By Mazvita Maraire Posted on

Storm part ways with head coach Noelle Quinn

Less than twenty-four hours after the team’s exit interview, the Seattle Storm parted ways with head coach Noelle Quinn. While several factors led to the front office making the decision, many of which only General Manager Talisa Rhea and ownership are privy to, there are plenty of reasons to speculate

EARLY AUGUST STUMBLE

The Storm lost six consecutive games from August 1st to August 13th. Of the six losses, 108-106 to the Sparks, 78-74 to the Fever, 91-87 to the Lynx, 90 -86 to the Aces, 94-91 Sparks for a second time, and finally a 85-75 loss to the Dream. The loss to the Dream was the only double-digit defeat. The swoon seemed to plant a seed of doubt that continued to grow as the season progressed. Put another way, the fan base and, to some degree, lost trust in Quinn’s ability to navigate the team through rough waters.

LATE SEASON REBOUND NOT ENOUGH

The Storm then won four of their next five games to erase some of the doubt. A devastating 91-85 loss to the Sparks at home turned mistrust into sheer contempt. The Storm led 85-80 with 2:47 remaining and never scored another point in the 91-85 loss. Making matters worse was the fact that the Storm could have clinched a playoff berth with a win. The losing skid went to two games when the Storm scored just 16 fourth-quarter points in the 84-76 loss to the Breanna Stewart-led New York Liberty.

CIRCLING THE WAGONS

With a playoff berth hanging in the balance, it became a matter of when, not if, Quinn would lose her job. A regular season ending 74-73 propelled the Storm into the playoffs as the seventh-ranked team to enter the playoffs. The win was a stay of execution for Quinn as the Storm were paired up with the Las Vegas Aces in Round One of the playoffs. In the best-of-three series, the Storm were boat raced 102- 77 in Vegas. No one gave the Storm a chance in game two, with most critics having written Quinn’s epitaph after the Game One blowout.

Quinn was able to get the most out of her players as the Storm sent the series back to Las Vegas for Game Three after the 86-83 upset win. The Storm were one rebound away from beating the Aces . The Storm had a 73-72 lead and forced a miss shot by Aja’ Wilson with 13 seconds left in the game. A unguarded Jackie Young tipped the ball back into the basket to give the Ace a 74-73 lead with 12 seconds left in the game. After a timeout out the Storm advanced the ball half-court and on the ensuing inbounds play, Erica Wheeler pulled for 14 14-foot jumper that was shot, and the game ended with the Aces moving on

DYE HAD BEEN CAST

For Quinn to keep her job she would have to get to the Conferece Finals. The valiant effort against the Aces was just that a valiant effort that fell short of expectitons in a space where doubt had crept in .

“On behalf of our organization, I would like to thank Noelle for her time with the Storm.  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.” In the teams press release.

Quinn started her Storm career as a player in 2013 and continued her tenure from 2016-2018, including being a member of the 2018 WNBA championship team.  Upon her retirement as a player, Quinn immediately stepped into the role as an assistant coach with the Storm in 2019.

She progressed to associate head coach in 2020, when the Storm won their fourth WNBA championship. In 2021, Quinn was named head coach of the franchise. She has the second most wins of any coach in Storm history and helped lead the team to four postseason appearances during her five-year head coaching tenure.  

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