Arizona State women's basketball history. She coached the Sun Devils to a 488-294 (247-190) conference record in her tenure. Turner Thorne was named Pac-10 Coach of the Year in 2001 and Pac-12 Coach of the Year in 2016.
She coached at Northern Arizona from 1993 to 1996. Before then, Turner Thorne was an assistant at Santa Clara (1990-1993) and graduate assistant at Washington (1988-1990). Charli Turner Thorne played four years of college basketball at Stanford.
Phoenix fired coach Vanessa Nygaard after it tied its worst 12-game start in franchise history. It promoted Blue to interim coach after Nygaard's dismissal and she got her first win as Mercury coach Thursday against the Indiana Fever, 85-63.
Blue spoke about what it meant to get her first win after the game.
“It's not about me, but a year ago in March, I was an assistant coach at [Arizona State University] and Charli Turner Thorne said she was retiring and wanted to hand over the program to me and the administration ended up opening the search, and they actually found a phenomenal coach (Natasha Adair) who is great,” Blue said. “But to be told I checked all the boxes except one, which was head coaching experience, was difficult for me, since I was so bought into that school and I wanted that job. But for m to come in tonight, it reminds us to get this win and reminds me of that saying, ‘God doesn't call the qualified, he qualifies the called.'”
Blue got an opportunity with the Mercury. Now, she is calling on Turner Thorne to help her try and save the team's season. Turner Thorne will be on a staff that also includes assistants Tully Bevilaqua and Taja Edwards.
