The Los Angeles Sparks have parted ways with general manager Raegan Pebley. Where do they stand after her two-plus years on the job?
That's a wrap for the Los Angeles Sparks' Raegan Pebley era.
The team announced that it agreed to "part ways" with its general manager on Sunday, less than 48 hours after it picked up a 102-87 victory over the Chicago Sky. Pebley, formerly the head coach at Utah State, Fresno State, and TCU, had held the position since January 2024, succeeding Karen Bryant.
“We are grateful to Raegan for her leadership and commitment to the Los Angeles Sparks and women’s basketball,” Sparks managing partner and governor Eric Holoman said in a team statement. “Her work on the Sparks roster and player experience will have a lasting positive impact on our organization. We sincerely thank her for all she has invested in the Sparks and wish her success in her next chapter.”
Assistant general managers Zach Knowlton and Nate Nielsen will hold the top spots in the interim.
Quiet on the Sparks' Set
Pebley is the third general manager (after Bryant and Derek Fisher) to oversee the Sparks amidst a five-year playoff drought, by far the longest active tally in the WNBA. Entering Sunday play, Los Angeles (10-11) is a half-game behind Washington for the eighth and final spot on the halfway point's playoff bracket. A deeper look, however, offers an even more complicated picture for what the Sparks are dealing with.
Pebley's tenure is partly cursed by an invasion of the injury bug: both Cameron Brink and Kelsey Plum, the headlining arrivals of these past three years, missed her final hours with no return in sight. But Los Angeles is starting to feel the effects of some of her other moves, one where the patience of the Sparks and their fans has not been adequately rewarded.
Just over three weeks after Pebley's hire, the Sparks essentially swapped 2024 and 2026 firsts with the Seattle Storm. They would use the four-spot jump in 2024 to draft Rickea Jackson fourth overall and the Tennessee alumna held her own in a freshman class headlined by Caitlin Clark. They would do similar business with the Storm at the very next draft, this time getting the Las Vegas Aces in on the fun to acquire Plum. They'd use their adjusted choice (seven spots down from second to ninth after Brink's ACL tear set the tone for an eight-win) on Sarah Ashlee Barker.
Sparks agree to part ways with General Manager Raegan Pebley.
— Los Angeles Sparks (@LASparks) July 12, 2026
📝 https://t.co/fTRHQXDntR pic.twitter.com/xqCrQ2kzmy
Storm's Coming
Just about two years after it has all gone down, neither Barker nor Jackson currently resides on the Sparks roster.
Jackson was sent north to Chicago in a sign-and-trade swap for Ariel Atkins, who turns 30 this month. Barker was left unprotected in the expansion draft proceedings and made her way to the Portland Fire's reboot.
Seattle has since used Los Angeles' picks on Awa Fam and All-Star Game-bound Dominique Malonga. The more recent selection of Fam (third overall this past April) was particularly painful, as LA found no rookie replacement beyond maybe Chance Gray, who has seen a rise in minutes with Plum ailing.
While Seattle is its own work in progress, the early work of Fam and Malonga would no doubt help LA's current affairs.
Even with Plum's injury, the Sparks have kept their scoreboard column tidy thanks to the seasoned efforts of Dearica Hamby and Nneka Ogwumike, as well as a career-best breakout for Rae Burrell. Since Plum's departure was announced on June 24, Los Angeles still places fifth in scoring ... and that includes a brutal 64-point week-opening effort against the Storm on Monday.
But the purple-and-gold could use some help in the purple-and-gold: even with Hamby and Ogwumike averaging over seven a game, Los Angeles ranks second-to-last in rebounds and third-to-last in boards allowed. It's third in points in the paint but allowing the third-most in the same category ... all areas where Fam and Malonga could no doubt help even if they haven't reached their so-called final forms.
California Dreamin'
With Pebley's work complete, the Sparks potentially stand as Hollywood's most expensive and star-studded B-movie.
While still featuring its young killer B's in Brink and Burrell, the current state of the Sparks relies a bit too heavily on an All-WNBA teams from the late 2010s. Atkins still brings something of a spark (pun intended) defensively but considering the way Jackson handled herself in a larger Chicago spotlight (at least before her own injury ended her season early) and the way Fam and Malonga have begun to live up to their respective potentials, maybe the Sparks should've invest in youth in revolt.
Time will tell if it means the de facto director of this affair, head coach Lynne Roberts, is a lame duck but staging the team's first playoff berth since the Bradenton bubble would probably go a long way. Oguwmike, Plum, and the restricted Burrell are all free agents after this season and a postseason foundation would be brilliant to build upon.
Even so, there could be budget concerns once a new name takes over: Atkins, Hamby, and Erica Wheeler—all on the north side of 30—are all signed through at least next season, with Atkins and Hamby on board through 2028. That could make them a team to watch at the early August trade deadline, which could become a trial by fire for Knowlton and Nielsen if LA indeed enters the fray.
Either way, Los Angeles is stuck in one of the more exciting situations that the league has offer. Time will tell if they're enjoying this thrill ride or start begging to get off.
The first game of the post-Pebley era lands on Monday when they take on the Atlanta Dream (4 p.m. PT, USA).
Geoff Magliocchetti is on X @GeoffJMags
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