The trend of NBA coaches jumping to the WNBA continues.
The New York Liberty reportedly have agreed to terms with long-time Warriors assistant coach Chris DeMarco to become their new head coach, reports Shams Charania of ESPN.
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DeMarco brings a serious resume, including four NBA championship rings. He has been a Warriors assistant coach for 13 years — he was hired as a video coordinator by Mark Jackson and was the lone holdover from that staff when Steve Kerr took over. DeMarco’s role as an assistant coach has grown over the years, and in the past couple of years he has essentially been the team’s defensive coordinator. He is also the head coach of the Bahamas men’s national team.
DeMarco replaces Sandy Brondello, who won the WNBA Championship with the Liberty just a season before in 2024. However, after the team started fast at 9-0 last season, injuries began to pile up to Jonquel Jones, Breanna Stewart and others, and after the fast start the team went essentially .500 the rest of the way, finishing 27-17 and getting bounced in the first round of the playoffs by eventual finalists Phoenix. Brondello has said she felt she and Liberty management weren’t on the same page.
DeMarco takes over a team that expects to return to competing for a title — if they can bring their stars back (under whatever the new CBA ends up looking like, the Liberty left themselves a lot of flexibility, but that comes with risk). Jones, Stewart, Sabrina Ionescu and all but two Liberty players (Leonie Fiebich and Nyara Sabally) are free agents.
