Quinn out as coach of Storm after playoff loss

Noelle Quinn will not return as head coach of the Seattle Storm in 2026, the organization announced Sunday.

The Storm lost 2-1 to the Las Vegas Aces in their first-round playoff series that concluded Thursday.

Quinn, 40, played in the WNBA from 2007 to 2018, including two stints with the Storm. She concluded her playing career with a WNBA championship with the Storm in 2018, then became an assistant to Storm coach Dan Hughes in 2019.

She took over as head coach early in the 2021 season when Hughes stepped down after six games due to health reasons.

Quinn, the only Black female head coach in the WNBA, finished with a 97-89 record in the regular season and a 4-8 mark in the playoffs. The Storm lost in the second round in 2021, the semifinals in 2022 and the first round the past two seasons. They did not make the playoffs in 2023.

"On behalf of our organization, I would like to thank Noelle for her time with the Storm," general manager Talisa Rhea said in a statement. "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."

The Storm went 23-21 this season and had the No. 7 seed in the playoffs. They lost their opening game 102-77 in Las Vegas but bounced back with an 86-83 victory in Game 2 in Seattle. They had a chance to upset the No. 2 seed Aces in the decisive Game 3 in Las Vegas but missed a shot in the closing seconds to lose 74-73.

"I'm super proud of my team, the growth they showed, the resiliency to be in this moment," Quinn said after the game. "I just wanted it so bad for this group, because they worked so hard. That's the competitor in me. I played so much basketball, sometimes I wish I was out there with them. This was a group that was so committed to each other and what we wanted to do this year."

Quinn's time as head coach with Seattle had highs, such as the semifinal run in 2022 that marked the conclusion of legendary Storm point guard Sue Bird's career. The lows, however, included a dispute between Quinn and her staff and longtime standout guard Jewell Loyd that boiled over last year and led to the Loyd's departure.

Loyd alleged harassment and bullying by the Storm coaching staff. The Storm organization conducted an independent investigation of the allegations, which concluded in December, without finding any violations. The Storm then traded Loyd at her request, and she spent this past season with the Aces.

After the Aces' victory in Seattle on June 1, Loyd alleged that a Storm assistant coach swore at her. The WNBA reviewed the complaint, but no disciplinary action was taken.