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Sports Illustrated

Daniel Chavkin

WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury Parts Ways With Coach Vanessa Nygaard

Vanessa Nygaard Phoenix (Organization) WNBA Phoenix Mercury Mercury Sandy Brondello

The Phoenix Mercury announced Sunday that they have fired head coach Vanessa Nygaard after the team started 2-10 this season. Nikki Blue has been named interim head coach.

Nygaard was in her second season as the Mercury’s head coach, having taken over for Sandy Brondello in January 2022 after Brondello left for the Liberty. Prior to coaching Phoenix, Nygaard spent a year as an assistant coach for the Aces and a decade as the head coach of the Windward School high school girls basketball team in Los Angeles.

Last year, Phoenix went 15-21, the first time since the 2012 season that the Mercury lost over 20 games, and lost in the first round of the WNBA playoffs. So far this season, the Mercury have the worst record in the league.

Mercury parts ways with Head Coach Vanessa Nygaard, names Nikki Blue Interim Head Coach for the remainder of 2023 season. pic.twitter.com/bYdPEX7V7W
— Phoenix Mercury (@PhoenixMercury) June 25, 2023

Blue, who played in the WNBA from 2006 to ’10, takes over as the interim coach after joining the team as an assistant last year. Previously, Blue served as an assistant coach at four different colleges.

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