Who is Seattle Storm's new Head Coach? Noelle Quinn Replacement's link with Memphis Grizzlies explored

The Seattle Storm will have a new head coach for the 2026 WNBA season, as Sonia Raman was named the team's new head coach, replacing Noelle Quinn. ESPN's Shams Charania first reported Raman's appointment on Friday.

Raman was an assistant coach for the New York Liberty in the past season. She also served as an assistant coach for the Memphis Grizzlies in the NBA from 2020 to 2024.

According to Charania, Raman signed a multi-year deal with the Storm, becoming the first head coach to be in Indian-origin. She was also the first Indian-American to be an assistant coach in the NBA.

When she signed with the Grizzlies in 2020, Raman also became the 14th woman to be an assistant coach in the NBA.

Raman helped the Grizzlies in their player development, scouting, and advanced analytics before jumping ship to the WNBA with the Liberty in 2025.

But before coming to the professional leagues, Ramar was an aspiring lawyer, getting her Juris Doctor degree in the Boston College of Law in 2001.

Under former Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello, Raman helped the Liberty to finish in the fifth spot in the regular season, only to lose in the first round of the playoffs against the Phoenix Mercury.

Ramar will take over a Storm squad that finished as the seventh seed in the regular season, but lost to the first round against the eventual WNBA champions Las Vegas Aces in the first round.

Additionally, the Storm will see its core players, Skylar Diggins, Nneka Ogwumike, Brittney Sykes, and Gabby Williams, go to unrestricted free agency as the league and its players await the new collective bargaining agreement.

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Sonia Raman gets candid on being a coach in the NBA

During her time as an assistant coach with the Grizzlies in 2020, Sonia Raman got candid about becoming the first woman of Indiana origin to become a tactician in the NBA.

“[Being the first female Indian origin coach in the NBA] is exciting and the opportunities are certainly there for Indian Americans in the profession," she said in an interview with FIBA. "It is a matter of choosing if you want to go into that as a profession or not.”

She also felt lucky not to have to go through barriers in her career.

“I am fortunate that I feel that there have been no barriers in that way. I also feel like I have been very much embraced as an Indian woman, whether as a player or as a coach. I do feel really lucky in that way.”

Now in the WNBA, Raman is expected to be one of the most intriguing head coaches entering next season.

Edited by Rob Andrew Lo