Arlington, TX — The Dallas Wings have hit a rough patch, losing the last eight games and could potentially miss the playoffs. Sources have told The Ball Out, that Fred Williams has been fired as head coach.
When reached via text, Fred Williams stated, “I’m with my lawyers at the moment.”
Williams has been coaching the Wings since the team was in Tulsa. But, after repeatedly struggling to finish high in the standings, the organization is ready to move in another direction.
All season the Wings have been up and down. Lately, it seems the struggle has been the absence of Skylar Diggins-Smith missing games and the last two games Dallas has been without Liz Cambage. Those two are key for the Wings, especially with the playoffs looming in the near distance.
Williams has been coaching Dallas for the past three years and also coached when the team was previously in Tulsa. Over his tenure with Tulsa/Dallas, Williams has accumulated an overall record of 71-96.
The move by the front office is very alarming considering the season will be over in a couple weeks. As the standings sit now, Dallas will enter the playoffs as the eighth seed and will play at least one game in the post-season that will be single-game elimination.
During halftime of the Phoenix-Los Angeles game, the commentators announced Williams was in an altercation with the team’s President and Chief Executive Officer Gregg Bibb.
While an altercation with someone in the front office is never a good situation, Williams’ fate as the Wings’ head coach might have been sealed before the fight. An official announcement is supposed to be made around 11 p.m., sources tell The Ball Out.
The Wings have appointed Taj McWilliams-Franklin as the interim head coach.
Bibb stated the following on the release of Williams:
“Following today’s game, I made the decision to change direction in regards to our head coaching position,” stated President and CEO Greg Bibb. “I felt this move was necessary. The season has not met our expectations. I have asked Taj to serve as our interim head coach and I have the upmost confidence that she and our staff will do everything possible to put us in the best position to win. I wish Fred the best moving forward. Our focus remains on qualifying for the playoffs and ultimately competing for a WNBA championship.”
