The Atlanta Dream are the latest WNBA team to make a new coaching hire this offseason, and in a surprise twist they've lured Florida Gulf Coast's Karl Smesko from the collegiate ranks. Smesko's departure is a major blow to FGCU, who became a mid-major powerhouse under his leadership and have suddenly lost their coach two games into the season.
"I am humbled and honored to be the head coach of the Atlanta Dream," Smesko stated in a press release. "I am grateful for a remarkable 23 years at FGCU and will be forever indebted to the amazing women who have played for me, the incredible professionals who have coached with me, and the passionate fanbase who supported us along the way. I'm thankful to the leadership of the Atlanta Dream for their faith in me to lead this organization into the future and can't wait to get started."
Smesko started the FGCU program from scratch in 2002 -- his first office was in a trailer and the initial workouts he conducted were outside on asphalt while waiting for an indoor facility to be built -- and went 30-1 in his first season at the Division II level. He never looked back.
Over 22 seasons in charge in Fort Myers, Smesko racked up an incredible .847 winning percentage, brought FGCU to the D-II national championship game in 2007 and oversaw their transition to the D-I level the next season. Since the Eagles joined the Atlantic Sun in the 2007-08 season, they have won 14 of 17 conference regular-season titles, 10 ASUN Tournament championships and made 10 NCAA Tournament appearances.
In 2015, Smesko guided the team to its first ever NCAA Tournament win over Oklahoma State, and later added three more, all in the first round. FGCU has won at least 25 games in 14 consecutive seasons, a feat only UConn can match at the D-I level. During his tenure, Smesko was named ASUN Coach of the Year 13 times.
The school announced that long-time associate head coach Chelsea Lyles, a 2010 graduate of the program, will take over as coach. FGCU's next game is on Sunday against New Jersey Institute of Technology.
Smesko had tremendous success at FGCU by running an analytically-driven offense predicated on a heavy 3-point attack.
Last season, the Eagles took a nation-leading 51.1% of their field goal attempts from behind the arc, and that was their lowest percentage of attempts from behind the arc since 2017, which was also the last time they didn't finish first in that category. In 2022, they put up a whopping 56.4% of their attempts from 3.
Thanks in large part to Smesko's approach, the Eagles were reliably one of the best offensive teams in the country. Since making the move to D-I, the Eagles have finished in the top-five in offensive rating six times and been outside of the top-20 just three times.
In terms of approach, Smesko is a polar opposite from former Dream coach Tanisha Wright, who preached hard-nosed, physical defense and preferred an inside-out approach that led to little success. In three seasons under Wright, the Dream finished 12th, 9th and 11th in offensive rating and never had a 3-point attempt rate above 31.3%.
The Dream, who have not won a playoff series since 2016, are hopeful that Smesko can not only make them more entertaining, but turn them back into a winning club.
"His fast-paced, innovative style of play will be attractive to our players and fans alike," Dream general manager Dan Padover said.