February 22, 2025
Most not too long ago Rogers spent two seasons as an assistant basic supervisor with the Phoenix Mercury.
Monica Wright Rogers is the official basic supervisor of the Toronto Tempo forward of the enlargement crew’s WNBA debut.
The WNBA champion was launched because the Tempo’s operations chief in a press convention on Feb. 20 in Toronto, CBS Sports activities reviews. Wright Rogers joins president Teresa Resch, chief advertising and marketing officer Whitney Bell, and different executives who’re tasked with constructing out the WNBA’s latest crew.
Wright Rogers, 36, most not too long ago spent two seasons as an assistant basic supervisor with the Phoenix Mercury, and can now be answerable for recruiting a head coach, gamers, sponsorships offers, and extra.
“I need to do lots of listening and studying,” Wright Rogers mentioned. “I believe that that is such a singular sports activities metropolis and I need to be considerate in how we function in our inaugural season. I actually need to faucet in with among the different groups’ leaders and perceive from them what’s been profitable, what hasn’t on this metropolis. And in order that’s in all probability prime of my to-do listing.”
With in depth expertise within the sport, she performed seven seasons within the WNBA after being drafted second general by the Minnesota Lynx in 2010, profitable two championships with the crew. Wright Rogers had a standout faculty profession at Virginia earlier than transitioning into teaching, the place she scouted expertise in Toronto. She later moved on to a task within the WNBA league workplace earlier than finally becoming a member of the Mercury.
Resch initially narrowed the seek for a GM to 20-25 candidates earlier than trimming the listing to 6. Three finalists have been invited to Toronto for “extra intense” conferences, and finally, Wright Rogers stood out because the best choice after what Resch described as a rigorous interview course of.
“She got here up right here and actually represented herself nicely. You can inform she’s actually genuine and real, had an incredible plan, was very centered on the aim and the method, which was nice to listen to,” Resch mentioned.
“So going again after which speaking to all people and listening to the impressions, it was evident that she was the suitable match.”
Rogers Wright’s precedence is assembling a basketball crew from the bottom up, starting with hiring a head coach—a choice she goals to finalize by fall, forward of the enlargement draft.
“What we appear to be on court docket shall be a mix of myself and what our head coach believes in. However you’ll see an up-tempo sport,” Wright Rogers mentioned with a smirk.
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