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.
.jpg) Agler in 2019 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | August 2, 1958 |
| Nationality | American |
| Career information | |
| High school | Elgin (Marion, Ohio) |
| College | Wittenberg (1976–1980) |
| Position | Head coach |
| Coaching career | 1988–present |
| Career history | |
| As coach: | |
| 1988–1993 | UMKC |
| 1993–1996 | Kansas State |
| 1996–1998 | Columbus Quest |
| 1999–2002 | Minnesota Lynx |
| 2004 | Phoenix Mercury (assistant) |
| 2005–2007 | San Antonio Silver Stars (assistant) |
| 2008–2014 | Seattle Storm |
| 2015–2018 | Los Angeles Sparks |
| 2019–2020 | Dallas Wings |
| Career highlights and awards | |
As player
As coach
| |
| Stats at WNBA.com | |
Early years
editAgler 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
editCollege
editKansas State
editAgler 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)
editColumbus Quest
editAs 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)
editMinnesota Lynx
editAfter 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
editHe 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
editThe 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
editOn 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
editOn 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
editAgler'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
edit| 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
edit- ^ "Women's Basketball Coaches Career". NCAA. Retrieved 22 Sep 2015.
- ^ a b "Kansas State Women's Coach Suspended". The Seattle Times. Associated Press. February 10, 1996. Retrieved November 11, 2017.
- ^ Voepel, Mechelle (16 September 2010). "Second title even sweeter for Storm". ESPN. Archived from the original on 20 September 2010. Retrieved 17 September 2010.
- ^ Voepele, Mechelle (November 30, 2018). "Brian Agler resigns as Sparks coach". espn.com. ESPN. Retrieved December 6, 2018.
- ^ "Brian Agler to be next coach of Dallas Wings". ESPN. Associated Press. December 17, 2018. Retrieved December 17, 2018.
- ^ "Dallas Wings And Head Coach Brian Agler Mutually Agree To Part Ways". wnba.com. The WNBA. October 14, 2020. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
- ^ "Dallas Wings, head coach Brian Agler mutually agree to part ways after two seasons". CBSSports.com. 2020-10-15. Retrieved 2024-07-16.
- ^ "2018 Sparks Roster Released".