The Seattle Storm suffered a brutal loss on Thursday in Game 3. Seattle advanced past Las Vegas, but Erica Wheeler missed what would have been a game-winning bucket. The Storm just announced a huge move after their 2025 season ended in dramatic fashion.
Seattle will not renew the contract of head coach Noelle Quinn, per ESPN's Alexa Philippou. The Storm will now have to search for a new head coach this offseason.
Seattle published a press release on Sunday to announce the move.
“On behalf of our organization, I would like to thank Noelle for her time with the Storm,” the press release began. ”Her commitment to the ongoing success of our organization and to furthering the development of our players was second to none,” said Storm General Manager Talisa Rhea. “She put us in a position to win at the highest levels of the game and for that, we are grateful.”
Quinn's first experience with the Storm came as a player in 2013. She came back to Seattle in 2016 and was even a part of the team's championship run in 2018.
Quinn immediately became an assistant coach on the Storm after retiring from the WNBA. She rose to the rank of assistant head coach in 2020, just in time for Seattle's fourth WNBA championship.
One season later, the team hired Quinn as head coach.
The Noelle Quinn era came to a sad end, but it should not take away from her incredible impact on the organization.
Quinn has the second most wins of any head coach (97) in franchise history. She also led the Storm to four playoff appearances during her five seasons as head coach. Unfortunately, Seattle only had a 4-8 postseason record with Quinn as head coach.
She will undoubtedly be a hot commodity on the coaching market this offseason. Especially with two expansion teams yet to announce their inaugural head coaches.
Meanwhile, the Storm could see plenty of changes during the 2026 offseason. On top of their head coaching vacancy, Seattle only has four players (Lexie Brown, Dominique Malonga, Jordan Horston, and Nika Muhl) under contract.
It will be fascinating to see what the future holds for Seattle.
