Storm Move On From Head Coach Noelle Quinn
The Seattle Storm will not renew head coach Noelle Quinn’s contract for the 2026 season, ending a four-year stint that saw her compile the second-most head coaching wins in franchise history. Credit: John Mac
After four seasons leading the team, the Seattle Storm announced it will not renew head coach Noelle Quinn’s contract for the 2026 season. The franchise will have a new head coach for the first time since 2021.
“On behalf of our organization, I would like to thank Noelle for her time with the Storm,” Storm general manager Talisa Rhea said in a press release. “Her commitment to the ongoing success of our organization and to furthering the development of our players was second to none. She put us in a position to win at the highest levels of the game and for that, we are grateful.”
Quinn was part of the Storm’s 2018 championship team as a player and helped coach the 2020 title-winning squad as an assistant. She took over as the Storm’s head coach following Dan Hughes’ retirement in 2021. Seattle has made the playoffs in three of four seasons under Quinn but hasn’t advanced past the semifinals.
Even without a championship, Quinn concludes her Storm coaching career with the second-most head coaching wins in franchise history. She possesses a 97-89 (.522) regular-season record and 4-8 playoff record (.500).
Pressure was mounting on Quinn during the 2025 season after the team had already underachieved in 2024. The Storm, who were loaded with talent and expected to compete for a championship, earned the fifth seed with a 25-15 record and exited the postseason after being swept by the Las Vegas Aces in the first round of the playoffs.
This season, the Storm finished 23-21 and earned the seventh seed — nearly falling out of the playoff picture completely after going 7-10 in August and September. Seattle had a championship-caliber roster and went all in by sending a first-round pick to the Washington Mystics in return for Brittney Sykes in the middle of the season. That was basically a rental with Sykes as a pending free agent.
Quinn’s departure could be a sign that even more change is coming, as all but four players on the Storm will be free agents this offseason. Even with their struggles, the players talked about the strong locker room culture under the now-former Seattle head coach.
“I know that we had a very tight-knit group when it came to the culture, so you’re hoping that you see a lot of these pieces back together,” Nneka Ogwumike said following the Storm’s Game 3 loss to the Las Vegas Aces on Sept. 18.
Even with that sentiment, Ogwumike admitted there will likely be a change on the horizon. How it affects the desire of players wanting to return will be telling over the coming months.
“The reality is that this team is not going to be the same next year,” Ogwumike added. “No team is ever the same from year to year. But I do know that we have a lot of people who bought into what we were about this year, so I’m very grateful to have been a part of it … I still believe in this organization and I know I’m not the only one who thinks that.”
Seattle has a pair of first-round picks in April’s WNBA Draft. It also has a rising star in 2025 No. 2 overall pick Dominique Malonga, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see them completely rebuild the roster around Malonga and a young core to build for the future.
