The Los Angeles Sparks are in the market for a new head coach after the organization made the decision to fire Lynne Roberts on Friday, ending her two-year tenure at the helm. While it was special advisor Farhan Zaidi who released the official team statement, the task of hiring a new coach will fall on new general manager Ariana Andonian as she gets her first opportunity to put her stamp on the franchise.
When selecting a new head coach, it would behoove the Sparks to chose a candidate who has both experience and knowledge of the WNBA, while also having a proven track record of sustained coaching experience. With that said, there are a couple of potential choices that would make sense, and here’s a look at some of them along with their pedigree.
1) Lindsey Harding
There’s been a small trend in the WNBA to hire successful college coaches, as Roberts herself was a part of. Karl Smesko has had success with the Atlanta Dream in leading them to back-to-back playoff appearances and Jose Fernandez just snapped the Dallas Wings’ two-year drought of missing the postseason. But the Sparks should go a different route, which leads to Lindsey Harding.
Harding was reportedly a candidate for the New York Liberty before they settled on Chris DeMarco. She’s spent the past two seasons as a highly-regarded assistant coach in the NBA with the Los Angeles Lakers. Prior to that, she was the head coach of the Sacramento Kings’ G League affiliate in Stockton where she was named Coach of the Year in 2023-24.
She spent a total of four seasons with the Kings organization in a coaching capacity. She also held a similar position with the Philadelphia 76ers after her retirement from the WNBA, where she brings nine years of experience as a player. She understands the game, understands the league and wouldn’t have to travel very far, just down the hallway at Crypto.com Arena to be exact. She’s been ready for a head coaching opportunity, and the Sparks would be wise to make the call.
2) Kristi Toliver
Kristi Toliver is another potentially good choice who brings a combination of experience both playing and coaching in the WNBA. And she’s a familiar face as well. Toliver played a key role on the last Sparks’ championship team in 2016, and during her last two seasons in Los Angeles in 2021 and 2022, she almost was like an extra coach on the sidelines.
She actually got her coaching career started while she was still playing in the WNBA. She was an assistant with the Washington Wizards in 2018, and then left for the Dallas Mavericks in 2021. She retired from playing after the 2023 season, and she’s been on staff with the Phoenix Mercury since.
Toliver was also a reported candidate for some of the WNBA head coach openings last offseason. She was part of a Finals run last season with the Mercury, even stepping in, in place of Nate Tibbetts who was ejected during Game 4. This season, she took over as acting head coach for one game in which Tibbetts was sick, and led the team to a win. She knows the Sparks organization, she knows the city, she deserves consideration.
Article Continues Below3) Briann January
Continuing with the successful assistant theme, Briann January is another great option for the Sparks to look at as potential head coach. Like Harding and Toliver, January’s experience as an assistant has come across the basketball spectrum. She too began her coaching career while still playing in the WNBA.
January did not retire from the league until 2022, but by then she had already served as an assistant coach at her alma mater of Arizona State. That year, the Sun Devils finished with a 22-13 record while advancing to the round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament. After retiring, January joined the coaching staff of the Connecticut Sun in 2023.
She branched out into the NBA realm in 2024-25 as an assistant coach with the Motor City Cruise, the G League affiliate of the Detroit Pistons. This season, she reunited with Stephanie White, whom she worked under with the Sun, on the Indiana Fever coaching staff. She doesn’t have as much official coaching experience as Harding and Toliver, but she’s quickly become a respected voice on the sidelines and has a penchant for defense. The Sparks should include her in the search.
4) Teresa Weatherspoon
Unlike the aforementioned candidates, Teresa Weatherspoon brings head coaching experience in the WNBA. Her brief tenure at the helm of the Chicago Sky was notable in the sense that she seemingly had the respect of her players. She was brought in to a rebuilding situation and had the team in playoff contention before Angel Reese’s season-ending injury in 2024.
And speaking of Reese, she has spoken quite fondly of Weatherspoon since then, and Reese even had her on as a podcast guest. Additionally, Weatherspoon managed to keep mercurial guard Chennedy Carter in tow and on the roster throughout the entire season. Carter responded with a career year.
Sky management inexplicably gave up on Weatherspoon after only one season, and since then she’s served as a head coach in Unrivaled. Prior to her stint with the Sky, Weatherspoon was in the NBA on staff with the New Orleans Pelicans, where she’s been credited with playing a pivotal role in helping develop and manage Zion Williamson. She too, understands the WNBA, has the requisite experience and comes highly-respected. She should be one of the names on the Sparks’ list.