Apart from CBA, the WNBA is facing criticism on all fronts, including officiating, its stance on the Connecticut Sun franchise, and the limited involvement of black coaches in the league. The last female black coach in the league was Seattle Storm’s Noelle Quinn.
But following the first-round exit from the 2025 WNBA playoffs, the Seattle Storm fired HC Noelle Quinn. After that, the Storm named Sonia Raman as their new head coach, and Quinn got a head coach position at the Unrivaled’s new franchise, Breeze FC.
Noelle Quinn Accuses WNBA OF Excluding Black Coaches
During the media session for the Unrivaled League, Ben Pickman, Athletics’ reporter, asked the former Seattle Storm coach a contrast between the new league having five black women as coaches and the WNBA having none. The former champion hinted at the WNBA’s ‘deliberate attempt’ to exclude black coaches.
Quinn said, “It’s not by accident; I believe it’s intentional. Representation is possible when leadership chooses to make it possible.”
Noelle Quinn on 5 black women head coaches in Unrivaled vs. none in the WNBA:
— Meghan L. Hall (@ItsMeghanLHall) November 20, 2025
"It's not by accident. I believe it's intentional … Representation is possible when leadership chooses to make it possible."
Quinn on if she'll coach again in the W: "We'll see."
(Q: @benpickman)
The former Lynx rookie didn’t hold back, targeting the leadership, and even showed uncertainty over a possible return to the league. At the moment, only the New York Liberty franchise is without a head coach, and there are three expansion teams coming up in the next five years.
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But Quinn is not the only one who criticized the league over the lack of black coaches. There had been discussions about the discrimination around the league during the 2025 season.
Even before the firing of Quinn, a WNBA analyst’s fiery rant exposed a shocking lack of black female coaches, and now Quinn’s words have spiced up the topic.
Though the head coach was not happy with the WNBA’s approach as a whole and was also unclear about the possibility of coaching in ‘W’, one thing that certainly made her smile was Paige Bueckers’ game.
Noelle Quinn Praised Paige Bueckers’ Mid-Range Scoring
The 40-year-old HC has found a place in the Breeze FC locker room and will have the opportunity to coach the 2025 Rookie of the Year winner. Excited to work with former UConn superstar, Quinn lauded the youngster’s game, especially her mid-range shooting prowess.
“Super excited about Paige. She’s a big guard and you want to start your franchise off with a player of her caliber. Excellent leader. She can score the basketball, pass the basketball, post up. The middie is not dead. But what I’m most excited about is like who she is and what she stands for and having the ability to be around her every day. Growing the game, growing her game, and representing Unrivaled in an amazing way,” Quinn said on video around the Unrivaled draft.
The way people around the league, from vets to coaches, talk about Paige with so much respect and admiration is so special 🥹 she’s only a rookie yet they constantly praise her leadership and what she stands for pic.twitter.com/ZjwP2puKY3
— CFP (@sportsfan6718) November 10, 2025
Bueckers also showed excitement over the new league and her ‘young’ team. It will be interesting to watch how the former Storm coach will use the Wings’ guard in the 3-on-3 to make an impactful league debut.