Chris Koclanes is out as head coach of the Dallas Wings after one season, the organization announced Tuesday.
Koclanes joined the Wings from USC, where he served as an assistant to Lindsay Gottlieb, and before that worked with Wings GM Curt Miller in Connecticut and Los Angeles. His roster included the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s WNBA draft, Paige Bueckers, plus four-time All-Star Arike Ogunbowale.
Despite the talent, the Wings sat at the bottom of the WNBA throughout the season and finished with a record of 10–34.
“As we enter a pivotal point in our team’s future, we felt a change in leadership at this time was best for our organization,” Miller said in a statement. “The Dallas Wings remain dedicated to their pursuit of WNBA Championships and building upon the strong culture established on and off the court.”
Earlier this week, the Wings held a groundbreaking ceremony for their new practice facility, which the team says will be ready before the 2026 season. With the anticipated start of the new collective bargaining agreement, nearly all veteran WNBA players are slated to become free agents after this season. A new facility could help attract talent to Dallas to build around Bueckers.
The departure marks the fifth head coach opening in the WNBA. The Seattle Storm did not renew Noelle Quinn’s contract, and the New York Liberty parted ways with Sandy Brondello just one season after winning the league title. Toronto and Portland, the two expansion teams slated to join the WNBA in 2026, have also not yet announced their inaugural head coaches.
The Wings announced the firing on a busy news day for the WNBA. Earlier Tuesday, Napheesa Collier blasted commissioner Cathy Engelbert in her end-of-season press conference, saying the WNBA has “the worst leadership in the world.” Engelbert said in a statement that she was “disheartened by how Napheesa characterized our conversations,” but she did not deny any of the unfavorable comments Collier said she made.
