The Los Angeles Sparks will have a new head coach moving forward. According to multiple media reports, the team has decided to part ways with head coach Derek Fisher, who has served in that role since 2018. Fisher has likewise held the position of the Sparks’ general manager since December of 2020.
The news of Fisher’s ouster originally came from Bobbi Mullis of HoopSocial, and was confirmed by Howard Megdal of The Next.
A trusted source states that
Derek Fisher is parting ways with the @LASparks#TimeToShow I #WNBA #WNBATwitter @hoop_social— Bobbi
BringBGHome
A league source confirms to @TheNextHoops that, indeed, Derek Fisher is out as head coach of @LASparks. Story TK #WNBA https://t.co/OrwAcyniB5
— Howard Megdal (@howardmegdal) June 7, 2022
Megdal went on to report that Fred Williams — who has served on the Sparks’ staff since 2019 and has experience as a head coach in the league with the Utah Starzz, Atlanta Dream, and Dallas Wings — will take over in the interim. It is unclear how long he will spend with the team, as he was hired as the associate head coach of the Auburn Tigers last month and was expected to join the program in “mid-summer.”
Source says Fred Williams will be interim head coach the rest of the season. #WNBA
— Howard Megdal (@howardmegdal) June 7, 2022
After starting the 2022 WNBA campaign 2-0, the Sparks have gone 3-7 over their last 10 games and currently sit in fourth place in the Western Conference. Coming into this season, Fisher recorded a 49-39 career record, but the team struggled last season — Los Angeles went 12-20 and finished in sixth place in the West, which led to them missing the postseason altogether. It marked the first time in a decade and the fifth time in franchise history that the Sparks failed the qualify for the playoffs.