Back then, Palmer hardly had time to consider the significance of her accomplishment. "Kids have to see that things are possible," Jelks said. Instead, the Farmington, Mo., native spent most of her time traveling with her dad, a high school and collegiate basketball referee for 35-plus years, to all of his games and tournaments. The Getty Images design is a trademark of Getty Images. Kantner's NBA career was the shorter of the two, spanning until 2002 when she was released by the league. Im so happy for you.. 4091. Female NBA Referees Are Becoming a Normal Part of the Game. In 2014, Lauren Holtkamp-Sterling became the first woman hired as a full-time NBA official in nearly two decades. Toronto Star articles, please go to: www.TorontoStarReprints.com, Conversations are opinions of our readers and are subject to the, The Toronto Star and thestar.com, each property of Toronto Star You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. Her husband, Johnee Gleich, is currently an official in the NCAA. Star Newspapers Limited and/or its licensors. Now, there are five different women officiating games on a nightly basis. Referee Position. WNBA 2019: Points of Education (Part 2) FFC Frankfurt and FCR 2001 Duisburg. "I have always shown great respect for the referees and my career supports me," Ndour wrote on Twitter with a clip of the incident after . And despite having to transcend this gendered space, the officials recognize that the job of refereeing is not actually gendered work. Turner is permitted to get to a spot twitter.com/i/web/status/1, TONIGHT But now, in 2021-22, the NBA has six female referees on its full-time officiating staff, the most ever. Grow your brand authentically by sharing brand content with the internets creators. Playoff officials are selected by the WNBA Referee Operations management team based on three specific criteria throughout the season: WNBA Referee Operations graded rankings, play-calling accuracy and team feedback. Rather, Hopkins said afterward that in general the Liberty got the short end of the stick, both in this game and all season long. First-year NBA official Danielle Scott views her rookie season the same as any player entering the league would: an adjustment. To its credit, the NBA hasn't been satisfied at simply hitting numerical targets for the sake of appearance -- although no one's saying it's been perfect, either. "Her advice is always authentic.". Palmer and Kantner smashed this barrier; those who came after them are trying to stomp on its remains. "It's almost normal now. Simone Jelks, the first Black woman hired in this role since Palmer herself, was also one of several women to attend Palmer's yearly refereeing camps before reaching the NBA level (such camps are common in the refereeing world, both for development and scouting; Palmer's is open to all collegiate officials). This is the league's . Danielle Scott decided to join the family business. Cheryl Flores and Dannica Mosher have been promoted to the level of full-time staff officials, the NBA said Thursday. Conley was in the G League for seven seasons, Schwab for five and, like Scott, they also worked WNBA games this season. Most notably, then-Celtics broadcaster Cedric Maxwell used a stunningly offensive "get back in the kitchen" line for a game Palmer was officiating in 2007 (Maxwell would later apologize). But Holtkamp-Sterling believes shes the one paying homage and praises Palmer and Kantner for breaking barriers as the first two women officials in the NBA. She struggled at times with the constant demands from those she encountered, both stated and implied, to justify herself or explain her pursuit of success in a heavily male-dominated field. #24 Scott, #77 Lane, #17 Sterling Long before she was hired in the NBA, the Flint, Mich., native didnt know that refereeing could be a full-time job. For female basketball referees, men's college basketball may be the bleakest of frontiers. According to a warrant for Morrow's arrest, he's facing charges of assault by strangulation, second-degree kidnapping and communicating threats. Each game crew consists of three on-court officials and one on-site alternate. All Rights Reserved. After seeing an overwhelmingly male-dominated officiating staff through the late 1990s and early 2000s, fans began to notice more female referees. And 25 of the 63 referees in the G-League are women. Women NBA Referees. The names she's invoking are Violet Palmer and Dee Kantner, the first full-time women referees to ever work in the NBA. The NBA's roster of female referees continues to grow. Ashley Moyer-Gleich talks with Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell. But, its hard for someone whos a player to sit down and read the rule book and understand it because its so its not relatable to how a player understands the game.. If you've ever wondered why Finals games seem like they're officiated by many of the same people year after year, it's because those are senior-level referees. 2023 Getty Images. They make up 8% of the 75-member officiating staff. As WWE's New Day would say, shame! 0. Boger is the only referee to retire this offseason. may be duplicated, redistributed or manipulated in any form. The NBA now has the most . Today, Palmer counts men she worked with among her best friends. Both entered the league fully in 1997, and Palmer, now 56, got the honor of making history when she donned the whistle for a late October game that year. SHARE. In the beginning, back in 1997, there were two: Violet Palmer and Dee Kantner. Officials will be evaluated after each round of the playoffs to determine future advancement in the 2021 postseason. "In that moment, he was being very clear -- there was no micro-aggression or anything: 'I'm going to tell you exactly that I don't think you belong here doing this.'". Please logout and login again. I grew up watching her.". Depending on experience and how far into the playoffs they're working, officials can reportedly receive a per game bonus of anywhere between $800 to $5,000. Under scrutiny from her first tipoff, Palmer instantly proved she could withstand the grumbling and ref . It's something that the NBA's senior vice president spoke about last year, pointing out how there hasn't been a concentrated effort to hire female referees. By TIM REYNOLDS October 18, 2021. WNBA. "[The NBA] worked closely with me to make sure that the locker room was where I needed it to be as a nursing mother," Holtkamp-Sterling said. However, her journey was slightly different from some of her female counterparts. The current group of eight full-timers all did games, as did Clare Aubry, ShaRae Mitchell, Blanca Burns and Jenna Reneau. Note: This article is archival in nature. There was an error submitting your subscription. More than anything, it's that normalcy that today's women NBA referees aspire to. Newspapers Limited, 8 Spadina Avenue, 10th Floor, Toronto, ON M5V 0S8. The NBA has always been a league that prides itself on giving equal opportunity to everyone. In 1997, Violet Palmer and Dee Kantner became the first women . I think that the NBA is very visual and theyve done a great job of showing that. Referee Kevin Fahy on Sunday ejected Astou Ndour of the WNBA 's Chicago Sky after she appeared to accidentally make contact with his stomach as he walked into her. Flores and Mosher join Lauren Holtkamp-Sterling, Simone Jelks, Ashley Moyer-Gleich, Natalie Sago, Jenna Schroeder and Danielle Scott as women at the full-time NBA referee level. They're just talking about something they're uncomfortable with.". NBA.com spoke with each of the six women to learn more about their unique journeys to the league: Jenna Schroeder talks with Spurs guard Dejounte Murray before a game. A record 12 women worked games last season in the NBA, some getting called up from the G League and non-staff levels to help when the leagues officiating roster was decimated by COVID-19. Today, there are a total of five full-time women NBA referees, an all-time league high. It does not store any personal data. Bonner already had started working NCAA Division I women's . "I always had that mentor, a role model on how to be successful in a male-dominated field," Schroeder said. I commend those women [in hockey] because first of all, you have to know how to skate, and I would be out there busting my butt trying to do that, Sago said with a laugh. Palmer's focus was internal. Other projections put the base salary for new referees somewhere around $250,000. Jelks describes people telling her that their daughters tune into NBA games she works and won't even focus on the players; their eyes only on her. She also enjoys Bikram yoga and swimming. The former Cedar Crest and Millersville guard wasn't planning to be a ref at all but a college . (Suggested reading: Floyd Mayweather interested in buying NBA team). Areas like these come to the forefront as the NBA continues to strive for an earned reputation as a progressive organization. It was that support and recognition that both of us were sort of in the space that women arent typically in and that we were sort of bolstered by seeing each other there, doing the work, said Holtkamp-Sterling. According to Career Trend, those who officiate WNBA games earn a salary of $180,000 per year to start. The NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Committee has approved the 11 game officials, who will bring a combined experience of 63 Women's Final Four appearances, to officiate the three games . "Those girls get to see me on this platform, working with men in a male-dominated field.". New to motherhood another around-the-clock job Moyer-Gleich remembers getting hired in 2018 as the jumping-off point for the league, which has now been a domino effect of more women coming through the officiating pipeline. Sago, Holtkamp-Sterling, Schroeder and Moyer-Gleich were all on-hand in Clearwater, Florida to celebrate Sago's 30th birthday a couple summers ago (Jelks wasn't yet a full-time official). But Palmer and Kantner's influence on today's generation is immense and undeniable. If you are having difficulty accessing any content on this website, please visit our Accessibility page. . But she viewed the NBA as a challenge to conquer, plus she took comfort in the fact that at the time, NBA mechanics were actually pretty similar to those she was used to at the women's college level. Today, we're going to be taking a look at all three categories, how much each make and how a referee can climb their way up to the top level. She played through college and worked her way up the high school, college . Thats where she remembers watching Candace Parker with Tennessee, and Diana Taurasi and Sue Bird with UConn. Senior-level referees are the best of the best. Well-known referees on the high end are individuals like Tony Brothers and of course, Scott Foster who Chris Paul is all too familiar with. They all worked between 20 and 26 games as non-staff referees last season. My ideals completely match up with the NBAs and I think it would be difficult to work for a company if your ideals didnt and I just feel very fortunate that they believe in everything I believe in.. Now in her third NBA season, she feels this is a whole new grind in comparison to her journey but there is no place else she would rather be. Female referees make a maximum single-game pay of $5,000 if they work the Super Bowl. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. These goals are attainable now in ways they just couldn't have been even a generation prior. And if it were male officials, you wouldnt call them sensitive.. Jelks, along with her female counterparts, dont pay much attention to what fans or critics have to say and know they wouldnt be here if it wasnt for their esteemed skillset. The NBA's roster of female referees continues to grow. 7:30 PM ET She was the first female referee in German professional football. The NBA feels very strongly that this should be a meritocracy. Simone Jelks worked her first game in the NBA in 2019. Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. Browse 1,151 wnba referees stock photos and images available, or start a new search to explore more stock photos and images. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. And as the first to reach this plateau since, she's turned around and served a similarly important role for those following her. "And it's even better when the things they see are possible look like them.". Ashley Moyer-Gleich has been a hooper her whole life. Of course," Palmer, who retired from the NBA in 2016, said. The referees had to be ready and so did the players, coaches and fans. Active referees are listed in bold. Holtkamp reffed in the G-League for six years before eventually getting the call-up to the big stage. The ability to advance in this career is evident. "[He] confronted me and told me I didn't belong there, working that game," Holtkamp-Sterling recounted years later. I love that Im a part of an organization that hires you based on if you can do the job and based on your skills. @BrooklynNets at @celtics This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The approval of her peers in the officiating world. Sun Belt apologizes to Troy for refs' late blunder, Irish move past Wolfpack as Miles still sidelined, Spirit make NWSL history by signing 15-year-old, Volynets stops Stearns to reach first WTA semi, Shiffrin 4th in super-G, still chasing 86th win, Sheldon gives Buckeyes lift vs. Michigan in return, White out as Pitt hoops coach after 42-99 mark, All in the family: how three generations of Jaquezes have ruled West Coast basketball. The most recent estimations put NBA referees annual salaries between $180,000 and $550,000. But neither supply nor demand were what they are now. Holtkamp-Sterling finds comfort in having close working relationships with other NBA officials. The NBA now has eight women at the full-time referee level, the most the league has ever had at one time. Women's Champ Week predictions: Which teams will win the auto bids in all 32 conferences? Not only that, but the grind to becoming a professional referee requires true dedication. In terms of explaining certain officiating calls during live games, Moyer-Gleich uses her past experience as a player to translate and articulate the rule book into basketball jargon that players and coaches will understand. Even while on maternity leave, shes locked into games every single night, which now she gets to do with her son by her side. Natalie Sago says her time officiating games in the WNBA prepared her for an NBA officiating job. WNBA 2020: Points of Education (Part 2) Referee assignments are posted at approximately 9:00am ET each game day.