Indiana Will Begin Head Coach Search After Not Retaining Carlos Knox

The Indiana Fever are set to begin their search for a new head coach after announcing they wouldn’t keep interim Coach Carlos Knox as the head of Indiana’s coaching staff.

Team Update: Interim Head Coach Carlos Knox will not be retained for the 2023 season.

🔗 https://t.co/5BxpfILADv pic.twitter.com/RJpaacS3zF

— Indiana Fever ⛹️‍♀️🏀 (@IndianaFever) August 31, 2022

Knox was tapped as the interim head coach this season on May 25 after Indiana fired Marianne Stanley. Knock recently returned to the organization as an assistant coach on December 1, 2021. When he took over, Indiana was 2-7; they ultimately finished the season with a 5-31 record, tied for the most losses in WNBA history, the worse in Fever history, and the worse in the League.

“We thank Carlos for stepping into this role last season and for helping our young, talented team continue to improve. We took important steps forward this year, but the expectation for this team and this franchise is sustained success on the court. We are working hard to build a coaching staff that will deliver on that expectation,” Fever Interim General Manager Lin Dunn said.

Interim GM Lin Dunn said she was still evaluating the coaching staff after the regular-season ended. She said she wanted to do her research and said that exit interviews with players and support staff before making any decisions. Last season, the Fever focused on the long-term future of the franchise as they looked to develop around No. 2 pick NaLyssa Smith and No. 10 pick Queen Egbo, who was named to the W’s All-Rookie team.

Despite that highlight, Indiana finished the season on an 18-game losing streak and averaged a League-worst 78 points per game. Since 2017, the Fever has worse the winning percentage (45-147, .234) of any team in the W, NBA, NFL, or NHL. The Fever hopes to win the top pick in next spring’s 2023 WNBA Draft.

Last season was about building for the Fever’s future, with seven rookies on the roster. Plenty of them showed promise, including No. 2 pick NaLyssa Smith and No. 10 pick Queen Egbo, who was named to the WNBA All-Rookie team. But it didn’t translate to wins. The team lost 18 straight games to finish the regular season and averaged a league-worst 78 points per game.

Since 2017, the Fever has had the worst winning percentage (45-147, .234) of any team in the WNBA, NBA, NFL, or NHL.