Considering that the majority of the league will enter free agency in the winter, this offseason has a lot of potential for player movement. Players may not be the only people on the move, though. Several teams will also look different on the sidelines. While the playoffs are still in full swing, there are already four head coaching vacancies. The Toronto Tempo and Portland Fire still need to hire their first head coaches, and the Seattle Storm and New York Liberty elected not to bring back Noelle Quinn and Sandy Brondello.
While the Liberty will likely be looking for a proven coach who can bring the team back to championship contention, the other three may look at current assistant coaches in the WNBA—unless one of them just hires Sandy Brondello, of course.
If some of those organizations choose to look at assistant coaches, Briann January will certainly draw some attention.
Briann January is wrapping up her first season as a Fever assistant coach
Briann January played in the WNBA for 14 seasons, spending time with the Fever, Mercury, Sun, and Storm. Over that time, she was named an All-Star once, made seven All-Defensive teams, and won the 2012 championship with the Fever.
January also dabbled in coaching when she was still playing. She was an assistant coach for Arizona State’s women’s basketball team during the 2017-18 season. In 2023, she joined Stephanie White’s coaching staff in Connecticut as an assistant and is now also on her staff with the Fever. Between her stints with the Sun and Fever, January also worked for the Motor City Cruise, Detroit’s NBA G League team.
January works on the Fever’s defense, but has also built strong relationships with the players throughout the season. Caitlin Clark, for example, cited January as a helpful and supportive presence during her first real injury trouble as a pro. Her experience as a player and assistant coach in the WNBA will make her an interesting candidate for one of the open head coaching jobs—particularly the ones in Toronto and Portland, given Natalie Nakase’s success with the Valkyries.
The Valkyries found plenty of success by making a former assistant their first head coach
The Las Vegas Aces lost two assistant coaches last offseason: Tyler Marsh and Natalie Nakase. Marsh took over as the head coach for the struggling Chicago Sky, and Nakase became the Valkyries’ first-ever head coach. The latter found great success in her first season with Golden State, as the organization gave her an opportunity to build a system and culture from the ground up.
Nakase spent two years as an assistant coach with the LA Clippers before joining Becky Hammon’s staff in Las Vegas in 2022. She won two championships with the Aces before getting a shot with the Valkyries. January may not have as much coaching experience as Nakase had when she was hired, but she can make up for that with her playing experience.