The Indiana Fever have fired head coach Christie Sides after two seasons, the team announced on Sunday.
Sides led the Fever to a sixth-place finish in the 2024 regular season. With the result, Sides led the team to its first playoff appearance in eight seasons, but the team was swept in the first round by the Connecticut Sun.
In a statement, Fever President of Basketball Operations Kelly Krauskopf called Sides “an incredible representative of the Fever and our community.”
“We are incredibly grateful to Coach Sides for embracing the challenge of leading us through an integral period of transition over the past two seasons, while positioning ourselves well for future growth,” Krauskopf said in the statement. “While decisions like these are never easy, it is also imperative that we remain courageous and assertive as we pursue our goals, including maximizing our talent and bringing another WNBA championship to Indiana.”
Backed by the trio of Caitlin Clark, Aliyah Boston and Kelsey Mitchell, the Fever initially got off to a slow start this season, but ultimately finished the season with a 20-20 record and a long-awaited postseason berth.
Indiana will now enter next season with a brand new front office: Krauskopf was named president in September, while the team hired Amber Cox as chief operating officer and general manager earlier this month. The Fever will now also have to look for a new head coach before the start of the 2025 season.
Sides’ firing marks the fifth firing of a head coach this offseason. Most recently, the Dallas Wings fired Latricia Trammell after the team finished second in the regular season standings. The Los Angeles Sparks, Chicago Sky and Atlanta Dream also have coaching vacancies after leaving Curt Miller, Teresa Weatherspoon and Tanisha Wright, respectively.
