Vanessa Nygaard: Difference between revisions

Vanessa Nygaard
Personal information
Born	March 13, 1975 (age 49); Scottsdale, Arizona
Nationality	American
Listed height	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Listed weight	175 lb (79 kg)
Career information
High school	Carlsbad High School; (Carlsbad, California)
College	Stanford (1994–1998)
WNBA draft	1998: 4th round, 39th overall pick
	Selected by the New York Liberty
Playing career	1999–2003
Position	Forward
Coaching career	2003–present
Career history
As player:
1999	Cleveland Rockers
2000–2001	Portland Fire
2002	Miami Sol
2003	Los Angeles Sparks
As coach:
2003–2004	Long Beach State (Assistant)
2004–2008	Pepperdine (Assistant)
2008	San Antonio Stars (Assistant)
2008–2012	Windward School (Associate HC)
2012–2021	Windward School
2021	Las Vegas Aces (Assistant)
2022–2023	Phoenix Mercury
Career highlights and awards
	All Pac-10 (1998);
	Stats at Basketball Reference

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Vanessa Nygaard (born March 13, 1975, in Scottsdale, Arizona) is a professional basketball coach and former player in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She is the former head coach for the Phoenix Mercury.

Stanford University

After graduating from high school in Carlsbad, California, Nygaard attended Stanford University from 1993 to 1998, and was a star player for their women's basketball team, known as The Cardinal. During her time there, the team accumulated a combined 113-14 won-loss record, including an impressive 69-2 within the Pacific-10 Conference, and reached three Final Fours. Nygaard graduated in 1998, majoring in American Studies.

Playing career

After graduating from Stanford, Nygaard began her six-year career in the WNBA. She was selected by the New York Liberty in the fourth round (39th overall pick) of the 1998 WNBA draft. She missed the 1998 and most of the 1999 seasons due to injury, but joined the starting lineup with the Portland Fire team in 2000 and 2001 and with the Miami Sol team in 2002. She also played for the Cleveland Rockers, the Charlotte Sting, and the Los Angeles Sparks. Prior to the 2004 WNBA season began, Nygaard signed a free agent contract with the Houston Comets, but was waived by the team during training camp. She signed another contract with the Comets prior to the 2005 season, but decided to announce her retirement instead. Her best season came with the Sol in 2002, when she averaged 7.9 points and 3.8 rebounds per game.

During the WNBA off-season, she played in professional basketball leagues in Europe, including Germany (2001), Spain (1999) and Italy (1998).

Coaching career

In 2003, Nygaard became an assistant coach for the women's basketball team at California State University, Long Beach. The following year, in June 2004, she was hired as an assistant coach with Pepperdine University.

In 2008, she was named as an assistant coach for the San Antonio Silver Stars and helped the team to appear in the WNBA Finals, before losing to the Detroit Shock.

Nygaard took over as head coach of the girls' basketball team at Windward School in 2012-13. She has coached the team to three state titles, in 2013, 2017, and 2018.

In 2017, she joined USA Basketball as an assistant coach, helping lead the team during the 2017 FIBA America's Under-16 Championship and the 2018 FIBA Under-17 World Cup.

In 2021, she joined head coach Bill Laimbeer on the Las Vegas Aces staff as an assistant coach.

Nygaard was named as the head coach of the Phoenix Mercury on January 24, 2022.^[1] The Mercury fired Nygaard on June 25, 2023, after starting the 2023 season 2–10.^[2]

Career statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game	RPG	Rebounds per game
APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game	BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game
TO	Turnovers per game	FG%	Field-goal percentage	3P%	3-point field-goal percentage	FT%	Free-throw percentage
Bold	Career best	°	League leader

WNBA

Regular season


Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PPG
1998	Did not play (waived)
1999	Cleveland	4	0	5.0	50.0	50.0	0.0	0.8	0.5	0.5	0.0	0.5	0.8
2000	Portland	32	28	26.3	43.5	33.3	75.9	3.8	0.9	0.5	0.2	1.2	7.9
2001	Portland	31	0	8.4	38.9	38.8	33.3	1.1	0.3	0.2	0.1	0.5	2.5
2002	Miami	29	22	15.3	42.6	37.5	76.9	2.3	0.3	0.4	0.0	0.4	4.1
2003	Los Angeles	11	3	15.3	44.4	35.3	75.0	1.7	0.5	0.3	0.0	0.4	3.7
Career	5 years, 4 teams	107	53	16.2	42.6	36.0	74.3	2.3	0.5	0.4	0.1	0.7	4.6

Playoffs


Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PPG
2003	Los Angeles	5	0	4.8	60.0	100.0	0.0	1.0	0.0	0.2	0.2	0.2	1.6
Career	1 year, 1 team	5	0	4.8	60.0	100.0	0.0	1.0	0.0	0.2	0.2	0.2	1.6

College


Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PPG
1994–95	Stanford	29	-	-	35.0	24.3	65.0	2.2	0.6	0.4	0.0	-	3.2
1995–96	Stanford	31	-	-	44.3	38.9	59.0	7.0	2.3	1.1	0.1	-	14.2
1996–97	Stanford	31	-	-	43.2	36.7	75.0	6.9	2.2	1.4	0.2	-	11.6
1997–98	Stanford	26	-	-	49.8	45.9	75.7	6.2	2.1	1.2	0.1	-	14.9
Career		117	-	-	44.5	39.2	68.9	5.6	1.8	1.1	0.1	-	10.9
Statistics retrieved from Sports-Reference.^[3]

Head coaching record

Legend
Regular season	G	Games coached	W	Games won	L	Games lost	W–L %	Win–loss %
Playoffs	PG	Playoff games	PW	Playoff wins	PL	Playoff losses	PW–L %	Playoff win–loss %


Team	Year	G	W	L	W–L%	Finish	PG	PW	PL	PW–L%	Result
PHO	2022	36	15	21	.417	4th in West	2	0	2	.000	Lost in First Round
PHO	2023	12	2	10	.167	6th in West (at time of firing)	-	-	-	–	Fired after 12 Games
Career		48	17	31	.354		2	0	2	.000

References

^ "MERCURY NAMES VANESSA NYGAARD HEAD COACH". Phoenix Mercury. Retrieved 2022-01-24.
^ Merchant, Sabreena. "Phoenix Mercury fire coach Vanessa Nygaard after 2-10 start to season: What went wrong?". theathletic.com. The Athletic. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
^ "Vanessa Nygaard College Stats". Sports-Reference. Retrieved July 7, 2024.

External links

[1] "MERCURY NAMES VANESSA NYGAARD HEAD COACH". Phoenix Mercury. Retrieved 2022-01-24.

[2] Merchant, Sabreena. "Phoenix Mercury fire coach Vanessa Nygaard after 2-10 start to season: What went wrong?". theathletic.com. The Athletic. Retrieved 26 June 2023.

[3] "Vanessa Nygaard College Stats". Sports-Reference. Retrieved July 7, 2024.

[1]

[2]

[3]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-{{Short description|American basketball coach and former player}}
+{{Short description|American basketball player and coach (born 1975)}}
 {{Infobox basketball biography
 | name            = Vanessa Nygaard
@@ Line 6: / Line 6: @@
 | alt             =
 | caption         =
-| position        = [[Head coach|Head Coach]]
+| position        = [[Head coach]]
-| league          = [[WNBA]]
+| league          =
-| team            = Phoenix Mercury
+| team            =
 | birth_date      = {{birth date and age|1975|03|13}}
 | birth_place     = [[Scottsdale, Arizona]]
+| height_ft    = 6
+| height_in    = 1
+| weight_lb    = 175
 | death_date      =
 | death_place     =
@@ Line 22: / Line 25: @@
 | draft_team      = [[New York Liberty]]
 | career_start    = 1999
 | career_end      = 2003
+| career_position = Forward
 | years1          = {{WNBA Year|1999}}
 | team1           = [[Cleveland Rockers]]
@@ Line 33: / Line 37: @@
 | coach_start     = 2003
 | coach_end       =
-| cyears1         = 2003-2004
+| cyears1         = 2003–2004
 | cteam1          = [[Long Beach State Beach women's basketball|Long Beach State]] (Assistant)
-| cyears2         = 2004-2008
+| cyears2         = 2004–2008
 | cteam2          = [[Pepperdine Waves women's basketball|Pepperdine]] (Assistant)
 | cyears3         = 2008
 | cteam3          = [[San Antonio Stars]] (Assistant)
-| cyears4         = 2008-2012
+| cyears4         = 2008–2012
 | cteam4          = [[Windward School]] (Associate HC)
-| cyears5         = 2012-2021
+| cyears5         = 2012–2021
 | cteam5          = [[Windward School]]
 | cyears6         = 2021
 | cteam6          = [[Las Vegas Aces]] (Assistant)
-| cyears7         = 2022-Present
+| cyears7         = 2022–2023
 | cteam7          = [[Phoenix Mercury]]
 | highlights          =
+* [[List of All-Pac-12 Conference women's basketball teams|All Pac-10]] (1998)
 | medal_templates =
 }}
-'''Vanessa Nygaard''' (born March 13, 1975 in [[Scottsdale, Arizona]]) is a professional [[basketball]] coach and  former player in the [[Women's National Basketball Association]] (WNBA).  She currently serves as the head coach for the [[Phoenix Mercury]]. She is also the girls basketball head coach at [[Windward School]] in [[Los Angeles]].
+'''Vanessa Nygaard''' (born March 13, 1975, in [[Scottsdale, Arizona]]) is a professional [[basketball]] coach and  former player in the [[Women's National Basketball Association]] (WNBA).  She is the former head coach for the [[Phoenix Mercury]].
 == Stanford University ==
@@ Line 57: / Line 62: @@
 == Playing career ==
-After graduating from Stanford, Nygaard began her six-year career in the WNBA. She was selected by the [[New York Liberty]] in the fourth round (39th overall pick) of the 1998 [[WNBA Draft]]. She missed the 1998 and most of the 1999 seasons due to injury, but joined the starting lineup with the [[Portland Fire]] team in 2000 and 2001 and with the [[Miami Sol]] team in 2002. She also played for the [[Cleveland Rockers]], the [[Charlotte Sting]], and the [[Los Angeles Sparks]]. Prior to the [[2004 WNBA season]] began, Nygaard signed a [[free agent]] contract with the [[Houston Comets]], but was waived by the team during training camp.  She signed another contract with the Comets prior to the 2005 season, but decided to announce her retirement instead. Her best season came with the Sol in 2002, when she averaged 7.9 points and 3.8 [[rebounds]] per game.
+After graduating from Stanford, Nygaard began her six-year career in the WNBA. She was selected by the [[New York Liberty]] in the fourth round (39th overall pick) of the 1998 [[WNBA draft]]. She missed the 1998 and most of the 1999 seasons due to injury, but joined the starting lineup with the [[Portland Fire]] team in 2000 and 2001 and with the [[Miami Sol]] team in 2002. She also played for the [[Cleveland Rockers]], the [[Charlotte Sting]], and the [[Los Angeles Sparks]]. Prior to the [[2004 WNBA season]] began, Nygaard signed a [[free agent]] contract with the [[Houston Comets]], but was waived by the team during training camp.  She signed another contract with the Comets prior to the 2005 season, but decided to announce her retirement instead. Her best season came with the Sol in 2002, when she averaged 7.9 points and 3.8 [[rebounds]] per game.
 During the WNBA off-season, she played in professional basketball leagues in [[Europe]], including [[Germany]] (2001), [[Spain]] (1999) and [[Italy]] (1998).
@@ Line 64: / Line 69: @@
 In 2003, Nygaard became an assistant coach for the women's basketball team at [[California State University, Long Beach]].  The following year, in June 2004, she was hired as an assistant coach with [[Pepperdine University]].
-In 2008, she was named as an assistant coach for the [[San Antonio Silver Stars]] and helped the team to appear in the [[WNBA finals]], before losing to the [[Detroit Shock]].  In January 2009, she was named as an assistant coach for the Washington Mystics where she spent just one season.
+In 2008, she was named as an assistant coach for the [[San Antonio Silver Stars]] and helped the team to appear in the [[WNBA Finals]], before losing to the [[Detroit Shock]].
 Nygaard took over as head coach of the girls' basketball team at Windward School in 2012-13. She has coached the team to three state titles, in 2013, 2017, and 2018.
@@ Line 72: / Line 77: @@
 In 2021, she joined head coach [[Bill Laimbeer]] on the [[Las Vegas Aces]] staff as an assistant coach.
-Nygaard was named as the head coach of the Phoenix Mercury on January 24, 2022.<ref>{{Cite web|title=MERCURY NAMES VANESSA NYGAARD HEAD COACH|url=https://mercury.wnba.com/news/mercury-names-vanessa-nygaard-head-coach/|access-date=2022-01-24|website=Phoenix Mercury|language=en}}</ref>
+Nygaard was named as the head coach of the Phoenix Mercury on January 24, 2022.<ref>{{Cite web|title=MERCURY NAMES VANESSA NYGAARD HEAD COACH|url=https://mercury.wnba.com/news/mercury-names-vanessa-nygaard-head-coach/|access-date=2022-01-24|website=Phoenix Mercury|language=en}}</ref> The Mercury fired Nygaard on June 25, 2023, after starting the 2023 season 2–10.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Merchant |first1=Sabreena |title=Phoenix Mercury fire coach Vanessa Nygaard after 2-10 start to season: What went wrong? |url=https://theathletic.com/4639253/2023/06/25/vanessa-nygaard-fired-phoenix-mercury/ |website=theathletic.com |publisher=The Athletic |access-date=26 June 2023}}</ref>
+==Career statistics==
+{{WNBA player statistics legend}}
+===WNBA===
+====Regular season====
+{{WNBA player statistics start}}
+|-
+| align="left" | [[1998 WNBA season|1998]]
+| style="text-align:center;" colspan="13" |''Did not play (waived)''
+|-
+| align="left" | [[1999 WNBA season|1999]]
+| align="left" | [[1999 Cleveland Rockers season|Cleveland]]
+|4||0||5.0||'''50.0'''||'''50.0'''||0.0||0.8||0.5||0.5||0.0||0.5||0.8
+|-
+| align="left" | [[2000 WNBA season|2000]]
+| align="left" | [[2000 Portland Fire season|Portland]]
+|'''32'''||'''28'''||'''26.3'''||43.5||33.3||75.9||'''3.8'''||'''0.9'''||'''0.5'''||'''0.2'''||1.2||'''7.9'''
+|-
+| align="left" | [[2001 WNBA season|2001]]
+| align="left" | [[2001 Portland Fire season|Portland]]
+|31||0||8.4||38.9||38.8||33.3||1.1||0.3||0.2||0.1||0.5||2.5
+|-
+| align="left" | [[2002 WNBA season|2002]]
+| align="left" | [[2002 Miami Sol season|Miami]]
+|29||22||15.3||42.6||37.5||'''76.9'''||2.3||0.3||0.4||0.0||'''0.4'''||4.1
+|-
+| align="left" | [[2003 WNBA season|2003]]
+| align="left" | [[2003 Los Angeles Sparks season|Los Angeles]]
+|11||3||15.3||44.4||35.3||75.0||1.7||0.5||0.3||0.0||'''0.4'''||3.7
+|-
+| align="left" | Career
+| align="left" | 5 years, 4 teams
+|107||53||16.2||42.6||36.0||74.3||2.3||0.5||0.4||0.1||0.7||4.6
+{{S-end}}
+====Playoffs====
+{{WNBA player statistics start}}
+|-
+| align="left" | [[2003 WNBA Playoffs|2003]]
+| align="left" | [[2003 Los Angeles Sparks season|Los Angeles]]
+|5||0||4.8||60.0||100.0||0.0||1.0||0.0||0.2||0.2||0.2	||1.6
+|-
+| align="left" | Career
+| align="left" | 1 year, 1 team
+|5||0||4.8||60.0||100.0||0.0||1.0||0.0||0.2||0.2||0.2	||1.6
+{{S-end}}
+=== College ===
+{{WNBA player statistics start}}
+|-
+| style="text-align:left;" | 1994–95
+| style="text-align:left;" | [[1994–95 Stanford Cardinal women's basketball team|Stanford]]
+|29||-||-||35.0||24.3||65.0||2.2||0.6||0.4||0.0||-||3.2
+|-
+| style="text-align:left;" | 1995–96
+| style="text-align:left;" | [[1995–96 Stanford Cardinal women's basketball team|Stanford]]
+|'''31'''||-||-||44.3||38.9||59.0||'''7.0'''||'''2.3'''||1.1||0.1||-||14.2
+|-
+| style="text-align:left;" | 1996–97
+| style="text-align:left;" | [[1996–97 Stanford Cardinal women's basketball team|Stanford]]
+|'''31'''||-||-||43.2||36.7||75.0||6.9||2.2||'''1.4'''||'''0.2'''||-||11.6
+|-
+| style="text-align:left;" | 1997–98
+| style="text-align:left;" | [[Stanford Cardinal women's basketball|Stanford]]
+|26||-||-||'''49.8'''||'''45.9'''||'''75.7'''||6.2||2.1||1.2||0.1||-||'''14.9'''
+|-
+| style="text-align:center;" colspan=2 | '''Career'''
+|117||-||-||44.5||39.2||68.9||5.6||1.8||1.1||0.1||-||10.9
+|- class="sortbottom"
+|style="text-align:center;" colspan="14"|Statistics retrieved from [[Sports-Reference]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/vanessa-nygaard-1.html|title= Vanessa Nygaard College Stats|publisher=[[Sports-Reference]]|accessdate=July 7, 2024}}</ref>
+{{s-end}}
+==Head coaching record==
+{{NBA coach statistics legend}}
+{{NBA coach statistics start}}
+|-
+| align="left" | [[2022 Phoenix Mercury season|PHO]]
+| align="left" | [[2022 WNBA season|2022]]
+| 36 || 15 || 21 ||{{winning percentage|15|21}}|| align="center" |4th in West|| 2 || 0 || 2 ||{{winning percentage|0|2}}
+| align="center" | Lost in [[2022 WNBA Playoffs|First Round]]
+|-
+| align="left" | [[2023 Phoenix Mercury season|PHO]]
+| align="left" | [[2023 WNBA season|2023]]
+| 12 || 2 || 10 ||{{winning percentage|2|10}}|| align="center" |6th in West (at time of firing)|| - || - || - ||{{winning percentage|-|-}}
+| align="center" | Fired after 12 Games
+|-class="sortbottom"
+| align="left" |'''Career'''
+| || 48 || 17 || 31 ||{{winning percentage|17|31}}|| || 2 || 0 || 2 ||{{winning percentage|0|2}} ||
+{{s-end}}
 ==References==
@@ Line 83: / Line 180: @@
 {{Phoenix Mercury}}
-{{Phoenix Mercury current roster}}
-{{WNBACoach}}
 {{DEFAULTSORT:Nygaard, Vanessa}}
@@ Line 94: / Line 189: @@
 [[Category:Basketball coaches from California]]
 [[Category:Basketball players from Scottsdale, Arizona]]
-[[Category:Basketball players from California]]
 [[Category:Charlotte Sting players]]
 [[Category:Cleveland Rockers players]]
+[[Category:LGBTQ basketball players]]
+[[Category:LGBTQ people from Arizona]]
+[[Category:American lesbian sportswomen]]
 [[Category:Los Angeles Sparks players]]
 [[Category:Miami Sol players]]
@@ Line 107: / Line 204: @@
 [[Category:Small forwards]]
 [[Category:Sportspeople from Carlsbad, California]]
+[[Category:Basketball players from San Diego County, California]]
 [[Category:Stanford Cardinal women's basketball players]]

v t e Phoenix Mercury
Founded in 1997 Based in Phoenix, Arizona
Franchise	Franchise Current season
Arenas	Footprint Center
Head coaches	Cheryl Miller Cynthia Cooper Linda Sharp John Shumate Carrie Graf Paul Westhead Corey Gaines Russ Pennell Sandy Brondello Vanessa Nygaard Nikki Blue Nate Tibbetts
Administration	Owner(s): Jerry Colangelo Robert Sarver Mat Ishbia & Justin Ishbia CEO: Josh Bartelstein General Manager: Cheryl Miller Seth Sulka Ann Meyers-Drysdale Corey Gaines Amber Cox Jason Rowley Jim Pitman Nick U'Ren
All-Stars	DeWanna Bonner Kahleah Copper Anna DeForge Skylar Diggins-Smith Candice Dupree Brittney Griner Brandy Reed Cappie Pondexter Diana Taurasi Penny Taylor Michele Timms Adrian Williams
Seasons	1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
Playoff appearances	1997 1998 2000 2007 2009 2010 2011 2013 2014 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Conference Championships	1998 2007 2009 2014 2021
WNBA Championships	2007 2009 2014
Rivals	Houston Comets Los Angeles Sparks Minnesota Lynx Seattle Storm Chicago Sky
Media	TV: Bally Sports Arizona Announcers: Kayte Christensen, Tom Leander