Thibault needs two more wins for first title
WNBA’s winningest coach hasn’t yet claimed trophy
WASHINGTON — On the afternoon before Game 1 of the WNBA Finals, with national media members and representatives from the league office gathered on the main court in Entertainment and Sports Arena, the Washington Mystics began to sing.
It was Washington coach-general manager Mike Thibault’s 69th birthday, and he had plenty to celebrate. He arrived at his fourth trip to the WNBA Finals having coached the Mystics to one of the best seasons in WNBAhistory, with Washington smashing myriad league offensive records and Elena Delle Donne earning her second league MVP award.
Thibault has individual accolades, too, with three WNBACoachof the Year awards in his 17 years in the league and the distinction of being the WNBA’s winningest head coach.
But for everything Thibault has to smile about, an WNBA championship has eluded him.
This top-seeded Washington team is likely the strongest squad Thibault has taken to the WNBA Finals. To win a title, he must wrench two more wins from the Connecticut Sun, the franchise he spent 10 years building before he was fired in 2012 for failing to deliver the team a championship. This year’s series is tied at a game apiece and might hinge on a small disk herniation in Delle Donne’s back that could limit the franchise star’s playing time.
He will return to Connecticut for Sunday’s Game 3, where a hungry fan base will await — the Sun hasn’t been in the Finals since Thibault led them to back-to-back appearances in 2004 and 2005. On Thursday, Connecticut announced its 10,000-seat Mohegan Sun Arena was sold out for Game 3.
“To actually see where Connecticut is now, to see Coach T. coaching against Connecticut in pursuit of his first championship — you can see how poetic that is,” said Tina Charles, the seven-time WNBA all-star who plays for the New York Liberty and won the 2012 league MVP under Thibault in Connecticut. “He came close twice, being in the Finals with the Sun. … it’s just full circle.”
Thibault admits it would be disappointing not to win this year, mainly because of the dazzling season the Mystics authored and how much effort it has taken to lift Washington from a bottom-of-the-league franchise when he was hired in 2012 to consecutive Finals appearances. The Mystics have made it to the playoffs all but one year of Thibault’s tenure.
But the coach is adamant that a championship wouldn’t define his legacy, and many around the league agree.
“His résumé isn’t incomplete without a championship. But if he gets one, it’ll be the first thing on his résumé,” said Rebecca Lobo, the ESPN analyst and Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer. “Whether or not he has a championship, he’s one of the best coaches to ever coach in this league. Whether or not he has a championship, he’s universally respected by players and other coaches. Whether or not he wins a championship, he will have had his fingerprints all over the last 17 years of the [WNBA]. But if he does, you know, it’s the crowning piece of that.”
Thibault wasn’t surprised when he and his staff were fired by Connecticut seven years ago, after he led the Sun to eight playoff appearances in 10 years but had no championship to show for it.
“The comment that was made to me later on by them was, ‘You owed us a championship,’ ” Thibault said.
The Connecticut players were more taken aback, and many of them left the organization in the years following Thibault’s departure.
By then, Thibault’s reputation as a players’ coach was firmly entrenched around the league.
“I’ve never spoken to a player who’s played for him who has anything but positive things to say,” Lobo said.
Ultimately, the impact he’s had as a coach on players is why Thibault believes winning a championship won’t define him. But as for what winning a WNBA title would mean, other than public validation, Thibault doesn’t quite know.
“Everybody wants to be the last one standing,” Thibault said, “… I’ll be able to look myself in the mirror if I’ve put my team in the best position to so, but I’ve always had a hard time with that question, because there’s only one winner at the end of the year; not everybody gets to win. Is that how you get judged for being successful?