One down, four to go. (Or, four to go for now, as we can never count out the possibility of late-breaking, oddly-timed WNBA decisions.)

On Friday, the Portland Fire officially announced Alex Sarama as their head coach, tapping the player development guru currently on the staff of the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers. The hire, which initially was leaked on LinkedIn, substantiates reporting that WNBA teams are prioritizing candidates with NBA track records, choosing to value certain types of basketball experiences and expertise, and the candidates who are more likely to have those, over others.

However, with four openings remaining, the demographic composition of WNBA head coaches is far from settled. Here’s the latest scuttlebutt on the thinkings and leanings of the Seattle Storm:

Brondello, again, is believed to be a candidate for the Seattle Storm. Notably, Brondello crossed paths with Skylar Diggins on the Mercury in 2020 and 2021, with the latter season being the last time Phoenix made it to the WNBA Finals prior to 2025.

Current Indiana Fever assistant Briann January, who spent the final of her 14 seasons as a WNBA player with the Storm, is another candidate. January, who assisted Fever head coach Stephanie White during her two seasons with the Connecticut Sun before following her to Indiana, also worked as an assistant for the Motor City Cruise, the Detroit Pistons’ G League affiliate. Pickman also reports that Raman has interviewed for the Storm job.

It seems worth pointing out that Seattle, which has an all-women ownership group, has yet to consider any male candidates, at least based on current reporting.