Lynne Roberts (basketball)
American basketball player and coach (born 1975)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Lynne Renee Roberts (born August 28, 1975) is an American professional basketball coach who is the head coach for the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She previously served as head coach at Chico State, Pacific, and Utah.[1]
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Roberts in 2019 | |
| Los Angeles Sparks | |
|---|---|
| Title | Head coach |
| League | WNBA |
| Personal information | |
| Born | August 28, 1975 Redding, California, U.S. |
| Career information | |
| College | Seattle Pacific (1993–1997) |
| Position | Forward |
| Coaching career | 1997–present |
| Career history | |
Coaching | |
| 1997–2002 | Seattle Pacific (asst.) |
| 2002–2006 | Chico State |
| 2006–2015 | Pacific |
| 2015–2024 | Utah |
| 2025–present | Los Angeles Sparks |
| Career highlights | |
| |
Early life and education
Roberts was born and raised in Redding, California. She attended Enterprise High School where she earned 12 varsity letters and was awarded the 1993 Northern Section Player of the Year.[2]
Roberts attended Seattle Pacific University, where she played for the Falcons. During her time with the Falcons (1993–1997), Roberts set a school record for 3-pointers made in one season at 82 and for three-point percentage in a game when she made 7 of 8 against Willamette.[3] Roberts regards her most memorable moment at college when she made the game winning 3-pointers to defeat Division I's UC Davis Aggies.[4] Roberts graduated in 1997 with a bachelor's degree in history.[5]
Coaching career
After graduating from Seattle Pacific, Roberts remained to pursue a master's degree. While pursuing her master's degree, Roberts served as a student assistant for the Falcons. Over five seasons Roberts helped lead the Falcons to a 113–31 record and five straight NCAA Division 2 appearances.[3] Roberts graduated with a master's degree in athletic administration in 2000.[2]
In 2002 Roberts was hired as the head coach for Chico State, where she coached from 2002 to 2006 and amassed an 86–31 record. The Wildcats set school records for wins in both 2005 and 2006 while finishing first place in their conference. The 2005 title was the first CCAA title in Chico State history. That same season the Wildcats advanced to the NCAA Tournament West region Championship, and in 2006 the Wildcats would make it to the D2 Final Four.[2]
In 2006 Roberts was hired as the head coach for the University of the Pacific. After a slow first few seasons, Roberts helped the Tigers post a record 27 wins in 2013. She won the Big West Conference coach of the year, and her team came to be known as the "Cardiac Kids."[6] The Tigers made a school record 3 straight post-season appearances under Roberts. Roberts subsequently had her contract extended through 2017.[7]
In March 2015, Roberts was selected as one of three WCC coaches to be named co-coach of the year. The other two were Saint Mary's Gaels coach Paul Thomas and Gonzaga Bulldogs coach Lisa Fortier.[8]
On April 20, 2015, it was announced that the University of Utah hired Roberts as their next head women's basketball coach.[9] In her first season Roberts led Utah to an 18–15 record, Utah's first winning season since 2012–13.[5]
On November 19, 2024, Roberts was announced as the new head coach of the Los Angeles Sparks.[10]
Head coaching record
College
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chico State Wildcats (California Collegiate Athletic Association) (2002–2006) | |||||||||
| 2002–03 | Chico State | 17–10 | 15–7 | 2nd | NCAA D-II First Round | ||||
| 2003–04 | Chico State | 17–11 | 13–9 | 1st | NCAA D-II First Round | ||||
| 2004–05 | Chico State | 24–6 | 16–4 | 1st | NCAA D-II Sweet 16 | ||||
| 2005–06 | Chico State | 28–4 | 18–2 | 1st | NCAA D-II Final Four | ||||
| Cal State Chico: | 86–31 (.735) | 62–22 (.738) | |||||||
| Pacific Tigers (Big West Conference) (2006–2013) | |||||||||
| 2006–07 | Pacific | 8–22 | 2–12 | 8th | |||||
| 2007–08 | Pacific | 14–16 | 9–7 | 4th | |||||
| 2008–09 | Pacific | 14–16 | 8–8 | 4th | |||||
| 2009–10 | Pacific | 6–23 | 4–12 | 8th | |||||
| 2010–11 | Pacific | 9–22 | 5–11 | T–7th | |||||
| 2011–12 | Pacific | 18-14 | 9-7 | T–3rd | WNIT Second Round | ||||
| 2012–13 | Pacific | 27–8 | 14–4 | 1st | WNIT Third Round | ||||
| Pacific: | 96–121 (.442) | 51–61 (.455) | |||||||
| Pacific Tigers (West Coast Conference) (2013–2015) | |||||||||
| 2013–14 | Pacific | 18–13 | 12–6 | 3rd | WNIT First Round | ||||
| 2014–15 | Pacific | 21–10 | 13–5 | T–3rd | WNIT First Round | ||||
| Pacific: | 39–23 (.629) | 25–11 (.694) | |||||||
| Utah Utes (Pac-12 Conference) (2015–2024) | |||||||||
| 2015–16 | Utah | 18–15 | 8–10 | 7th | WNIT Third Round | ||||
| 2016–17 | Utah | 16–15 | 5–13 | T–9th | WNIT First Round | ||||
| 2017–18 | Utah | 18–14 | 8–10 | 8th | WNIT Second Round | ||||
| 2018–19 | Utah | 20–10 | 9–9 | T–6th | |||||
| 2019–20 | Utah | 14–17 | 6–12 | 8th | |||||
| 2020–21 | Utah | 5–16 | 4–15 | 10th | |||||
| 2021–22 | Utah | 21–12 | 8–7 | 6th | NCAA Second Round | ||||
| 2022–23 | Utah | 27–5 | 15–3 | T–1st | NCAA Sweet Sixteen | ||||
| 2023–24 | Utah | 23–11 | 11–7 | T–5th | NCAA Second Round | ||||
| Utah Utes (Big 12 Conference) (2024) | |||||||||
| 2024–25 | Utah | 3–1 | 0–0 | ||||||
| Utah: | 165–116 (.587) | 74–86 (.463) | |||||||
| Total: | 386–291 (.570) | ||||||||
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National champion
Postseason invitational champion
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WNBA
| Regular season | G | Games coached | W | Games won | L | Games lost | W–L % | Win–loss % |
| Playoffs | PG | Playoff games | PW | Playoff wins | PL | Playoff losses | PW–L % | Playoff win–loss % |
| Team | Year | G | W | L | W–L% | Finish | PG | PW | PL | PW–L% | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles | 2025 | 44 | 21 | 23 | .477 | 6th in West | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | Missed Playoffs |
| Career | 44 | 21 | 23 | .477 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – |