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Brian Agler

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Brian Agler
Agler in 2019
Personal information
Born (1958-08-02) August 2, 1958 (age 66)
NationalityAmerican
Career information
High schoolElgin (Marion, Ohio)
CollegeWittenberg (1976–1980)
PositionHead coach
Coaching career1988–2020
Career history
As coach:
1988–1993UMKC
1993–1996Kansas State
1996–1998Columbus Quest
1999–2002Minnesota Lynx
2004Phoenix Mercury (assistant)
2005–2007San Antonio Silver Stars (assistant)
2008–2014Seattle Storm
2015–2018Los Angeles Sparks
2019–2020Dallas Wings
Career highlights and awards
As player

As coach

Stats at WNBA.com

Brian Agler (born August 2, 1958)[1] is an American college athletics administrator and former women's basketball coach. He is the athletic director at Wittenberg University in Springfield, Ohio, a position he has held since 2021. Agler served as head coach of the Dallas Wings of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) from 2019 to 2020. He had previously been head coach of the Seattle Storm and the Los Angeles Sparks, each of whom he led to a WNBA championship, in 2010 and 2016, respectively. During his coaching career, Agler has guided young stars like Candace Parker, Nneka Ogwumike, Alana Beard, Skylar Diggins-Smith, Tayler Hill, Liz Cambage, Megan Gustafson, and Arike Ogunbowale.

Early years

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Agler attended college at Wittenberg University in Ohio, where he cheered on the Tigers win the 1977 Division III NCAA Championship as a point guard. He graduated in 1980. He received his master's degree in education from Pittsburg State University in 1985.

Coaching career

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College

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Kansas State

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Agler became the head coach of the Kansas State women's basketball team in 1993. He was suspended in the middle of his third season (1995–1996), pending an NCAA rules violation investigation.[2] Kansas State under Agler was 13–14 his first season (1993–1994), 14–13 his second season, and 11–12 for the 23 games he coached in his final season.[2]

American Basketball League (ABL)

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Columbus Quest

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As head coach of the Columbus Quest of the American Basketball League, Agler led the team to a combined 82–22 record and two ABL Championships. He was named ABL Coach of the Year in 1997.

Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)

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Minnesota Lynx

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After the ABL collapsed in late 1998, Agler made the shift to the WNBA. He became the first head coach of the Minnesota Lynx, piloting them to a 48–67 record from 1999–2002.

Assistant coaching stints

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He served as an assistant coach with the Phoenix Mercury in the 2004 season, then with the San Antonio Silver Stars from 2005 to 2007.

Seattle Storm

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The Seattle Storm named Agler head coach on January 9, 2008. He succeeded Anne Donovan. who resigned in November 2007. Agler was the general manager and head coach for the Seattle Storm until 2014, leading them to their second championship in 2010.[3]

Los Angeles Sparks

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On January 5, 2015, it was announced that Agler would become the head coach of the Los Angeles Sparks.

Agler guided the 2015 version of the Sparks to a 14–20 record and a 4th-place finish in the WNBA's Western Conference.

On October 20, 2016, Agler guided the Sparks to their third WNBA championship, defeating the Lynx, 77–76, in the decisive Game 5 of the 2016 WNBA Finals, thereby winning the league championship series, 3–2. He became the first head coach to win WNBA titles with two teams.

On November 1, 2018, Agler resigned from his position as the Sparks coach.[4]

Dallas Wings

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On December 17, 2018, Agler was hired as the head coach of the Dallas Wings.[5]

On October 14, 2020, the Dallas Wings announced that the organization had parted ways with Agler.[6][7]

Family

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Agler's son, Bryce, was an assistant coach with the Los Angeles Sparks during Agler's tenure as head coach of the franchise.[8]

Head coaching record

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Legend
Regular season G Games coached W Games won L Games lost W–L % Win–loss %
Playoffs PG Playoff games PW Playoff wins PL Playoff losses PW–L % Playoff win–loss %
Team Year G W L W–L% Finish PG PW PL PW–L% Result
MIN 1999 32 15 17 .469 4th in West - - - - Missed Playoffs
MIN 2000 32 15 17 .469 6th in West - - - - Missed Playoffs
MIN 2001 32 12 20 .375 6th in West - - - - Missed Playoffs
MIN 2002 19 6 13 .316 8th in West - - - - Fired Mid-Season
SEA 2008 34 22 12 .647 2nd in West 3 1 2 .333 Lost in Western Conference Semi-Finals
SEA 2009 34 20 14 .588 2nd in West 3 1 2 .333 Lost in Western Conference Semi-Finals
SEA 2010 34 28 6 .824 1st in West 7 7 0 1.000 Won WNBA Finals
SEA 2011 34 21 13 .618 2nd in West 3 1 2 .333 Lost in Western Conference Semi-Finals
SEA 2012 34 16 18 .471 4th in West 3 1 2 .333 Lost in Western Conference Semi-Finals
SEA 2013 34 17 17 .500 4th in West 2 0 2 .000 Lost in Western Conference Semi-Finals
SEA 2014 34 12 22 .353 5th in West - - - - Missed Playoffs
LA 2015 34 14 20 .412 4th in West 3 1 2 .333 Lost in Western Conference Semi-Finals
LA 2016 34 26 8 .765 2nd in West 9 6 3 .667 Won WNBA Finals
LA 2017 34 26 8 .765 2nd in West 8 5 3 .625 Lost in WNBA Finals
LA 2018 34 19 15 .559 3rd in West 2 1 1 .500 Lost in Western Conference Semi-Finals
DAL 2019 34 10 24 .294 5th in West - - - - Missed Playoffs
DAL 2020 22 8 14 .364 6th in West - - - - Missed Playoffs
Career 545 287 258 .527 43 24 19 .558

References

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  1. ^ "Women's Basketball Coaches Career". NCAA. Retrieved 22 Sep 2015.
  2. ^ a b "Kansas State Women's Coach Suspended". The Seattle Times. Associated Press. February 10, 1996. Retrieved November 11, 2017.
  3. ^ Voepel, Mechelle (16 September 2010). "Second title even sweeter for Storm". ESPN. Archived from the original on 20 September 2010. Retrieved 17 September 2010.
  4. ^ Voepele, Mechelle (November 30, 2018). "Brian Agler resigns as Sparks coach". espn.com. ESPN. Retrieved December 6, 2018.
  5. ^ "Brian Agler to be next coach of Dallas Wings". ESPN. Associated Press. December 17, 2018. Retrieved December 17, 2018.
  6. ^ "Dallas Wings And Head Coach Brian Agler Mutually Agree To Part Ways". wnba.com. The WNBA. October 14, 2020. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  7. ^ "Dallas Wings, head coach Brian Agler mutually agree to part ways after two seasons". CBSSports.com. 2020-10-15. Retrieved 2024-07-16.
  8. ^ "2018 Sparks Roster Released".
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