The Tulsa Shock has had many coaches over the years since their origin on 1998 as the Detroit Shock. They have five coaches from 1998 to 2010.
Nancy Lieberman
The Shocks first coach was Nancy Lieberman—WNBA veteran and hall-of-famer. She coached the team from 1998 to 2000 and saw the team struggle in their beginning stages.
Their 17 wins and 13 losses what somewhat commendable in their first year playing together, but their 15 wins and 17 losses in 1999 under her leadership was less positive for the team. The final year of her coaching didn’t go very well for the team—winning only 14 games and losing 18 of them.
She was replaced after that season due to multiple rumors of Lieberman having an inappropriate relationship with player, Anna DeForge. Lieberman left the Shock and joined ESPN as a women’s sports analyst.
Greg Williams
Greg Williams replaced Nancy Lieberman for a brief time—namely half a season. The team was struggling a lot by the middle of the 2001 season. They had lost 10 games and had not won a single game.
Bill Laimbeer
During the 2001 season of turmoil, Williams was fired. The Shock chose Bill Laimbeer to lead the team to success and, indeed, that is exactly what he accomplished. The season ended with 9 wins and 23 losses, Some people thought that the team would go under due to their terrible year, but Laimbeer was determined to not let it be the Shock’s last season. Laimbeer changed the lineup considerably for the 2003 season and was very optimistic about the outcome of his leadership.
So optimistic, that he stated that the team would win the championship that year. It seemed as though everyone watched in “shock” as the women walked away from that season as league champions, defeating the Los Angeles Sparks.
The Sparks had won the championship two years in a row before and did not want to give up without a fight. It was a very dramatic and thrilling game and attracted a huge crowd of spectators in disbelief. It was a thrilling season.
The next years deemed not as successful until 2006 where the Shock yet again took the league by surprise and became the champions. That year they had 23 wins and 11 losses and won in the championship game against the Sacramento Monarchs.
The next year of 2007 deemed well for the team’s regular season, winning 24 games and losing 10. The Shock had great momentum all the way to the finals against the Phoenix Mercury.
They lost to the Mercury in 2-3. In 2008, the Shock did very well under Laimbeer’s leadership, winning 22 games and losing 12. They were league champions, winning in the finals against the San Antonio Silver Stars. The 2009 was not as successful for them, winning 18 games and losing 16 of them. The Shock lost to the Indiana Fever in the conference finals at 1-2. n the middle of the 2009 season, Laimbeer quit from coaching the Shock and was replaced by Rick Mahorn for the rest of the season.
Nolan Richardson
The Shock underwent a relocation in 2010 that has taken on the leadership of Hall-of-Famer Nolan Richardson as the head coach. The team has underwent some huge changes, and it is exciting to see what the leadership of Richardson can do for the team.
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