Liberty general manager Jonathan Kolb was composed Thursday morning as he explained his reasoning for firing coach Sandy Brondello a year removed from the franchise’s first WNBA title.
It wasn’t punishment for her failing to maximize a roster that, despite injury, was still one of the deepest in the league. Nor was it a quick reaction to the team’s abrupt first-round exit. This decision, according to Kolb, was “thorough” and one not made in the vacuum of this season.
“You’re somewhat playing with fire if you make decisions based on the past,” Kolb said of Brondello’s success in 2024 and the Liberty’s 9-0 start to the 2025 season before injuries became an issue. “Our organization has always taken pride in being innovative and looking forward and being future oriented and process based. For us, we not only evaluate our own team throughout the season, but we evaluate the league.”
Kolb continued to emphasize throughout his hour-long press conference that the WNBA landscape is changing. To keep up with it, a change in personnel was necessary, which ultimately was his explanation for why he decided not to pick up the option on Brondello’s contract for the 2026 season.
Brondello signed a two-year extension following the team’s title in 2024, with a team option in the second year. Kolb said the assistant coaching staff is still being evaluated, but the team will also be “parting with” Olaf Lange who is married to Brondello.
The Liberty finished the regular season 27-17 and entered the playoffs as the fifth seed. After dropping a decisive Game 3 to the Phoenix Mercury, players, including Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu, expressed their staunch support of Brondello.
After her firing, many took to social media to share their gratitude for the two-time WNBA championship winning coach. Ultimately, however, Kolb made it clear the decision was his and it was anchored by his commitment to positioning the Liberty at the top of the league in a “sustainable way.” He was adamant the move won’t impact the likelihood of the Liberty’s core returning in free agency.
“I have the utmost confidence that [Stewart, Ionescu, and Jonquel Jones] want to be back with us,” Kolb said.
Kolb said the franchise will not limit the scope of its search nor does it have a timetable. “As long as it takes to find the right person,” Kolb said. He also declined to get into specifics regarding the qualities they will look for in a new coach, but said they have a “very clear vision” on qualifications of their ideal candidate.
Multiple sources told Front Office Sports that the Liberty are targeting candidates with NBA experience.
Cheryl Reeve—who has been coach of the Lynx for 16 years—is the longest-tenured coach in the WNBA. The next is Las Vegas Aces coach Becky Hammon who was hired in 2021. Mercury coach Nate Tibbetts is in his second season after over a decade in the NBA as an assistant. Eight of the league’s 13 WNBA teams were led by first-year coaches in 2025.
Kolb has worked in the WNBA in various capacities for over 16 years. This was his seventh season as GM of the Liberty. During his tenure, the landscape of the WNBA has shifted not only in how the game is played, but operationally. The league and individual franchises have seen an influx of investment which has ultimately contributed to an expanded pool of coaching candidates.
Brondello is a top five coach in the WNBA and has already received inquiries from the three franchises with coaching vacancies, according to multiple sources: the Seattle Storm, Portland Fire, and Toronto Tempo.
The four vacancies, including the Liberty, will garner immense interest from candidates across the coaching landscape.
“Candidates are now looking at this league not as a stepping stone but as a destination,” Kolb said. “That should be tremendously exciting. I feel that the pool is vast because of the growth of the league, the storytelling around the league, and the caliber players that are not only playing now but are going to be coming into the league for the foreseeable future.”
