Storm Reportedly Hiring Sonia Raman as New Head Coach
By Charles Hamaker
Seattle, WA - After about a month of waiting to replace Noelle Quinn, as the team opted to not renew her contract after the 2025 season, our Seattle Storm have reportedly hired former New York Liberty assistant Sonia Raman to fill the head coach vacancy. Per report from Shams Charania of ESPN, Raman has inked a multi-year deal with the Seattle based franchise and becomes the first Indian American Woman to hold the title of head coach in the WNBA. This news comes a few days after the news that former Liberty coach Sandy Brondello had agreed to become the inaugural head coach of the Toronto Tempo, opting to lead the expansion side. Raman is one of three candidates the Storm were looking into for the vacancy, alongside Brondello and one-time player for the franchise, Briann January.
Raman certainly has crafted an intriguing resume prior to being named as the head coach for the Storm, including coaching stops at the collegiate level, in the NBA, and the WNBA most recently. Sonia’s basketball career began back at Tufts University, where she played for four years and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in international Relations, followed up by a Juris Doctor from Boston College Law School. This is where Raman’s journey takes an interesting turn, as she then began working at the United States Department of Labor in the Employment Benefit Security Administration. That stop in her story was followed up by time spent with Fidelity Investments.
While those previous two installments of her resume were being written, Raman was working as the lead assistant coach at Wellesley College spanning from 2002 to 2008. The law career chapter of her life came to a close in 2008, when she was named as the head coach at MIT in a tenure that lasted until 2020. Raman coached the MIT women’s basketball program, Division III for 12 years where she led the Engineers to the program’s first two NEWMAC conference Championships in 2018 and 2019 before reaching the championship game in 2020. Besides those appearance, Raman guided MIT to consistent success as the Engineers reached the NCAA tournament twice under her watch and helped a 91-45 record over the final five seasons in her tenure as she’d finish with the title of winningest coach in program history.
The impressive tenure at MIT helped Sonia earn her NBA assistant coaching job with the Memphis Grizzlies in a stop that lasted from 2020 through 2024. While with the Grizzlies, Raman worked in scouting, player development, and Analytics as she became the league’s 14th woman to hold an assistant coaching role and the first of Indian descent. During her four seasons with Memphis, Raman helped the Grizzlies to three postseason appearances. Xavier Tillman, current Boston Celtics forward and former Memphis Grizzlies player, raved about Raman in an article written by Noa Dalzell of SB Nation. Tillman credits Raman with a strong and dedicated work ethic while consuming hours and hours of film. That film review, primarily breaking down defenses to see what an offense can attack, as well as rebounding for her players and putting in work at shootaround paints the picture of a very hands on coach that will prioritize effort and detail from her squad.
Raman only spent one season with the Liberty, joining Sandy Brondello’s staff in New York for the 2025 campaign and was looked at as a potential replacement for Brondello.
There was plenty of chatter from Storm fans wanting Brondello to become the franchises new head coach, but it ultimately appears that Sandy opted to turn a new leaf and establish a new identity with Toronto in what could be viewed as the perfect sandbox for her to help mold the franchise out of. It makes sense why Seattle fans were hoping for Brondello, considering that her four-year stint with New York led to four postseason berths, two appearances in the WNBA Finals, and one title. It remains unclear if Seattle ever had an offer on the table for Brondello, and all that’s currently known is that the Storm had interest in her, Raman, and Indiana Fever assistant coach Briann January. January was a dark horse candidate for the job, having previously played one season with the Storm and calling Spokane, Washington home as links to the franchises vacancy. The view on January currently is that franchises want to see her spend a few more seasons in an assistant coaching role before she takes the jump to head coach.
“First and foremost, we’re looking for someone that’s going to develop relationships and really invest in the players and the staff that we will have here, just across the organization broadly.”
What’s next?
Before Storm fans can even think ahead to what the franchise must do in free agency and the upcoming WNBA draft, the CBA remains a looming topic as it expires in seven days on October 31st. Considering recent comments, it doesn’t appear as though either side is close to agreeing on a new CBA and it’s unclear if the WNBA will go into a lockout or if both sides can agree on an extension. From there and until a new CBA is completed, we are waiting to find out timing on the WNBA draft lottery, expansion drafts for the Toronto Tempo and Portland Fire before we hit free agency in the winter and 2026 entry draft in the Spring.
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