Things are rolling for the Toronto Tempo at a quick pace after the WNBA’s CBA was ratified last week. From preparations for the upcoming Expansion Draft, a coin toss to decide their draft order, and ramping up operations before the preseason officially starts, it’s been a busy time for Canada’s first WNBA franchise.
Among the announcements over the past week, two stood out: Hiring Carly Clarke as an assistant coach and bringing Masai Ujiri on as a part-owner of the team.
Clarke has served as the head coach of Toronto Metropolitan University’s women’s basketball team for over a decade. She is also a longstanding assistant coach of the Canadian Senior Women’s team, through multiple coaching changes and transitions. Bringing Clarke onto Sandy Brondello’s coaching staff bridges a gap between Canadian university women’s sports and the WNBA, which is incredibly important as USports continues to grow. Clarke is also Tempo’s first Canadian coach, and officially connects Canada Basketball’s program to the Tempo.
It’s also just proof of how the Tempo’s existence is already changing what is possible for people in the Canadian basketball community. The Tempo’s presence and involvement in the local community will hopefully shine a spotlight on the incredible development of both player talent and coaching and staff development as well. It opens up more jobs in an already condensed market, and gives Canadians a shot at opportunities that just did not exist before.
The Tempo’s other big announcement this week was the news that Masai Ujiri, former President and Vice Chancellor of the Toronto Raptors, is joining the team as a part-owner. Ujiri led the Toronto Raptors as a General Manager and eventually President, bringing the franchise its first-ever NBA Championship in 2019. More than that, Ujiri was essential in shifting the culture of the Toronto Raptors in the past decade and change, turning them from international underdogs to global changemakers. When Ujiri and the Raptors parted ways last June, there was a palpable sadness and loss in the Toronto basketball community.
Bringing Ujiri back to Toronto as a part-owner of the Tempo just makes sense. He has longstanding relationships with both Larry Tanenbaum and Tempo President Teresa Resch, whom he mentored for years on the Raptors. Ujiri’s work for Giants of Africa has also always had a deep impact on the women’s sports community worldwide, and continuing those efforts in Toronto is such a great next step for both Ujiri and the Tempo. Plus, his expertise from growing the Raptors will directly impact how fast the Tempo will go from an expansion team to WNBA Championship contenders.
These two efforts just cement the fact that the Toronto Tempo aren’t trying to simply fit into the WNBA landscape. They are truly carving a unique path as a Canadian WNBA franchise, adding Canada and Toronto’s diverse basketball culture to their franchise. You could say the Toronto Tempo is extremely Canada Down.
The result will be a team that embraces its identity as the sole international WNBA team and doesn’t run from it. Not everything about the Tempo has to be Canadian — a majority of players and coaches will inevitably end up not being Canadian — but these small efforts to make the Tempo unique to Canada will pay off. Think about how much the Blue Jays players love to play in Toronto, or how many Toronto-based pro athletes end up adopting Canada as a ‘second home.’
Leaning into the Canadianess of the Tempo’s identity will only help them have a true compass of franchise culture.
