Former Nittany Lion Tanisha Wright named WNBA Coach of the Year
The Atlanta Dream were at the bottom of the WNBA but they have started to crawl out of the basement of the league as it gains momentum. The best part? They are doing so with the help of their head coach and Penn State women’s basketball alum Tanisha Wright.
Wright played at Penn State from 2001 to 2005 and now she has made WNBA history in his first year coaching. She was voted the WNBA coach of the year and becomes the first former WNBA player to win the award in the process.
👏 Congrats to Lady Lion Alumna Tanisha Wright on being named the AP @WNBA Coach of the Year in her first season with the @AtlantaDream!!#UnleashThePRIDE pic.twitter.com/bcYFS1oYpq
— Penn State Women's Basketball (@PennStateWBB) August 16, 2022
Wright led Atlanta to a fifth-place finish in her first season with the team. The Dream’s 14-22 record was nearly double their win total from the year before when they won just 8 games. Wright also coached Rhyne Howard who was the leagues first overall pick this past season. Under Wright’s coaching she would play well enough to earn an All-Star selection as a rookie.
As for her career at Penn State, Wright as mentioned played at the school from 2001-2005. She earned three Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year awards and helped drive the team to the NCAA Tournament all four years she was on the team. Wright even was able to lead the Lady Lions to an Elite Eight appearance in 2004.
Tanisha Wright would enter the 2005 WNBA draft and be selected 12th overall by the Seattle Storm. She went on to play ten seasons with the Storm, with stops in New York and Minnesota with the Liberty and Lynx along the way.
Ironically despite the rise, the Dream will hold the third overall pick in the draft. She will ne absorbing more talent in the coming months so she could hopefully lead the Dream to more wins and success in the coming years.
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