Nikki Blue goes from LA Sparks assistant to same job for USC women’s basketball team

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Nikki Blue is joining the staff of Southern California women’s basketball coach Lindsay Gottlieb as an assistant.

Blue is making a quick pivot from the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks, who hired her as an assistant in January.

She had been the interim head coach for the Phoenix Mercury over the final 28 games of the 2023 season after joining the franchise as an assistant in 2022.

Before working at the pro level, Blue was an assistant at UNLV, Cal State Bakersfield, Grand Canyon and Arizona State over 16 seasons.

“We have elite players who want to eventually become pros, so we wanted to add someone who has pro experience,” Gottlieb said in a statement Wednesday.

Blue was a star guard for crosstown rival UCLA in the early aughts before playing in the WNBA for five years with Washington and New York. She also played two years in Turkey and Greece.

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By The Associated Press