LOS ANGELES — After a season that ended in the franchise’s worst record, the Sparks opted to mutually part ways with head coach Curt Miller. During his two seasons in Los Angeles, Miller was 25-55 and, after an 8-32 mark, the Sparks missed the WNBA playoffs for the fourth consecutive season.
Despite the lack of success on the court, Miller created a healthy locker room environment and maximized individuals such as 6-foot-2 rookie forward Rickea Jackson and 6-foot-3 forward Dearica Hamby, both players receiving end-of-season award considerations. There’s a foundation to build in Los Angeles, Miller believes.
“I am proud of the culture created in our locker room and strongly believe the roots have been established for a bright future,” said Miller. “The team is now positioned for success, and I wish the players the best heading into the 2025 season.”
Miller’s connections and impact won’t be easy to replace, but in the name of greater success, the Sparks will give it a try. What might help is, due to their two years of struggles, they will have a 44% chance at the first overall pick in next year’s WNBA draft.
Here are some candidates for the organization’s 18th head coach:
Katie Smith
The Minnesota associate head coach has played a significant part in the Lynx’s 11-win improvement from 2023 to 2024. They are the No. 2 seed in the WNBA playoffs, currently tied 1-1 in a series against the third-seeded Connecticut Sun. Smith has had multiple stints as an assistant alongside Minnesota’s Cheryl Reeve, who on Wednesday was named the WNBA Coach of the Year and Executive of the Year. The Sparks could benefit from someone from Reeve’s tree.
In addition, Smith played 15 seasons in the league from 1999-2013, winning a pair of championships with the Detroit Shock in 2006 and 2008. She was the head coach for the New York Liberty from 2018-2019 and has spent time coaching Team USA.
Jenny Boucek
Currently an NBA assistant coach with the Indiana Pacers, Boucek hasn’t coached in the WNBA since 2017 when she was the head coach for the Seattle Storm, but her natural ascension would say she understands the inner workings of this league. She started as an assistant in Washington before a pair of stints with Seattle, which ultimately led to the promotion to head coach in 2015.
Since leaving the Storm, she has remained well-rounded, overseeing the Pacers’ offense in her first two seasons with the team before taking over the defense this past season. She’s in a coveted position, as one of the few women at the front of an NBA bench, but a return to the WNBA to help rebuild the Sparks could be tough to turn down.
Lisa Leslie
Changing course from the previous two options, the former Sparks star has yet to coach in the WNBA. She has, however, coached the Triplets of the Big 3, Ice Cube’s 3-on-3 basketball league, for six seasons, earning coach of the year in 2019.
Leslie, who’s from Gardena, would offer Sparks fans a familiar face. A player known for her consistency, she’d be a figurehead they can believe in. She played each of her 12 seasons as a pro with the Sparks, earning All-Star status in eight. She won the WNBA’s Most Valuable Player award three times (2001, 2004, 2006) and was also the Defensive Player of the Year (2004).
Taking over this slumping franchise would be like getting thrown into a fire for a first-time head coach, but Leslie knows this organization, its fans and this city better than just about any candidate for the position.
Cheryl Miller
The USC legend coached in the WNBA and in the NCAA, but hasn’t roamed a sideline since her stint with the Phoenix Mercury ended in 2000. That doesn’t mean she’s been away from the game. Miller has been a prevalent supporter recently as USC women’s basketball has grown into a juggernaut.
She, like Leslie, would offer Los Angeles basketball fans familiarity that inspires hope. Women’s college basketball has soared in recent years and the WNBA has ridden the coattails of its popularity to its own rise. Miller has seen USC smack dab in the middle of this charge. She can channel that energy for the Sparks.
Teresa Witherspoon
It would be a quick turnaround for Witherspoon, who was just fired after her first season with the Chicago Sky. She’s more than qualified though. Along with leading the Sky, she was an assistant for the NBA’s New Orleans Pelicans (2020-2023) and the head coach at Louisiana Tech (2009-2014).
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Witherspoon, who played in the WNBA for eight seasons, finished her career in Los Angeles in 2004, when the Sparks went 25-9 and were first in the Western Conference.
Witherspoon had a tight leash in Chicago as the Sky sputtered to a 13-27 record, a downward trend from 2023 when they made the playoffs at 18-23. She’d have to gain support through a couple of seasons that may also not involve much winning if she came to Los Angeles.
