Los Angeles Sparks interim coach Fred Williams expressed his desire to stay with the WNBA franchise, but the team will go in a different direction for its next head coach, the Sparks announced Wednesday.

Williams will depart for Auburn University, where he is set to become associate head coach of the women’s basketball team, a plan set in motion before he stepped in as the Sparks’ interim coach in June.

“The Sparks would like to thank Coach Fred for his leadership and guidance over the past four seasons as both an assistant coach and as interim head coach,” Sparks managing partner Eric Holoman said in a statement. “Fred has had an illustrious WNBA coaching career, and we know he will continue to make an impact on women’s basketball at Auburn.”

Williams took over as interim coach after the team fired head coach and general manager Derek Fisher in June.

The Sparks failed to make the playoffs for the second year in a row. Off the court, the team underwent a contract divorce with star center Liz Cambage after reported issues on and off the court.

Recent postgame comments about Chennedy Carter underscored the tension surrounding the team this season. Carter missed four games in a row due to a “coach’s decision,” but Williams had what he described as a change of heart ahead of the penultimate game of the season, allowing Carter to return to the floor.

Both Carter and Williams have remained mum on the reasoning behind her absence.

After the final game of the season Sunday, Williams reiterated his desire to take on the role of head coach on a permanent basis, adding that he had already had “some conversations” with Sparks management.

“I love this city, this is my hometown,” Williams said. “And I love coaching this team. I love being a part of the Sparks family and I feel a big part of this. I know that we can be better than what we’ve done this past season.”

Williams started working with the Sparks in 2019 as an assistant coach. Prior to that, he served as head coach with the Utah Starzz, Atlanta Dream and Dallas Wings/Tulsa Shock. He also served as head coach at USC from 1995-1997.

His decision to leave the Sparks for the associate head coach position at Auburn was announced in early May.

“I am very grateful for the opportunity and time that I have had with the Los Angeles Sparks,” Williams said. “A special thank you to Eric Holoman, my staff, and players who I have worked with throughout my time. Thank you also to our Sparks fans for your support and for making the atmosphere at our games so memorable.”

The Sparks will embark on the search for their next head coach, as well as the search for the team’s next general manager.

Another Washington Spirit coach is departing DC, with multiple weekend reports linking current manager Jonatan Giráldez to the newly opened head coaching job at French Première Ligue side OL Lyonnes.

According to The Athletic, Giráldez will step away from the Spirit in June, with assistant Adrián González — who led Washington as interim manager prior to Giráldez's mid-2024 arrival — set to take over the NWSL squad on July 18th.

The move follows additional reports that first-year OL Lyonnes boss Joe Montemurro is Australia-bound after agreeing to head up his home country's national team, the Matildas.

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Spirit coach swap raises questions for multi-team owner Kang

With Giráldez jumping from one Michele Kang-owned team to another, the former Barcelona manager's European return raises questions about Kang's multi-club ownership model — and concerns about the future of injured Spirit star Trinity Rodman, who recently took leave from the NWSL to seek treatment overseas.

"We are not going to sacrifice one team to make another team successful. Absolutely not," Kang told Forbes in 2024 interview. "Our goal is to make every team the champion in each of their leagues."

In addition to the Spirit and OL Lyonnes, Kang's Kynisca corporation also owns recently promoted WSL side London City Lionesses.

The Spirit has weathered big changes before, but Kang's involvement in this particular personnel swap will face critique should Washington lose pace later this season.

Two US tennis stars are still shining at the 2025 French Open, as world No. 8 Madison Keys and No. 2 Coco Gauff blew through their Round of 16 matches on Monday to set up an all-US quarterfinal showdown on Tuesday.

Gauff dealt No. 20 Ekaterina Alexandrova a dominant 6-0, 7-5 loss early Monday morning, while 2025 Australian Open champion Keys ended fellow US player No. 70 Hailey Baptiste's French Open run with a 6-3, 7-5 defeat shortly afterward.

"Coco is so good, and especially on clay," Keys said ahead of her upcoming quarterfinal opponent. "She's an unbelievable player and such a great athlete.... I'm looking forward to it and happy to see there will be another American in the semifinals."

Five US women and three men reached the fourth round at Roland-Garros this past weekend, tying the country's 1985 record before Baptiste joined No. 3 Jessica Pegula and No. 16 Amanda Anisimova on the ousted list.

No US player has won the French Open since Serena Williams in 2015, with both Gauff and Keys shooting for a championship match date against top contenders like No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka or No. 5 Iga Świątek — winner of four of the last five Parisian Grand Slams.

How to watch the 2025 French Open

Gauff and Keys will battle for a spot in semifinals on Tuesday morning.

The quarterfinals kick off at 5 AM ET, with live coverage on TNT.

While the undefeated New York Liberty and Minnesota Lynx look down from the top, Phoenix and Atlanta are shaping up to be the early season's biggest players, as the No. 3 Mercury and No. 4 Dream continue to climb the 2025 WNBA standings.

The Mercury topped the skidding LA Sparks 85-80 on Sunday to reach 5-2 on the season, while the Dream secured their own 5-2 record after Friday's 94-87 win over the Seattle Storm.

Atlanta and Phoenix made some of league's boldest offseason moves this year, as Mercury legend Brittney Griner joined the Dream in free agency while Phoenix picked up top talent in forwards Alyssa Thomas and Satou Sabally.

With Thomas nursing an injury, Sabally led Phoenix over LA behind a team-high 24 points on Sunday.

Griner's 15-point, eight-rebound performance helped Atlanta quiet the Dallas Wings 83-75 on May 24th, before established stars Allisha Gray and Rhyne Howard combined for 61 points against Seattle.

Meanwhile at the bottom of the table, the Connecticut Sun registered their first victory of the 2025 season on Friday, edging out the injury-laden Indiana Fever to become the final WNBA team to enter the win column this season.

The Sun, however, came crashing back to Earth on Sunday, falling to the reigning champion Liberty by a steep 48-point margin on the first day of Commissioner's Cup play.

How to watch WNBA games this week

The Mercury are back in action in a road match against the Lynx at 8 PM ET on Tuesday, airing live on ESPN3.

Following a full week of rest, the Dream will travel to Connecticut to take on the Sun at 7:30 PM ET on Friday, with live coverage on ION.

In their first match since early April, the USWNT didn't miss a beat, comfortably taking down China PR 3-0 to kick off a series of two international friendlies on Saturday.

Forward Catarina Macario opened scoring in the match's 28th minute, before midfielder Sam Coffey doubled the scoreline later in the first half. A header from captain Lindsey Heaps in the 54th minute put the finishing touch on the Saturday victory.

Head coach Emma Hayes's top-ranked USWNT played fluidly against No. 17 China PR, dominating the game's attack with more than 70% possession while notching 18 shots on goal — seven of them on target.

"I feel like I'm working a lot on trying to join the play more, get up in counter-measures. I tend to play it too safe, and think too 'worst-case scenario,' so I was just trying to join," Coffey told TBS after tallying her second international goal.

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The match also saw the international debut of 32-year-old midfielder Lo'eau Labonta, who became the oldest player to earn a first cap in USWNT history with her entrance in the game's 70th minute.

"When they called my name, I was sitting being the best cheerleader I could be on the bench," LaBonta joked after the win. "I was like, 'This is amazing. I've never been field-view watching the national team.' It was so cool."

The US will go again against No. 40 Jamaica on Tuesday, but it appears that Hayes's roster reshuffling hasn't yet hindered their ability to control games.

How to watch the USWNT vs. Jamaica friendly this week

The USWNT will take on the Reggae Girlz at 8 PM ET on Tuesday in St. Louis, Missouri, with live coverage on TNT.