From Sioux Falls to the Finals: Skyforce Tree Taking Root in the WNBA
Published on October 14, 2025 under NBA G League (G League)
Sioux Falls Skyforce News Release
Sioux Falls coaching ties continue to grow across the WNBA, linking a hometown head coach, a former MVP, and the culture that built them both.
The Sioux Falls Skyforce have long been known for producing players who move on to the next level. But now, it's the coaches - not the scorers - who are carrying the franchise's legacy onto basketball's biggest stages.
Former Skyforce head coach Nate Tibbetts, a Sioux Falls native who led the team from 2007 to 2009, has guided the Phoenix Mercury to the WNBA Finals in just his second season at the helm. On the opposite sideline this postseason stood another familiar name - Kasib Powell, the 2008 G League MVP, second-winningest coach in Skyforce history, and now an assistant coach with the Golden State Valkyries, the league's newest franchise.
Together, they've turned Sioux Falls' culture of connection, humility, and hard work into something bigger: a coaching tree that's taking root across the WNBA.
Tibbetts' love for the game started early - and at home. His father, Fred Tibbetts, is one of the most successful and respected basketball coaches in state history and one of the nation's most accomplished high-school girls' basketball coaches. Over 29 seasons, Fred earned 551 wins, 11 state titles, and 19 state-tournament appearances, influencing generations of athletes and coaches across South Dakota and beyond.
At Roosevelt High School in Sioux Falls, his teams won six Class AA championships, including five straight from 1997 to 2001, and at one point rattled off a 111-game win streak - a record that still echoes through South Dakota gyms. Before his arrival, no public school in Sioux Falls had won a girls' title since 1981. He changed that forever.
Fred's success helped raise the profile of girls' basketball throughout the Midwest, earning him a place in the South Dakota Sports Hall of Fame and recognition among the most impactful coaches in the region's history.
"Obviously, my dad plays a big part in me being here," Tibbetts said. "It disappoints me that he hasn't been able to see me coach in the W, although I know he's watching from above. I just loved his coaching style. I think you probably see some of my similarities or characteristics in how I approach the game the same way he did."
"I always say this - I think he would've been successful if he was coaching South Dakota football or track and field. He just had a good way to motivate his teams and his players," he continued. "Because of me just growing up in that house, seeing the success he had with his teams, I feel very blessed and thankful for those opportunities."
"He was always my role model, someone I extremely looked up to and wanted to be like," Tibbetts added. "I'm living a dream. I never thought I'd be here, never thought I'd be in the NBA, but because of the roots he poured into me, I've gotten to learn from so many great coaches. But it really all started with him."
Growing up in gyms with one of South Dakota's most respected coaches set the tone for how Tibbetts approached every stop that followed. From Roosevelt's packed high-school crowds to his own rise through the NBA G League, he carried with him the same values his father instilled - humility, preparation, and respect for the game.
"What stands out most about Sioux Falls - and South Dakota in general - is the people," Tibbetts said. "In our household, sports were everything. We were surrounded by great families who had a positive outlook on life."
When Tibbetts took over the Skyforce in 2007, he was just 30 years old - coaching in the same city where his father had built his legacy.
"I still remember my first Skyforce game," Tibbetts said. "Talking to the team before the game, breaking the huddle, and turning around in the Sioux Falls Arena thinking, 'Where do I stand? Do I sit down? Do I kneel?' It was wild, but I'll never forget it."
Those early years were demanding, but they shaped him quickly.
"You'd go into games with eight or nine players - sometimes fewer - and had to adapt," he said. "Being a head coach at such a young age definitely benefited me. Nothing prepares you like that kind of experience."
Among the players on that 2007-08 roster was a 6-foot-7 forward from New Jersey - Kasib Powell.
Powell became the NBA G League MVP in 2008, averaging 22 points per game under Tibbetts and earning a call-up to the Miami Heat. Years later, their paths would cross again - this time from opposite benches.
After stops with Portland, Cleveland, and Orlando, Tibbetts took over the Phoenix Mercury in 2024 and, by his second season, led them back to the WNBA Finals. His Mercury teams have been defined by toughness, pace, and precision - traits reminiscent of his Skyforce days.
"To be honest, I got extremely lucky joining the W when I did," Tibbetts said. "The Mercury are a high-level organization. Matt Ishbia has made a tremendous commitment to treating our players at an NBA standard. It's a first-class organization - great people who do things the right way."
Powell, meanwhile, took his next step as part of the Golden State Valkyries - an expansion team that shattered expectations in its inaugural season. Under head coach Natalie Nakase, the Valkyries became the first expansion team in WNBA history to make the playoffs, while Nakase earned Coach of the Year honors - the first ever for a first-year expansion coach. The team also sold out every home game at Chase Center in San Francisco, CA.
"What made my time in Sioux Falls really special was the community," Powell said. "Whether it's as a player, coach, or now seeing it from afar - the love of the community has always been consistent."
"The fans in Sioux Falls are great," he added. "I've always said they have the best fans in the G League - loyal, loud, and proud. The success we had was because of that energy in the building."
Both men credit the Skyforce organization - and the Heineman family's leadership - for building that foundation.
"The Skyforce wouldn't still be in Sioux Falls without the Heineman family," Tibbetts said. "They built a culture. They got the city and local businesses behind them - that's what you need."
Powell agreed.
"It's consistency," he said. "It's run by great people. Mike and Greg Heineman have been there for a long time. Their relationships with Miami and everyone involved keep things running smoothly. That's why it's lasted so long."
"There's always been great leadership there," he continued. "They truly value authentic relationships. When people at the top care about each other's well-being, it sets a standard of excellence. That's what Sioux Falls is about."
Their paths - and the people who connect them - remain intertwined.
Tibbetts knows that connection firsthand. Michael Joiner, now an assistant on Tibbetts' staff with the Mercury, played for him in Sioux Falls and was also a teammate of Powell's during their Skyforce days - another reminder of how deep the organization's influence runs.
"Michael took a chance leaving the G League," Tibbetts said. "He'd established himself as one of the better assistants in that league, and to take this job was a gamble. It's been awesome having him here. He can talk to our players about those experiences and what it's like playing for me. I'm extremely lucky to have Coach Joiner here - he's doing a hell of a job."
"You know, those are two guys that really enjoyed their time in Sioux Falls and spent offseasons there because of the Skyforce and the things the organization did to make that possible," Tibbetts said. "It's just a really neat story, with Kasib's success coaching in Sioux Falls and then getting a chance in the NBA, and now the WNBA. What they've done in Golden State is big time, and I hope he's really enjoying it."
Powell's coaching journey, in many ways, began under Tibbetts' example.
"Nate's always had elite communication skills," Powell said. "He was one of the first coaches I could really communicate with on a different level - but he also held me accountable. He got things out of me that I didn't even know I had."
"To start my coaching career, I pulled a lot from my playing days - and a lot of that came from Nate," he added. "The way I communicate, my philosophies, my style - so much of that came from watching him."
Now, as Powell helps guide a historic Valkyries franchise in its first year, those same principles carry forward.
"He's such a great leader, just a great individual," Powell said of Tibbetts. "Good things happen to good people. I'm not surprised at all by his success - and I think he's just getting started."
When the Mercury and Valkyries meet, the competitiveness is still there - but so is the connection.
"I know his competitive spirit," Powell said with a grin. "Sometimes I can tell what he's telling his team just by his expression. We still have a great relationship. We'll joke during games - a play call, a look, something we both recognize. It's unique, but it's all love."
What began as a developmental stop in the G League has become a launchpad for two coaches whose impact now stretches across the WNBA.
"Both leagues are growing," Powell said. "The G League is growing, the WNBA is growing. Teams are just looking for great coaches - and they're finding a lot of them in the G League."
"The main thing with people who have Skyforce connections is they're good human beings," he added. "That's why they're successful. Teams want to hire people they can trust."
For Tibbetts, that's what Sioux Falls has always been about - people, relationships, and doing things the right way.
"I'll always be proud of where I came from," he said. "The Skyforce gave me my start. It's amazing to see how far that tree has grown."
From small arenas in South Dakota to packed houses in Phoenix and San Francisco, two Skyforce legends - and a father who helped start it all - continue to carry the same legacy forward: build relationships, lead with integrity, and treat people the right way.
"The Skyforce gave us our start," Powell said. "And they gave us the blueprint for how to do things the right way."
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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
