Violet Palmer –Title IX Trailblazer from California

Violet Palmer retired from officiating collegiate and professional basketball in 2016 and began work as an NBA Referee Operations Manager. She had officiated 919 NBA games at the time she called it a career. Today, she serves as a coordinator of women’s basketball officials for the Big Sky, Pac-12, Western Athletic and West Coast Conferences.

Boasting experience in the NBA, WNBA and NCAA, Palmer made history in 1997 when she officiated an NBA game, making her the first woman to officiate a men’s professional sporting event. That same year, she also officiated the inaugural WNBA Championship.

Palmer added to her legacy nearly a decade later when she became the first woman to oversee an NBA postseason game, and, in 2014, became the first woman to officiate an all-star game of any major sport in the United States.

A native of Lynwood, California, she was a star point guard at nearby Compton (California) High School. Palmer later helped lead Cal Poly Pomona University to back-to-back NCAA Division II national championships (1985, 1986).

Question: In June, our nation celebrates the 50th anniversary of Title IX. What does that law mean to you?
Palmer: I can honestly say that I’m a little too young to be like a Title IX baby. I think in my collegiate career and working high school into college, I can honestly say that I would attribute Title IX helping me become one of those scholarship athletes that reaped its benefits. I look at women who paved the way and fought for other women to have those rights as an athlete, being able to receive scholarships, receive money and to pursue their dreams. Going forward, I think we still have a long way to go. But the good thing is, when you look at 50 years, that’s a long time. I think women, especially in my sport of basketball, have helped grow the game tremendously. And it’s getting better. Today’s student-athletes are just phenomenal. Looking back 50 years ago, who would have thought that we would be where we are today. Just this past weekend, I was watching the Tennessee and South Carolina women’s basketball teams play on ABC. On Sunday, ESPN featured the Oregon and Stanford programs. We’re talking about watching some amazing athletes on national television. So, hats off to Title IX because without that, young girls would not be able to turn on the television and watch young women compete and perform at the highest level on national television.

Question: What role did basketball or any other interscholastic sport play in your upbringing?
Palmer: For me, sports was a confidence-builder. It generated good self-esteem. It was about being able to be a part of a team, working with your teammates, showing good sportsmanship, and understanding that as a part of the team, there’s compromises and there’s ups and downs. Those for me were some of the key components. Sports build leaders. It builds character, integrity and a work ethic. Looking back on my career, all of those things built my foundation. It helped me in so many different ways. You don’t really think about it until you’re having conversations and you go, “Wow.” When you’re a kid, you just love playing, practicing and making that commitment.

Question: Being one of the first females to climb the officiating ranks, did you have any mentors during your career? What role did they play?
Palmer: I was fortunate. My college coach, Darlene May, was a collegiate referee. She was actually the first female to referee men internationally. When I started, she was someone that I kind of used as the pedestal for where I wanted to go. She and I would bounce things off one another. I got an opportunity to referee with her. We worked a huge Division III rivalry game between Pomona Pitzer and Claremont Colleges that went to triple overtime.

As I kept developing, I was fortunate at the high school level to work with a well-known men’s official, Booker Turner. He was very influential. There’s also Bobby Mozee, who was my assignor. He was the one who others were telling, “Don’t push her too fast. Don’t give her the championship. She’s only been a referee for a couple of years.” He’s like, “I ain’t listening to you guys. She’s good. She has a talent and we’re putting her out there.” I think if I didn’t have those type of mentors coming through the ranks to help me and to give me those opportunities, who knows, I might have still accomplished my goals, but it might have took me a little longer to get there.

Once I got to the NBA, it was a whole new crop of guys who were my mentors. I had the veterans like Billy Oakes, Jack Nies, Joey Crawford, Tom Washington and Steve Javie. I even have one of my best friends to this day who still helps me on the collegiate level and is in the NBA, my ride or die best friend, Bennie Adams. Not only is he a good mentor, but just a good friend. When you become an official, people come into your lives and as the years go, the friendships, sisterhood and brotherhood become so much more valuable. That’s something that I try to tell young referees to this day. You have to have a mentor that can be honest with you and that’s going to be hard on you. One who is not telling you what you want to hear, but give really honest, constructive criticism that’s going to help you develop and help you reach your goals.

Question: In 1997, you and Dee Kantner became the first women to officiate in a men’s major professional sport league. When you walked onto the court for your first game in the NBA, what did you feel in that moment?
Palmer: There was a lot of hype, and we had a lot of interviews that also required us to fly to New York to talk to all of these different reporters. Walking out of that tunnel and out to that court, I went, “Oh, my God. This is really real. You’re going to do this. Don’t you go out here and fall on your face. Don’t you go out and embarrass yourself. You got too much riding on this, your career and you personally.” As soon as the ball went up, everything went away. It was just another game with basketball players. The ball is the same. The height of the basket is the same. The court is the same. It was kind of a larger arena on a larger stage, but everything fell into place. After I blew that first whistle, it was like just another basketball game.

Question: What are your thoughts on the number of females currently officiating in men’s professional sports?
Palmer: I’m extremely proud. I used to say to myself that I wanted to stay in the NBA. I did not want to be one and done. You know, just to have success and then leave. Now I’m thinking, if I’m going to kick the door down and run through it, I want to kick it open so that women of all sports – in all aspects of officiating and all aspects of sports period – have the same opportunities that I was afforded. It’s like that little nugget that I have where I can sit back, watch and say, “You know what, ladies? You don’t have to thank me. Not at all. Just turning on the television and having an opportunity to watch you compete at the highest level is enough said.”

Question: How would you convince someone to become an official? If someone were on the verge of quitting as an official at the high school level, how would you convince them to stay?
Palmer: You just have to make them understand that when you’re a referee, they don’t know you personally so they’re not talking about you personally. All they see is a striped shirt, which we kind of changed this year. They see a person who put that shirt on and who’s going out to referee – no matter whether it’s for kids, adults, NBA or WNBA. It doesn’t matter. That’s all they see.

If you can kind of have an out-of-body experience to look at that and ask, “Do I love the atmosphere? Do I love the competitiveness? The money is good. I’m part of an organization that I enjoy and doing something I enjoy.” You look at all those positives, and those are the things that I try to point out to young men or women. The scrutiny is what it is. Is there a lot of negativity in it? Absolutely. But I ask, “Who wouldn’t want to walk out on that big stage with the lights on those nice arenas?” I was one of the three who ended up getting to the finals. You’ve got to give a person those examples. Or when working B and C teams as a high school referee. Then you get to junior varsity games, and then to the varsity. You then get a playoff game. Ask them, “How good is that feeling?” That’s why you want to forget the negativity. The negativity is so small, and, after the game, it’s gone. It goes away really quick. You don’t hold on to it. You take it, say, “Come on. Bring it on.” And afterwards you dump it.

When I went into the locker room during my time in the NBA, I felt like I was Wonder Woman. Wonder Woman was beautiful. One minute she had her normal clothes on and all of a sudden she would start spinning and come out with her suit on. Once all the armor is on, it’s like nothing can stop me. I give that example to young referees and say, “This is the armor that you have to put on. With people yelling and screaming, ‘You suck. You’re awful’ It’s like ‘Bing, bing, bing’ when it hits that armor. When the game is over, it’s gone and you start over, get to the next game, do your spin and put your armor on. Everything just bounces off and you let it go. You can’t hold on to it. You take your experiences – the good and the bad – and learn from them.”

Question: When you look back at your list of accomplishments, what stands out to you as the most significant and why?
Palmer: I’ve received a lot of awards. I’ve been awarded the Naismith Award for Official of the Year which is the highest honor a referee can achieve in their career. I was inducted into the hall of fame as a basketball player at Compton High School and at Cal Poly Pomona. With those, I thought I was way up there. WeCOACH gave me a lifetime achievement award.

It’s kind of funny. The most recent one really got me. A week ago, I received a call from the president of Cal Poly Pomona. He called and said that they nominated me to the board of trustees, and this year I will receive my honorary doctorate from Cal Poly Pomona. I will speak at the commencement ceremony in May. And how about this? I didn’t even know what it meant. I had to ask them. I said, “I don’t want to sound ignorant but what does that mean?” She said, “This is the highest honor a student-athlete and alumni can receive from the university that they attended. That title does not go away. You could have people call you Dr. Palmer if you wanted. It’s the whole gamut.”

I thought it would be – and I think this is coming – getting inducted into the hall of fame as a basketball referee. But as of today, receiving that honorary doctorate from Cal Poly Pomona kind of tells the story. They’ve looked at my whole career, my whole life from beginning to today and said, “You are an example for our students at this school – everything you’ve done, everything you’ve provided, who you are and how you carry yourself.” I look at that award and I’m just speechless. I don’t really get excited about a lot of things. I’m pretty excited about this.