It’s hard to find a coach who has had a bigger rise in women’s basketball in Canada over the past decade than Toronto Tempo assistant Carly Clarke.
Clarke, who played five seasons at Bishop’s University in Sherbrooke, Que., took over as the head coach of Toronto Metropolitan University’s women’s basketball program in 2012 and transformed it into a contender, winning three Ontario University Athletics (OUA) titles and had an undefeated season that resulted in a U Sports national championship in 2021-22.
She has also been a fixture on the coaching staff internationally for Canada, serving as an assistant at two Olympics (2020 and 2024), led the U19 national team to two FIBA World Cup bronze medals in 2017 and 2023, and has also helmed the U23 national team.
Now, she is one of five assistant coaches to head coach Sandy Brondello in the Tempo’s inaugural season and holds the distinction of being the first Canadian coach on Canada’s first WNBA team.
Clarke, who hails from Halifax but has made Toronto home, resigned as head coach of the TMU Bold to accept the Tempo job in March and said it came with mixed emotions.
“I think honestly when I knew I was getting the offer, the opportunity, it was a no-brainer,” Clarke told TSN.ca in an interview. “But that doesn’t mean that it was easy to leave by any means. I’ve made so many strong connections and relationships with all the people there - past players, current players, incoming players. All of that was extremely difficult.
“But I knew the opportunity to work with the best in the best league in the world, especially in my home city, was something I could not pass up.”
In 14 seasons with TMU, Clarke coached the program to a 286-150 record and took home OUA Coach of the Year in 2022.
Through 40 games this season, the Tempo are 13th in the WNBA at 11-29 and dropped four straight games heading into the FIBA World Cup break. The season resumes for Toronto on Friday against Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever.
Clarke said she has several responsibilities as an assistant in Toronto, which include working closely with players, reviewing game film and preparing scouting reports.
“All of us, as assistant coaches, have responsibility for player development,” said Clarke. “We’re all assigned a few players that we work with on a daily basis, whether it’s individual skill, film breakdown, game warm-up. So that’s a big part of the role.
“I work a little bit more on the offensive side. Although overall, as a staff, we’re fully collaborative. And then in-game, I’m responsible for challenges.”
Two players Clarke has worked extensively with this season on the Tempo are forwards Laura Juskaite and Maria Conde, who are both playing in their first WNBA seasons after extensive experience playing in Europe.
Juskaite, 28, is averaging 10.3 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.7 assists through 40 games this season while the 29-year-old Conde is averaging 8.9 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.6 assists in 33 games.
Clarke has noticed one key difference between the European and North American approach to the game.
“I think one of the biggest difference European-wise or internationally is the understanding of how to play off the ball and how to share and move the basketball,” said Clarke. “Not that North American players don’t do that. I think it’s just emphasized in a different way internationally. The way they see the game and read the game, and obviously both of them have a ton of experience internationally as well. That’s really shown up for me.”
This season also marks the first time Clarke is working exclusively with pro-level players day in and day out for an entire season instead of student-athletes.
“The biggest difference is that at this level, it’s their job,” said Clarke. “The passion is similar, but not always the same. At the university level, you’re having to balance the academics and the other factors that the student-athletes are navigating on a daily basis.”
The Tempo have had a unique schedule in their debut season. While they’ve spent most of their home games in Toronto at Coca-Coliseum, they’ve also had home games at Montreal’s Bell Centre and Vancouver’s Rogers Arena.
“I’ve spent a lot of my summers over the last decade or more traveling with the national team, so it’s kind of felt like that,” said Clarke of the travel. “Some really cool cities. Love the time in San Francisco. I hadn’t been to Seattle before. It was great to see there. Brooklyn’s always a fun place to play and visit.”
The Tempo have just four regular-season games left on the schedule, ending on Sept. 24 against the Connecticut Sun and will miss the playoffs after injuries piled up and inconsistent play crept in with players constantly in and out of the lineup.
This off-season will have a different look for Clarke, who coached through the school year the past 14 years. She said there are national team responsibilities and is set to find out soon what the Tempo’s off-season work will be.
On top of that as well as prioritizing downtime after the season, Clarke has one more thing she will make time for.
“Of course, get to some TMU games,” she said.
