WNBA fans were collectively stunned by the surprise dismissal of the Liberty’s head coach Sandy Brondello Tuesday morning — one year after she led the team to its first WNBA championship in franchise history
(Notably, Brondello’s contract was not renewed at the end of last season.) Brondello’s firing comes after New York failed to advance past the first round of playoffs this year.
The 2025 season was a tough one for the Liberty, who weathered more than their fair share of injuries and didn’t have the opportunity to play with a fully healthy roster for much of the year. The 2026 offseason will be important for every team in the league, and New York is no exception — the vast majority of the roster will be available during free agency, and Brondello’s departure could inspire players to make changes of their own.
The news might have been a surprise, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t teams who can stand to gain something in its wake. Right now, three teams — the Toronto Tempo, Portland Fire, and the Seattle Storm — lack head coaches, and each would stand to gain from Brondello’s experience in the WNBA.
Sandy Brondello and the Seattle Storm
Of the three teams who are currently coachless, the Storm have the most to gain by immediately and aggressively pursuing Brondello as head coach.
The team also suffered their own disappointing first-round playoff exit, boasts a promising roster made up of a strong veteran presence, and are clearly hungry to win again.
Brondello coached Skylar Diggins in Phoenix during the 2020 and 2021 seasons, and Diggins had no problem taking a dig at the Mercury in Brondello’s defense as the team struggled in 2023.
Sandy Brondello and the Portland Fire
The Fire have already added Vanja Cernivec, the former VP of basketball operations for the Golden State Valkyries, to their front office team this year — and convincing Brondello to take a chance on a new team might be a possibility too good for the incoming expansion team to pass up.
Of course, it remains to be seen whether or not the Fire will be able to host an expansion draft and get off the ground ahead of the 2026 season, but assuming the new CBA is negotiated and a team is signed, Brondello would be a powerful leader.
Sandy Brondello and the Toronto Tempo
The Tempo have been pretty quiet since announcing Monica Wright Rogers as GM in February 2025, and like the Fire, are likely waiting to understand the result of CBA negotiations before announcing any new moves.
But a move to Toronto could make sense for Brondello in a few ways, including the fact that it’s a lot closer to the life she’s built in New York that either of the other two teams mentioned above.
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