by Mary Spiller
July 5, 2025
The suit claims Blue was pushed aside despite her qualifications and retaliated against for speaking out about unfair treatment.
Former Phoenix Mercury interim head coach Nikki Blue has filed a lawsuit against the team, alleging racial and gender discrimination, unequal pay, and wrongful termination. The suit, filed July 3, in Arizona, claims Blue—a Black woman—was pushed aside despite her qualifications and retaliated against for speaking out about unfair treatment.
“Despite her exemplary record and professionalism, Ms. Blue was cast aside, demeaned, and denied the opportunity to lead,” stated Mesidor PLLC, the law firm representing Blue.
“This lawsuit is not just about one woman’s career — it’s about the pervasive, institutional disrespect for Black women in sports leadership.”
According to AZCentral, Blue joined the Mercury as an assistant coach in March 2022 under former head coach Vanessa Nygaard. After a rough start to the 2023 season, with Phoenix beginning 2-10, Nygaard was fired, and Blue was promoted to interim head coach.
Under Blue’s leadership, the team finished 7-21 and missed the playoffs for the first time in over a decade. She was not retained after the season and was replaced in October 2023 by Nate Tibbetts, a former assistant coach with the Orlando Magic.
Notably, neither Blue nor Tibbetts had prior professional head coaching experience. According to the lawsuit, Blue was paid $250,000 in her interim role—substantially less than Nygaard’s $375,000 salary.
Tibbetts, who is white, was named the highest-paid coach in WNBA history with a reported salary of over $1 million annually.
The suit further alleges that Mercury made deliberate roster decisions intended to undermine Blue’s success during her interim tenure. Since Blue’s departure, the Mercury have improved under Tibbetts, finishing the 2024 season at 19-21 with a first-round playoff exit and currently holding a 12-6 record as of July 4.
Blue has since continued her coaching career, joining the Los Angeles Sparks in January and later taking on a staff role at USC under head coach Lindsey Gottlieb.
The Mercury and Suns organization pushed back strongly on the lawsuit, particularly its ties to attorney Sheree Wright, who has led several legal actions against the franchise.
“This is the fifth lawsuit brought against the organization by Sheree Wright, an attorney who has been disciplined twice by the Supreme Court of Arizona for committing numerous violations of the rules of professional conduct — including making false and unsupported allegations of racial bias against a judge,” said Stacey Mitch, senior VP of communications for the Suns and Mercury.
“Like Ms. Wright’s other cases, this case is completely meritless. Ms. Blue was interviewed and considered for the head coach position, but didn’t get the position based on her performance as interim head coach, as well as her limited professional coaching experience. Sheree Wright’s continued abuse of the legal system for financial gain is unethical.”
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