The search for a new addition to the UConn coaching staff is now over, and it is a familiar Husky face that will be filling the assistant coach vacancy left by Jamelle Elliot’s departure, as former player Nykesha Sales returns to UConn.
In the press release announcing her return, Geno Auriemma voiced his excitement about adding Sales to his elite team of coaches.
“Bringing Nykesha back to UConn is absolutely the best decision that we could make," Auriemma said. "Having our current players work with one of college basketball's best players and an all-time WNBA great is a dream come true. Kesha has become an accomplished coach, teacher and recruiter, and she will add a new dimension to our program."
As you can imagine, the standard for a coach applying to be a member of the UConn bench is incredibly high. When the opening was posted, the preferred qualifications included a minimum of 10 years of Division 1 coaching experience, former playing experience at both the professional level, an NCAA Final Four, and more. Sales checked all the boxes, and while a UConn connection wasn’t required, it surely didn’t hurt either.
Sales played at UConn from 1994-98 and helped usher in the beginnings of what would become the standard for success under Geno Auriemma. During her college playing career, she helped UConn to eight BIG EAST titles, two NCAA Final Four appearances, and the first-ever NCAA Championship for UConn women’s basketball in 1995.
The team success was there, and it certainly goes hand in hand with Sales’ individual success. Amongst a long list of accomplishments are being a two-time All-American, BIG EAST Conference Player of the Year in 1998, and BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year in 1997 and 1998. When she left UConn, she was the program’s all-time leading scorer, where she now sits at seventh overall, and to this day she is still the career steals record holder.
Sales would then go on to have a very successful WNBA career over the course of nine seasons. An eight-time WNBA All-Star and All-WNBA Second Team in 2004, to this day she is still the Connecticut Sun’s franchise-leading scorer.
As she entered into her coaching career, she began at UCF, where she coached from 2016-22. She now comes from Georgia in the SEC after spending 2022-26 in Athens.
As she makes her return to Storrs, the excitement from Sales is evident.
"Returning to UConn is a full-circle moment for me," Sales said. "I'm incredibly grateful to Coach, CD, Mo and Tonya for welcoming me back to Storrs with open arms. Connecticut is home and where it all started. UConn obviously had a huge impact on my life and was such a foundational part of my success as a person, player and a coach. Being a part of this legacy again is an incredible honor. I'm extremely grateful and excited."
With her Husky history and experience as both a player and coach, Nykesha Sales looks to be exactly what Geno Auriemma was hoping to find as a new addition to his UConn staff.
