The Seattle Storm announced Sunday that head coach Noelle Quinn’s contract will not be renewed for the 2026 season.
“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,” Storm general manager Talisa Rhea said in a statement. “She put us in a position to win at the highest levels of the game and for that, we are grateful.”
The announcement said that Seattle would begin searching for a new coach immediately.
Quinn played in the WNBA for 12 seasons (2007-2019), including parts of five seasons for Seattle. She was a member of the Storm’s championship team in 2018, then joined Seattle’s coaching staff as an assistant the following season. Quinn was Seattle’s head coach from 2021-25.
Seattle’s season ended on Thursday when the Las Vegas Aces eliminated the Storm in the first round of the playoffs.
Although Seattle pushed the Aces to the limit in that series, the failure to advance was a disappointment for the Storm, who had a league-high four 2025 All-Stars in their lineup. The team hasn’t won a playoff series since Breanna Stewart’s and Sue Bird’s last season in Seattle in 2022.
In addition to the mediocre on-court results, Quinn presided over locker room turmoil. Franchise stalwart Jewell Loyd requested a trade following the 2024 season after 10 years with the organization. That came in the wake of an investigation into the franchise for workplace misconduct, including alleged mistreatment of players by the coaching staff. The investigation uncovered no wrongdoing, but Loyd left anyway.
Veteran Alysha Clark, who played in Seattle from 2012-2020 — many of those years alongside Quinn — returned to the franchise for the 2025 season, but also requested a trade prior to the deadline; she was sent to Washington in return for Brittney Sykes.
The Storm are currently one of three franchises seeking a head coach, as expansion teams Toronto and Portland have yet to hire a head coach.
(Photo: Ryan Sirius Sun / Getty Images)
Sep 22, 2025
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