As the brain of a team, head coaches and assistant coaches in the NBA are responsible for individual player development and strategizing tactics based on the opposition's playing style.
In recent years, several NBA teams have appointed a female assistant coach. However, there has not been a female head coach in the NBA yet. Out of the total 15 female assistant coaches, six are active in the NBA. Lisa Boyer was the first female to take the coaching duty in the NBA for the Cleveland Cavaliers. Becky Hammon was the coach with the longest tenure of eight years.
Also Read: List of Foreign NBA Coaches
Female coaches in the NBA
Below is the list of female NBA coaches:
| Assistant coach | Nationality | Career | Notes |
| Jenny Boucek | United States | 2017–present | Assistant coach for the Indiana Pacers. Previously assistant coach for the Dallas Mavericks, player development coach for the Sacramento Kings. |
| Lisa Boyer | United States | 2001–2002 | Assistant for the Cleveland Cavaliers. First woman to hold a coaching position in NBA history. |
| Brittni Donaldson | United States | 2019–present | Assistant coach for the Atlanta Hawks. Previously, Assistant coach for the Detroit Pistons in the 2022-23 season and the Toronto Raptors from 2019-2021. |
| Lindsay Gottlieb | United States | 2019–2021 | Assistant coach for the Cleveland Cavaliers. First women's college coach recruited to an NBA staff. Left the NBA to return to the college ranks as the head coach of the USC Trojans women's team. |
| Becky Hammon | Russia | 2014–2022 | Assistant coach for the San Antonio Spurs. First female full-time assistant coach in any of North America's major professional leagues. Head Coach of the 2015 Las Vegas NBA Summer League championship team. First woman to serve as the Head Coach in an NBA game while the Spurs were playing the Lakers on December 30, 2020. Left the NBA to become the head coach of the WNBA Las Vegas Aces team. |
| United States | |||
| Lindsey Harding | United States | 2019–present | Assistant coach/player development coach for the Sacramento Kings. Previously, player development coach for the Philadelphia 76ers |
| Niele Ivey | United States | 2019–2020 | Previously, Assistant coach for the Memphis Grizzlies in the 2019-20 season |
| Kara Lawson | United States | 2019–2020 | Former assistant coach for the Boston Celtics. Currently head coach for the Duke Blue Devils women's team. |
| Nancy Lieberman | United States | 2015–2017 | Assistant coach for the Sacramento Kings. First woman to coach a professional men's basketball team, the Texas Legends of the NBA Development League (2010–2011). |
| Natalie Nakase | United States | 2018–2020 | Assistant coach with Agua Caliente Clippers. Previously, Assistant coach with the Los Angeles Clippers. First woman to sit on the bench as an assistant coach in the NBA during the 2014 Summer League. |
| Sonia Raman | United States | 2020–present | Assistant coach for the Memphis Grizzlies. |
| Kristi Toliver | Slovakia | 2018– 2023 | Assistant coach for the Dallas Mavericks. Previously assistant coach with the Washington Wizards. |
| United States | |||
| Karen Stack Umlauf | United States | 2018–2020 | Assistant coach for the Chicago Bulls, previously the Bulls' senior director of basketball operations. |
| Teresa Weatherspoon | United States | 2019–2023 | Assistant coach for the New Orleans Pelicans. |
| Edniesha Curry | United States | 2021–2022 | Assistant coach for the Portland Trail Blazers. Currently head coach of the U.S. Virgin Islands men’s basketball team. |
FAQs on Female NBA Coaches
A. There are five active women coaches in the NBA as of May 2025.
A. Lisa Boyer was the first assistant coach in the NBA, hired in 2001.
A. Hammon coaches the Las Vegas Aces team in the WNBA.
A. Tara VanDerveer, a college basketball coach, is considered by many as the best female basketball coach. Her career record stands at 1,186 - 265.
