A head coach’s job seems pretty clear, but it can quickly become complicated.
On the surface, the goal is to win as many games as possible. So, the team with the most wins should must have the Coach of the Year (COY), right?
Wrong. The last time the top team also had the COY was in 2022, when Cheryl Reeve won the award with the Minnesota Lynx. Often, context is what factors into being COY. Did you overachieve? Did your team overcome setbacks that others would’ve crumbled under? If so, then you could
be the WNBA COY.
With the league entering its final stretch of the regular season, here is how the COY race is looking. In the comments, let us know who you see as the leader in the clubhouse, and why.
Sydney Johnson (Washington Mystics)
Raise your hand if you had the Washington Mystics as a playoff team.
If your hand is up, I’m going to need to see some receipts. For most of us, this was a year of development for the Mystics. The goal was to figure out which players they could build with, and hopefully finding that answer could be fun and lead to some wins.
Head coach Sydney Johnson and his young players had other plans. They have secured their first winning season since 2022, have already clinched a playoff berth and can still finish as a top-four seed if things break their way.
Washington’s development has been phenomenal.
Shakira Austin is having a career year, averaging 16.8 points, 9.4 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game. Kiki Iriafen and Sonia Citron continue to be All-Stars who keep developing. New additions like rookie Lauren Betts have also fit in well. Johnson has found a perfect combination of winning and developing culture, making Washington one of the most fun and successful teams in the WNBA.
Cheryl Reeve (Minnesota Lynx)
Sometimes, a person is so good it’s undeniable. That’s Cheryl Reeve.
We probably shouldn’t be surprised that the winningest coach in WNBA history has a top team, but here we are, mystified.
This season was expected to be a bit of a gap year for the Lynx, with Napheesa Collier out at the start and her return date uncertain. Instead, Reeve relied on rookie phenom Olivia Miles and turned the Lynx into the best team in the WNBA.
The Lynx aren’t just the top seed in the league. If they win out, this will be the second-best Lynx regular-season winning percentage in franchise history—better than any of their four title teams and second only to the 2016 Lynx.
It’s unreal that Reeve, 17 years in, keeps breaking records and exceeding expectations. And with Collier back, they just might earn that elusive fifth title—all of which have been earned with Reeve as head coach. She then would become the WNBA team with the most championships ever, surpassing Van Chancellor of the Houston Comets.
Natalie Nakase (Golden State Valkyries)
Can Natalie Nakase be the next head coach to be a back-to-back COY winner? The last time that happened was when the aforementioned Chancellor was running the Comets in the late 1990s.
If anyone is deserving of such an achievement, it’s Nakase.
She has turned the Valkyries into a juggernaut in just two season in existence. Last year, reaching the playoffs as an expansion team was implausible, but she continues to do the impossible. The Valkyries currently have the second-best record in the WNBA, placing them as legitmate title contedners.
Golden State got here not with a high-powered offense. Instead they’ve relied on defense and team play. The Valkyries have the best defensive rating in the WNBA at 99.8. They only have three players scoring in double figures. Gabby Williams, their lone All-Star, is their top scorer who averages 14.3 points per game, which is the lowest point total for a team scoring leader in the WNBA this year.
To have such a balanced attack and still beat teams at such a consistent rate is a credit to Nakase, her coaching staff and the players buying into her vision. If she wins COY again, it’ll be because she’s been so good that even her winning it last season, and the raised expectations that often come with doing so, can’t take away from the job she’s done this year.
