Adia Oshun Barnes (born February 3, 1977) is an American

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

coach and former player. She is currently the head coach of the

SMU Mustangs The SMU Mustangs are the sport, athletic teams that represent Southern Methodist University in University Park, Texas, United States. SMU was founded in 1911 and joined the Southwest Conference, competing against Baylor Bears, Baylor, Rice Owls, ...

. She played at the collegiate level for the University of Arizona, and played seven seasons in the

Women's National Basketball Association The Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) is a women's professional basketball league in the United States. The league comprises 13 teams (scheduled to expand to 15 in 2026). The WNBA is headquartered in Midtown Manhattan. The WNBA w ...

(WNBA) with the

Houston Comets The Houston Comets were a Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) team based in Houston. Formed in 1997, the team was one of the original eight WNBA teams and won the first four championships of the league's existence. They are one of two ...

Seattle Storm The Seattle Storm are an American professional basketball team based in Seattle. The Storm compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member of the Western Conference (WNBA), Western Conference. The team was founded by Gi ...

Minnesota Lynx The Minnesota Lynx are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Lynx compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member of the Western Conference (WNBA), Western Conference. The team won the WNBA ...

, and

Sacramento Monarchs The Sacramento Monarchs were a professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. They played in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) from 1997 until folding on November 20, 2009. They played their home games at ARCO Aren ...

. She has played internationally with

Dynamo Kyiv The Football Club 'Dynamo Kyiv', also known as Dynamo Kyiv, or simply Dynamo, ( ) is a Ukrainian professional football club based in Kyiv. Founded in 1927 as a Kyivan football team of republican branch of the bigger Soviet Dynamo Sports Society ...

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

. Barnes has also served as a TV color analyst for Seattle Storm game broadcasts.

Early years

Barnes grew up in

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

, and attended Mission Bay Senior High School in San Diego. She is the daughter of NFL player Pete Barnes. He and Adia's mother divorced when she was three. Over the course of her high school career, she amassed 1112 blocks, the most ever recorded by a female high school basketball player, 253 blocks ahead of second place Chris Enger.

College

At 5 ft 11 in, Barnes was not as tall as most post position players at the highly regarded Division I schools. The

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it ...

head coach Joan Bonvicini initially didn't think she would be able to play at the post, even after watching film of her play. However, after seeing her in person, she immediately offered Barnes a scholarship, who enrolled in the school for the 1995 season. Her physical play earned her a comparison to

Charles Barkley Charles Wade Barkley (born February 20, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player who is a television analyst on NBA on TNT, TNT and CBS Sports. Nicknamed "Sir Charles", "the Bread Truck", and "the Round Mound of Rebound", ...

from a Sports Illustrated writer. In her freshman year she earned the

Pac-10 The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference in the Western United States. It participates at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level for all sports, and its football teams compete in the Football Bowl ...

freshman of the year award, the first player from Arizona to win such an award. In Barnes's sophomore year, the team earned a WNIT bid and won the championship. Barnes was named the tournament Most Valuable Player. As a junior, Barnes helped the team to their first ever NCAA appearance. They won their first game against Western Kentucky, and then lost by six points to the second seed in their bracket, Georgia. She went on to set 22 individual records for the Arizona Wildcats, including career points and rebounds, many of which are still records. She would go on to become the first women's player in Arizona to be drafted into the professional leagues.

WNBA career

Although successful as an undersized post in college, Barnes knew that she would not be able to continue as a post player in the pros, so she decided to transform herself into a guard. She originally was signed by the now-defunct Sacramento Monarchs, playing in 29 games and earning a starting position in 16 games. However, she was then traded to Minnesota and then Cleveland, and saw her playing time dwindle. She played overseas to work on her skills and concentrated on becoming a specialist. In 2002, she was traded to the Seattle Storm, who were picked to finish second to last in their division. With

Sue Bird Suzanne Brigit Bird (born October 16, 1980) is an American former professional basketball player who played her entire career with the Seattle Storm of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Bird was drafted first overall pick by t ...

and

Lauren Jackson Lauren Elizabeth Jackson (born 11 May 1981) is an Australian former professional basketball player. Arguably the most notable Australian women's basketball player, Jackson has had a decorated career with the Australia women's national basketb ...

on the team, Storm coach

Lin Dunn Lin Dunn (born May 10, 1947) is an American women's basketball executive and former coach, who is currently a senior advisor with the Indiana Fever of the Women's National Basketball Association, WNBA. She was recently the general manager of the ...

wasn't looking for a scorer, so Barnes concentrated on becoming a shut-down defender. Her work effort paid off, and she helped the team to make the playoffs in only their third year of existence.

International

Barnes also played internationally with

. She played for several Euroleague teams, Priolo (Italy), Elitzur Ramla (Israel), Napoli BK (Italy), UMMC (Russia), Mersin (Turkey), and Pozzuoli (Italy).

Broadcasting

In 2007, Barnes became a color commentator for the radio coverage of the Storm. She had some experience as a commentator for the

World Championship A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...

games. The games were held in Brazil, but the broadcasts were done in a remote studio, making it a challenge. As of 2012, she did broadcasts of Storm games for both radio and TV, along with play-by-play announcer Dick Fain. Barnes was also the color commentator for the radio broadcasts of

Seattle University Seattle University (Seattle U or SU) is a private Jesuit university in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the largest independent university in the Northwestern United States, with over 7,500 students enrolled in undergraduate and grad ...

Redhawks women's basketball games during the 2010–2011 season.

Coaching

In October 2010, Barnes was named Director of Player and Coach Development at Seattle Academy.

Arizona

Barnes was approached by her Arizona coach Joan Bonvicini to see if she was interested in coaching. At the time, Barnes was still actively playing for the Storm, and turned down the opportunity. However, she enjoyed working at camps, so when the new head coach of the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...

Kevin McGuff Kevin Patrick McGuff (born December 3, 1969) is an American college basketball coach who is the current head women's basketball coach at Ohio State University after spending two seasons as head coach of the University of Washington. Prior to his ...

, asked her in 2011 to consider coaching, he was able to persuade her, and she joined the Huskies as an assistant coach. Barnes was named head women's basketball coach at the University of Arizona on April 4, 2016. After a fairly rough start to her coaching career, Barnes entered her third season with the Wildcats, with high hopes. The team began the year 12–1, but ultimately struggled when it came to Pac-12 conference play. After finishing the regular season with 17 wins, their most in the regular season since 2010–11, Arizona entered the conference tournament as the No. 8 seed, knocking off USC to begin tournament play. The Wildcats would finish the year 18–13, before ultimately being selected for the Women's National Invitation Tournament. The Wildcats guided by Barnes, would make it to the WNIT Final, knocking off Northwestern to become the 2019 WNIT Champions. The Wildcats beat Indiana in 2021 to reach the school's first ever Final Four. On April 2, 2021, the Wildcats beat the University of Connecticut Huskies to reach the school's first NCAA tournament championship game.

SMU

Career statistics

College

Source

WNBA

Regular season

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1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

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Sacramento Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the seat of Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento and American Rivers in Northern California's Sacramento Valley, Sacramento's 2020 p ...

, 29 , , 16 , , 21.3 , , .395 , , .298 , , .744 , , 2.9 , , 0.8 , , 0.5 , , 0.3 , , 1.9 , , 7.6 , - , align="left" ,

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

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Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

, 19 , , 0 , , 4.8 , , .304 , , .333 , , .500 , , 1.1 , , 0.3 , , 0.3 , , 0.0 , , 0.4 , , 1.1 , - , align="left" ,

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

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Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

, 5 , , 0 , , 3.6 , , .600 , , .000 , , .500 , , 0.4 , , 0.8 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 0.4 , , 1.6 , - , align="left" ,

2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...

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, 3 , , 0 , , 1.0 , , 1.000 , , .000 , , .000 , , 0.3 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 0.7 , - , align="left" ,

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

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Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

, 26 , , 17 , , 19.0 , , .333 , , .250 , , .517 , , 3.9 , , 1.1 , , 1.2 , , 0.3 , , 1.0 , , 3.5 , - , align="left" ,

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

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, 16 , , 16 , , 24.8 , , .381 , , .387 , , .571 , , 4.1 , , 1.4 , , 0.7 , , 0.4 , , 1.1 , , 5.5 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;",

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

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, 34 , , 2 , , 11.8 , , .304 , , .500 , , .710 , , 1.9 , , 0.0 , , 0.7 , , 0.1 , , 0.7 , , 2.0 , - , align="left" , Career , align="left" , 7 years, 4 teams , 132 , , 51 , , 15.3 , , .366 , , .337 , , .632 , , 2.6 , , 0.9 , , 0.7 , , 0.2 , , 1.0 , , 3.8

Playoffs

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, 4 , , 0 , , 1.5 , , .500 , , .000 , , .000 , , 0.3 , , 0.5 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 0.3 , , 0.5 , - , align="left" ,

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, 2 , , 2 , , 25.0 , , .444 , , .500 , , .000 , , 4.0 , , 1.5 , , 1.5 , , 0.0 , , 3.5 , , 5.0 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;",

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, 6 , , 0 , , 6.5 , , .273 , , .000 , , .250 , , 1.3 , , 0.8 , , 0.5 , , 0.2 , , 0.2 , , 1.2 , - , align="left" , Career , align="left" , 3 years, 2 teams , 12 , , 2 , , 7.9 , , .364 , , .400 , , .250 , , 1.4 , , 0.8 , , 0.5 , , 0.1 , , 0.8 , , 1.6

Head coaching record

Awards and achievements

* 1995—Pac-10 Conference Freshman of the Year * 1996—WNIT Most Valuable Player * 1998—Pac-10 Conference Player of the Year * 1998—AP All-American (third team) * 1998—U.S. Basketball Writers Association All-American (first team) * University of Arizona—Points scored career 2237 * University of Arizona—Points scored single season 653 * University of Arizona—Points scored single game 35 * University of Arizona—Rebounds career 921 * 2003—Inducted into the University of Arizona Hall of Fame

Personal life

Barnes on July 4, 2012, married Salvo Coppa, a basketball coach she met in Italy. They have two children.

References

External links

* *
Eurobasket profile

Adia Barnes Foundation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barnes, Adia 1977 births Living people All-American college women's basketball players American expatriate basketball people in Portugal American expatriate basketball people in Ukraine American women's basketball coaches American women's basketball players Arizona Wildcats women's basketball coaches Arizona Wildcats women's basketball players Basketball coaches from California Basketball players from San Diego Cleveland Rockers players Houston Comets players Minnesota Lynx players Sacramento Monarchs players Seattle Storm players Small forwards Washington Huskies women's basketball coaches Minnesota Lynx draft picks