Tag: Niele Ivey

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Amid the Women’s Basketball Boom, What Has Happened to the NBA’s Female Coaching Pipeline?

Jenny Boucek is huddled over her laptop, engrossed in game film. It’s a Friday morning in early April, and Boucek, an assistant coach for the Indiana Pacers, is analyzing clip after clip, hours before the team’s game against Oklahoma City later that night. She combs through statistical reports, hardly stopping for a beat to rest. Each hour is meticulously planned, and the morning quickly blurs into afternoon. Then she’s hustling through an on-court prep session at 2:20 p.m., meeting with her fellow coaches at 2:50, heading into a team meeting at 3:50, then back to the court for individual workouts at 5. After the game, a 126-112 Pacers win, she breaks down film and edits video late into the night, preparing not just for the next day’s practice, but also for Sunday’s game against Miami. Boucek is the defensive mastermind for a Pacers team that’s currently down 3-2 in the Eastern Conference semifinals to the Knicks. She’s responsible for in-game defensive decision-making and is constantly orchestrating split-second adjustments.

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THERE’S NO STOPPING ARIKE OGUNBOWALE

On this October day in South Bend, every pass must be crisp, every cut full speed. Notre Dame’s players sprint up and down, whipping passes faster, faster, faster in this full-court practice drill. Then one player screws up; she tosses an overhead pass that is deflected. Players drop to the floor to hold a 30-second core plank for punishment. Even Muffet McGraw, the 62-year-old Hall of Fame coach, is planking. Teeth clenched, McGraw doesn’t allow her navy sweatpants and light blue polo to graze the floor even for a second. Arike Ogunbowale looks irritated. About-to-take-over-the-game irritated. Arike Mode is thrilling and terrifying, depending on which team you play for.