Halifax’s Carly Clarke readies for new coaching role with Toronto Tempo

Carly Clarke believes the arrival of the WNBA in Toronto could have a transformative impact on women’s basketball in Canada.

The expansion Toronto Tempo begin regular-season play next month as the WNBA’s first franchise outside the United States and the team will feature some Maritime talent on the sidelines after Clarke, a Halifax native, was signed in late March as an assistant coach.

In an interview with CBC News, Clarke said she thinks the exposure of young basketball players and fans to some of the best female players in the world will further accelerate the growth of the sport in Canada.

“It’s massive for women’s basketball in Canada,” she said. “We saw it with the [NBA’s] Raptors … and I think we’re going to see that carry over to the women’s side.”

Clarke spent the previous 14 years as head coach at Toronto Metropolitan University, formerly Ryerson University, where she established the Bold as one of Canada’s elite women’s programs and won the national university championship in 2022.

She began her university coaching career with a two-year stint as an assistant with the Dalhousie Tigers in her hometown and has also served as an assistant for the Canadian national women’s team at the 2020 and 2024 Olympic Games.

In a news release on March 30 to announce Clarke’s hiring, Tempo head coach Sandy Brondello said her experience and commitment to excellence “make her a perfect fit for what we’re building.”

“Carly is a coach players trust and respect,” Brondello said. “She brings tremendous energy, a deep understanding of the game, and a real passion for developing athletes every day.”

Queen Elizabeth High to the WNBA

Clarke, who said it was a “huge honour” to become the first Canadian coach of Canada’s first WNBA team, said she was already coaching basketball in the summer when she started to play at Queen Elizabeth High School in Halifax.

“I was always really fascinated with the leadership and the technical, tactical side,” she said.

After playing for five years at Bishop’s University in Quebec, she made the transition to coaching full time, starting at Dalhousie as an assistant and then taking the reins as head coach at the University of Prince Edward Island for three years before making the move to Toronto Metropolitan.

With the Tempo, her responsibilities will include scouting, the team’s offense and “a lot” of film breakdown, Clarke said.

Toronto’s first-year roster was constructed through an expansion draft, free agency and the league’s entry draft, and Clarke said she looks forward to helping shape the team.

“The concept of building a team and a program to sustainable and consistent success is something that I bring through my work ethic and passion and commitment to helping others,” she said.

The Tempo play their first pre-season game Wednesday night in Toronto against the Connecticut Sun. They open the regular season at home against the Washington Mystics on May 8.

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