WNBA player steps in as fans campaign against head coach

It’s been a pretty wild WNBA season, and the outside noise has been one of the biggest stories. And from objects being thrown onto the court to fan-led campaigns against head coaches, all of it is starting to reach the players.

Recently, fans of the Dallas Wings have been upset about Chris Koclanes and his decisions as the team’s head coach, as he navigates his first season in the position. As a result, a “We Want Nola” campaign has started. Nola Henry gained many fans as she led Rose Basketball Club to an Unrivaled Championship this offseason. Now, she serves as an assistant under Koclanes on the Wings.

After fans began to turn on Koclanes this summer, the “We Want Nola” chants at games started, and fans have started attending games in t-shirts with the phrase on them. They chant at Koclanes during games, and gather near the tunnel to chant it when he exits after games as well.

The Dallas Wings are currently 8-23 this season, and sit in 11th place in the league standings. With moves prior to the trade deadline to move NaLyssa Smith and DiJonai Carrington in exchange for younger players and draft picks, the Wings are clearly in a rebuilding year, but that hasn’t gotten fans to ease up on Koclanes at all.

Myisha Hines-Allen, one of the team’s only veteran players, stepped up Friday night against this “We Want Nola” campaign. She pleaded with fans in a video posted on social media to stop the chants and put away the t-shirts, reminding them that the team needs their support in good times and in bad.

The thing is — these chants are not going to be the thing to urge the Dallas Wings front office to do anything, and they just look tasteless and make games awkward for the Wings. The players want to have a connection with their fans, and if the fans are turning on the team, the team is not going to feel supported. It won’t help team morale at all. Curt Miller, the Wings’ General Manager, has worked with Koclanes for years, mentoring him from video coordinator all the way to head coach. He is not going to fire him mid-season because some fans are wearing t-shirts protesting him.

The Wings are also content with their positioning right now. After getting the No. 1 overall draft pick in the offseason, they drafted Paige Bueckers, who has won two Rookie of the Month awards and is averaging 18.6 points per game along with 5.4 assists. Still, the Wings have struggled to overcome offensive droughts and win games, leading to their current record. In a rebuilding season, though, it’s not all bad. The team will regroup in the offseason, get a great draft pick, and move on.

Hines-Allen stepping up shows the frustration that the Wings’ players are feeling about this movement. It’s one thing to have issues internally with your coach, but when that bleeds out and it feels like the fans are against them too, it’s no shock the players are annoyed by the distraction. Hines-Allen, as the team’s veteran and a leader to the younger players, is the logical person to make this plea to the fans. We’ll see if it works, or only emboldens the chanters further.