Seattle Storm head coach Noelle Quinn defended the organization’s handling of a recent bullying investigation, stating that the team took the appropriate steps throughout the process.
“I believe that the organization did the right thing,” Quinn said, as reported by Kevin Pelton of ESPN. “Throughout this entire process, the communication level was tremendously high. I felt supported in a lot of ways and I know my staff felt supported as well. With anything like this, it is important to take the right steps, and our organization did that.”
The investigation followed accusations of harassment and bullying within the Storm’s coaching staff but ultimately found no violations. The controversy led to the departure of longtime Storm guard Jewell Loyd, who filed the complaint and later requested a trade. Seattle moved Loyd to the Las Vegas Aces in a three-team deal that brought the No. 2 overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft from the Los Angeles Sparks.
Storm happy with offseason moves
Storm general manager Talisa Rhea pointed to the team’s offseason moves as proof of confidence in Quinn’s leadership.
“We’ve been locked in with Noelle this entire offseason, and it’s been very clear through our free agency conversations that players do want to be here,” Rhea said. “They believe in what we’re building in Seattle. They want to play with Noelle.”
Despite losing Loyd, Seattle focused on retaining key players from last season’s 25-15 team, which reached the playoffs before being swept by Las Vegas. The Storm used the core designation on forward Gabby Williams and re-signed both Williams and Nneka Ogwumike on one-year deals. The team also brought back veteran forward Alysha Clark, who previously won two championships with Seattle and added a third with Las Vegas in 2023.
Quinn expressed enthusiasm about the roster and the upcoming season, emphasizing that the team’s moves reflect strong support for her coaching staff.
“Moving forward, the fact that we have built a tremendous roster — players who want to come and play for me, my staff, want to be a part of the organization — it will show the fans everything they need to know.”
With a key draft pick and experienced players returning, Seattle aims to turn the page on an eventful offseason as it prepares for the 2025 WNBA season.
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