After a brutal 124-88 loss to the Atlanta Dream knocked them out of playoff contention, the Los Angeles Sparks are trying everything to get back on top of the WNBA. Now, after an unfortunate record of 15-25 in the 2026 season, the franchise has decided it’s time for a major change in leadership to lead them back to the times when they won back-to-back championships. With Nneka Ogwumike retiring at the end of 2026, the Sparks will need strong leadership to end their six-year playoff drought.

According to an Instagram post by the Sparks, the team has hired former Philadelphia 76ers executive Ariana Andonian as their new general manager to replace Raegan Pebley. Andonian will lead the team into a new chapter following Pebley’s unsuccessful two-and-a-half-year reign.

Pebley joined the Sparks in January 2024, and that season, the Sparks ended the regular season with the worst record in the league – 8-32. Interestingly, the champions in 2024, the New York Liberty, finished with a record of 32-8. 2024 saw Sparks’ rookie Cameron Brink suffer an ACL tear, hampering the team’s shot-blocking and paint protection. 2025 didn’t see much of a difference, with LA finishing ninth in the league with a record of 21-23. While Pebley added five-time All-Star Kelsey Plum to the roster, it was not enough to get them into the playoffs.

The timing of the change is particularly important. LA has just missed the playoffs for the sixth consecutive season and currently sits at #11 in the standings, with four games left to play this year. Pebley was fired on July 12, 2026, and Andonian has to inherit a team that is searching for stability with this turbulent history.

Andonian’s hire marks the fourth person to take the general manager spot with the team since 2022.

The Sparks parted ways with Pebley earlier this season, on July 12, after starting the season 10-11. Assistant GMs Zach Knowlton and Nate Nielsen took control of the team during an interim period while LA searched for a new general manager.

“We are grateful to Raegan for her leadership and commitment to the Los Angeles Sparks and women’s basketball,” team governor Eric Holoman stated in a July 12, 2026, press release by the Sparks. “Her work on the Sparks roster and player experience will have a lasting positive impact on our organization. We sincerely thank her for all she has invested in the Sparks and wish her success in her next chapter.”

Under Pebley, the team notably traded the #2 overall pick in a package for Kelsey Plum this past offseason, a move that might not have been the wisest considering that the team is in the middle of a rebuild. They ended up trading Plum midseason to the Phoenix Mercury in exchange for Monique Akoa-Makani, a 2027 1st-round pick, and a 2028 2nd-round pick.

In the midst of the 2026 FIBA World Cup, Andonian brings professional pedigree from her time in NBA front offices to a struggling Los Angeles Sparks. She began her career in 2015 with the Houston Rockets as a scout and was the NBA’s only female scout at the time. After four years and earning an MBA, she joined the Memphis Grizzlies in 2020 as a player personnel staffer, leading the team’s international and youth scouting departments during her four years there.

Finally, she joined the Philadelphia 76ers in 2024 as the Vice President of player personnel, co-leading their scouting efforts. She was also the general manager for their G League affiliate team, the Delaware Blue Coats, in 2025.

“Coming home to Southern California to serve as general manager of the Sparks is an opportunity of a lifetime,” Andonian said, per a September 5, 2026 press release by the Sparks. “This is a franchise with a championship legacy, one that is part of the fabric of women’s professional basketball. It was clear to me throughout this process that the Sparks ownership group is committed to delivering for our fans.”

As she takes over the reins from Raegan Pebley, Andonian faces two major challenges.

Ariana Andonian Faces Major Decisions on the Sparks’ Young Core and Lynne Roberts’ Future

The first thing Ariana Andonian needs to grapple with as she prepares to rebuild the Los Angeles Sparks is the team’s young talent. The team has two first-round picks from the last six seasons on its roster: solid young players Cameron Brink and Rae Burrell, but their experience has been vastly different this season.

Burrell has broken out in her fourth season, nearly doubling her points-per-game average from last season, and has been the biggest success story this year. She is currently averaging 14.6 points per game, compared to her previous career-best of 7.5 in the 2025 season.

Meanwhile, Brink has struggled. During her rookie season in 2024, the center showed major defensive upside, but tearing her ACL meant she could play only 15 games, averaging 7.5 points. The player has increased her efficiency, but the ACL tear, as well as an ankle sprain, has relegated her to the bench, and only time will tell if she reaches her ceiling. This season she has played 30 games, but started only one. She is averaging 9.6 points per game and leads the Sparks in blocks, with 1.7 per game, second in the league behind Las Vegas Aces’ center A’ja Wilson (2.0).

The other big decision Andonian has to work on is head coach Lynne Roberts’ future. The first-time head coach has a combined 36-48 record over her two seasons coaching the Los Angeles Sparks so far, but much of that mediocrity can be attributed to the poor roster construction, as the Sparks are still in a rebuilding phase.

For a franchise with three WNBA championships, including one as recent as 2016, just returning to the playoffs is no longer enough, and Andonian now faces the task of building the next great LA contender.