The New York Liberty are working hard on their recruitment and looking for a long-term and successful coach to lead them back to glory following an early exit in the 2025 WNBA postseason. The Liberty fired Sandy Brondello in September, right after their playoff exit, despite players showing trust in the head coach.
The GM, Jonathan Kolb, mentioned that the new era will start soon, but for the last two months, the front office has been searching for the perfect replacement. As per reports, the Golden State Warriors’ assistant coach Chris DeMarco is a new name added to the list of probable.
Chris DeMarco Emerges As New Candidate For New York Liberty Head Coach Position
The New York Post had been keeping tabs on the Liberty’s head coach hiring and reported that Warriors assistant coach Chris DeMarco was a serious contender for the job. The franchise has interviewed multiple candidates from the NBA and WNBA coaching staffs so far.
The 40-year-old assistant coach was part of the Warriors’ four NBA championships and has more than a decade of coaching experience in the NBA. He even coached at the international level for the Bahamas’ Men’s national basketball team.
Warriors assistant coach Chris DeMarco has emerged as a serious contender for the Liberty’s head coaching job, multiple sources told The Post on Tuesday. https://t.co/SPy35yKzcl
— Madeline Kenney (@madkenney) November 19, 2025
He has spent the past 14 years with the Warriors, advancing from video coordinator to the player development role. In 2018, he joined Steve Kerr’s staff as an assistant coach.
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The Toronto Raptors’ assistant coach, Jama Mahlalela, was another NBA coach under consideration for the head coach position. The earlier three candidate list also includes Nets assistant Will Weaver and the Phoenix Mercury associate head coach Kristi Toliver.
Questions Around The New York Liberty’s Head Coach Appointment
Many analysts and reporters questioned the Liberty’s decision to fire Sandy Brondello, who held the record for most wins in the franchise’s history and even won their first championship in 2024. Although their performance in the 2025 season was not as a defending champion, despite the addition of some more offensive firepower, the team was unable to clear the first round of the WNBA playoffs. But it was important to note that the side struggled with injuries to key players in clutch games. Even Breanna Stewart played with an injury in the playoffs.
Answering the obvious question, GM Kolb provided reasons for Sandy Brondello’s firing and mentioned that the franchise is now looking for a more proactive approach. However, considering the time taken for the head coach search raises questions about whether the ‘firing’ was taken in haste or if the franchise is looking for a ‘perfect’ replacement that would overshadow the ‘firing’ decision.
In all, they must make a decision before the expansion draft to allow the new coach a voice in the retention and re-signing of players.