After an illustrious 40 year career in coaching basketball Storm head coach Dan Hughes announced his retirement Sunday afternoon. Twenty of Hughes’s years in the coaching profession were in the WNBA. Hughes’s tenure in the league included spots in Charlotte, Cleveland, San Antonio, and Seattle. The announcement came as a great shock to many on the team and even more around the league.
“After over 40 years of coaching basketball, I want to finish my career with the focus and determination with which I started,” said Hughes. “The Seattle Storm is in amazing shape, after two championships and a terrific playoff run in 2019, I would like to announce my retirement from the WNBA. I believe now is the right time because the team is performing well, but the rigors of being a head coach in the WNBA have taken their toll on me. I look forward to coaching with USA Basketball at the 2021 Olympics then leveraging my experience to give back to the game in other ways. Mary and I value the relationships we have formed in Seattle over the past four years and want to thank everyone for their ongoing support.”
In the announcement via a team press release, Hughes indicated he would remain as an assistant coach for USA Basketball in the upcoming 2021 Olympics in Tokyo.
“It is rare when a leader has the foresight to make changes at the pinnacle of their career,” said Lisa Brummel, co-owner of the Storm. “Under Dan’s leadership, the Storm have won two championships and he has built a great coaching staff here in Seattle. His dedication to his craft is second to none and his legacy is perfectly exemplified by his unselfish nature and ability to see all that lies ahead. It has been an honor to have Dan coach in Seattle and he will forever be attached to one of the most successful periods this franchise has known.
QUINN NAMED HEAD COACH
The Storm announced that Noelle Quinn will replace Hughes as the team’s new head coach. Quinn is currently the team associate head coach and will be supported by assistant coaches Gary Kloppenburg, Ryan Webb, and Perry Huang.
“I am excited to hand the reins to Noelle,” Hughes said.” She is well-positioned to do this job and I am proud to have mentored her during my time here. I look forward to her and the team’s ongoing success”.
Quinn joined the Storm coaching staff in 2019 following her first championship as a player in 2018. She has been instrumental in running the offense schemes for the Storm and has, most recently, handled the head coaching job in a 90-87 win over the Connecticut Sun.
Hughes closes out his WNBA career with the second most games coached in WNBA history (598), and is tied for the third-most wins with 286.
In his first year in Seattle, Hughes guided the team to a league-best 26-8 record, an 11-win improvement from the previous season; clinched the No. 1 overall seed in the playoffs; and swept the Washington Mystics in the WNBA Finals to earn the third title in franchise history.
He was twice named WNBA Coach of the Year: first in 2001, after guiding the Cleveland Rockers to a 22-10 mark; and again in 2007, after posting a 20-14 record with San Antonio.
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