The WNBA is set to make its official debut in Canada as we head into the 2026 season, with the Toronto Tempo ramping up operations ahead of an uber-condensed offseason. While the impact of the WNBA’s 14th franchise will mostly be seen on the court, as Canadians show up to watch the best women’s basketball players in the world play nightly right at home, there has been a palpable off-court shift as well.
With a new team comes new jobs, new opportunities and pathways that just didn’t exist for Canadians before. Sure, some make the move to the United States and make their mark that way. Yet, for the first time in WNBA history, some opportunities allow Canadians to make an impact while being able to stay right at home.
Carly Clarke, one of the Tempo’s assistant coaching hires, has the distinction of being the first Canadian coach on the WNBA’s first Canadian team.
“The last month and a half has certainly been a whirlwind in every facet, from [Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU)] to Team Canada to now here,” Clarke said in an exclusive interview with The IX Basketball. “I’m trying to take some moments to soak it in. [Being the first Canadian coach], that’s something that’s definitely not lost on me, and something that I’m taking great pride in and responsibility in.”
Before being announced as part of Sandy Brondello‘s coaching staff, Clarke spent 14 years as head coach of the TMU women’s basketball program. Alongside her role at TMU, Clarke has also been a long-time coach within the Canada Basketball program, both with the age-group teams and on the Senior team. Now, she takes her skills to the professional level, stepping into a role within the WNBA for the first time.
“I have absolutely loved my time at the university level,” Clarke said, “but I am excited for the challenge of working around the best in the world every day.”
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Clarke has definitely seen her new head coach, Sandy Brondello, in action, as Australia and Canada have met often in FIBA basketball. She’s also seen the WNBA’s best on occasion, when Canada has matched up with them at international tournaments. The idea of getting to game plan for A’ja Wilson or coaching against someone like Natalie Achonwa, and for that to be her full-time job, is what excites Clarke about this new phase of her career.
As the Tempo get ready to hit the court, this new hire represents another rising trend: expanding opportunities for Canadians in the basketball job market. Before this year, the only chances for Canadian talent to get a gig for a Canadian professional basketball team were either with the Toronto Raptors, their G-League affiliate Raptors 905, or in the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL). But, those are all men’s basketball teams. There have been few to no chances for Canadian talent to work in the women’s basketball space and be able to stay in Canada.
The Tempo changes that.
Toronto’s team is leaning into their distinctly Canadian identity, as well. From Canadian hires like Clarke, to branding themselves as “Canada’s team,” to playing home games in Montreal and Vancouver. The Tempo aren’t just a WNBA team in Canada, they are a Canadian WNBA team. The Tempo represents a new era in Canadian women’s basketball culture — where there is a future for anyone, on the court or off, to make an impact.
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The impact that having a Canadian WNBA team may have on USports (Canada’s university sports league, which TMU plays in) could be great, and Clarke believes the representation will inspire the next generation of Canadian hoopers.
“In the U.S., the NCAA has so many eyes, media attention and financial resources behind those programs — that machine is incomparable to what we have in USports,” Clarke says. “I think the exposure to a team in the best league in the world, to the best players in the world, is just going to create more interest in basketball in general, and subsequently, that’s going to elevate the level of our game here in Canada.”
That elevation of talent stretches to coaches as well, and Clarke notes that USports has “some of the best coaches in the world” in every sport, basketball included.
When it comes to the WNBA season ahead, Clarke (like most Torontonians when asked this question) is excited for the Tempo’s home opener. To see the culmination of years of hard work and anticipation finally be celebrated and present. There’s also a ton of excitement to welcome players and fans to Toronto for the first time.
“I’m probably biased here, having lived here for a little bit, but I truly believe that Toronto is one of the best cities in the world,” Clarke says. “It’s one of the most diverse cities in the world. It truly has something for everyone. The food, the summers in particular, are incredible.”
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As Clarke also notes, the appetite for women’s sports is palpable in the city as well. The PWHL’s Toronto Sceptres often play to sold-out crowds, both at Coca Cola Coliseum (the venue they will share with the Tempo) and down the street at the Raptors’ and Toronto Maple Leafs’ home of Scotiabank Arena. Canada’s Northern Super League has also introduced women’s soccer to Toronto, and AFC Toronto will be playing half its games at Toronto FC’s bigger home field this season due to increased interest. The Tempo are joining a crew of established women’s sports franchises in the city.
The growth of women’s basketball in Canada means that while Clarke is the first Canadian coach on the Tempo’s staff, she won’t be the last. The impact this team will have on opportunities for women in sports will only continue to grow as the Tempo itself integrates fully into the league.
The anticipation of the Tempo’s tip-off continues to build as the franchise prepares to welcome its first players during Friday’s WNBA Expansion Draft.
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