Who is Pacers' female coach? Meet Jenny Boucek, the woman on Rick Carlisle’s coaching staff

Kyle Irving

Who is Pacers' female coach? Meet Jenny Boucek, the woman on Rick Carlisle’s coaching staff image

The Pacers are back in the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time in 10 years with one of the NBA's few women assistant coaches providing guidance from the bench.

Indiana took care of the Giannis Antetokounmpo-less Bucks in six games in the first round of the 2024 NBA Playoffs. It went on to defeat a scrappy Knicks team in seven games in the second round, stunning a Madison Square Garden crowd to close the series.

Now, the Pacers are up against a Celtics team that has steamrolled its way to the Eastern Conference Finals. Indiana head coach Rick Carlisle and his staff are in for a chess match if they're going to dethrone the NBA's top seed.

And when you're watching Carlisle's staff, you might notice assistant coach Jenny Boucek on the Pacers' bench.

Get to know the former Virginia star and WNBA player-turned-coach, including how she has worked her way up the NBA coaching totem pole.

MORE: Eastern Conference Finals prediction: Can Pacers take down Celtics?

Who is the Pacers' female coach?

Boucek, 50, has been an NBA assistant coach for seven seasons.

She started her career as an All-ACC caliber player at the University of Virginia from 1992-96. Boucek averaged 7.9 points, 3.7 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.2 steals over her career, reaching three Elite Eights with the Cavaliers.

As a double major in sports medicine and sports management, Boucek never had plans to play professional basketball. She came from a family of doctors and nurses and planned to pursue the same career, according to a feature by Legends Magazine's AJ McCord.

But when the WNBA was established in 1997, she couldn't pass up the opportunity.

"The WNBA had a tremendous purpose. That gripped my heart," she told Legends Magazine.

Boucek ended up playing for the Cleveland Rockers in the WNBA's 1997 inaugural season, but she suffered a career-ending back fracture.

Two years later, she returned to the WNBA as an assistant coach and never looked back.

MORE: The best candidates to replace Darvin Ham as Lakers coach

Jenny Boucek coaching history

Boucek has had several coaching stops in her career between the W and NBA.

She got her start as an assistant for the Washington Mystics in 1999 before moving on to the Miami Sol from 2000-02. Boucek then jumped on with the Seattle Storm as an assistant from 2003-05 and again from 2010-14.

She took her first WNBA head coaching job with the Sacramento Monarchs from 2007-09. In 2015, she was promoted to head coach of the Storm, a position she held until 2017, when she switched to the NBA.

Former Kings head coach Dave Joerger gave Boucek her first shot as an assistant in the NBA on his staff, and she has remained in the league since then.

She spent one season with the Kings before joining Carlisle's staff as an assistant when he was still head coach of the Mavericks. When Carlisle moved from Dallas to Indiana, Boucek went with him. She has been a Pacers assistant since the 2020-21 season.

YearsTeamRole
1999Washington MysticsAssistant
2000-02Miami SolAssistant
2003-05Seattle StormAssistant
2007-09Sacramento MonarchsHead coach
2010-14Seattle StormAssistant
2015-17Seattle StormHead coach
2017-18Sacramento KingsAssistant
2018-21Dallas MavericksAssistant
2021-presentIndiana PacersAssistant

Pacers coaching staff

Head coach: Rick Carlisle

Lead assistant coach: Lloyd Pierce

Assistant coach: Jenny Boucek, Jim Boylen, Mike Weinar

Assistant coach for player development: Jannero Pargo, Isaac Yacob, Maurice Baker

Trainer: Josh Corbeil

Assistant trainer: Carl Eaton

Kyle Irving

Kyle Irving Photo

You read that wrong – not Kyrie Irving. From Boston, graduated from the University of New Hampshire. Sixth season as a content producer for NBA.com's Global editions. Covering the NBA Draft has become his annual "dream come true" moment on the job. Irving has a soft spot for pass-first point guards, with Rajon Rondo and Steve Nash being two of his favorite players of all time.