Dana "Pokey" Chatman (born June 18, 1969)
is currently an assistant coach for the
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 ...
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). Chatman is the former head coach of the
Indiana Fever
The Indiana Fever are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Fever compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) a member of the Eastern Conference (WNBA), Eastern Conference. The team was founded for ...
and
Chicago Sky
The Chicago Sky are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Sky compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The franchise was founded prior to the 2006 season. Th ...
of the
WNBA.
She is also the former head coach of the
LSU Lady Tigers basketball
The LSU Tigers women's basketball team represents Louisiana State University in NCAA Division I women's college basketball. The head coach is Kim Mulkey, the former head coach at Baylor University, who was hired on April 25, 2021 to replace Ni ...
team and the
Spartak Moscow women's basketball team.
Chatman spent the first 20 years of her adult life at LSU as a player (1987–1991), student assistant (1991–1992), assistant coach (1992–2004) and head coach (2004–2007). After succeeding longtime coach
Sue Gunter
Sue Gunter (May 22, 1939 – August 4, 2005) was an American women's college basketball coach. She is best known as the head coach of the Louisiana State University (LSU) Lady Tigers basketball team. Gunter was inducted into the Women's Basketb ...
in 2004, Chatman led the Lady Tigers to three consecutive
NCAA
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...
Final Fours in 2004 (as acting head coach for the ailing Gunter), 2005, and 2006.
Chatman resigned from her post at LSU on March 7, 2007, amid allegations of an inappropriate relationship with a former player that were alleged to have begun when Chatman was coaching the player.
Biography
High school career
Chatman was born in
Ama, Louisiana, played point guard at
Hahnville High School
Hahnville High School is a public high school located in Boutte, Louisiana, United States. It is part of the St. Charles Parish Public School System, serving grades 9 through 12. J.B. Martin and R.K. Smith Middle Schools are the feeder schools fo ...
and was a five-time AAU All-American. She is recognized for scoring the first 3-point shot in a high school game for the state of Louisiana.
LSU playing career
The 1991 Kodak
All-America
The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...
n
point guard
The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the Basketball positions, five positions in a regulation basketball game.
A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position and is usually the shortest player ...
played for
Gunter from 1987 to 1991, starting all but one game and setting the all-time steals (346) and assists (570) records at
LSU
Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...
. Her assist record was broken in the 2003–2004 season by
Temeka Johnson
Temeka Rochelle Johnson (born September 6, 1982) is an American former professional basketball player. Her primary position was a point guard.
Early life
Johnson attended Bonnabel High School in Kenner, Louisiana.
College career
Johnson played ...
. Chatman played in the
NCAA tournament four times and posted a record of 82–38 as a player. She was a three-time
All-SEC
The All-SEC football team is an annual Southeastern Conference (SEC) honor bestowed on the best players in the conference following every college football season.
Seasons
Following is a list of all-conference teams in the history of the SEC:
* ...
selection and led the Lady Tigers to their first ever
SEC Tournament title in 1991, where she was the tournament's Most Valuable Player (MVP).
LSU statistics
Source
LSU coaching career
After serving as a student assistant with the Lady Tigers for a season (1991–1992), Chatman was named a full-fledged assistant coach before the 1992–1993 season. She was promoted to associate head coach in 1999. In 2003–2004, head coach Sue Gunter took a medical leave of absence in the middle of the season. Chatman, in her 14th season on the coaching staff, was named interim coach. She led the Tigers to a 15–5 record (27–8 overall) and the first Final Four in school history. However, LSU credits the entire season to Gunter.
By the end of the season, it was obvious that Gunter would not be able to return. She announced her retirement on April 27, and Chatman was named the fourth head coach in school history.
Head coach
In Chatman's first season as head coach, she led the Lady Tigers to a 33–3 record, an undefeated SEC regular season title (14–0), and the program's second consecutive Final Four, falling to eventual national champion
Baylor in the semifinals. In the 2005–2006 season, the Lady Tigers finished with a 31–4 record, captured their second consecutive SEC regular season title (13–1), and reached their third straight Final Four, this time losing to
Duke
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...
. Chatman's 47–3 record is the second best record through 50 games in women's basketball history. Only Hall of Fame coach
Leon Barmore
William Leon Barmore (born June 3, 1944) is a college women's basketball coach best known for his 35-year association with the Louisiana Tech University Lady Techsters. After five years as an assistant coach, he served as head coach from 1982 t ...
, the former
Louisiana Tech
Louisiana Tech University (Louisiana Tech, La. Tech, or simply Tech) is a public research university in Ruston, Louisiana, United States. It is part of the University of Louisiana System and classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – Hig ...
head coach, had a better record (48–2).
Chatman won numerous awards, including the
Black Coaches Association's Coach of the Year in 2004 and 2005; the 2005 USBWA National Coach of the Year,
the 2005 Russell/
WBCA National Coach of the Year;
the 2005 Naismith National Coach of the Year; the 2005 Victor Award Female Coach of the Year; the 2005 SEC Coach of the Year; and the 2005 Louisiana Coach of the Year.
In 2005, Chatman served as the assistant coach for the
USA Women's World University Games Team
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...
, which won the gold medal. Chatman also won a medal as a player on the 1990
USA Select Team.
Chatman was inducted into the
LSU Hall of Fame
The Louisiana State University Athletic Hall of Fame recognizes members of the LSU Tigers and Lady Tigers athletics program that have made a lasting impact on Louisiana State University (LSU). To be eligible for the Hall of Fame in the Athlete ca ...
in 1998.
Resignation as LSU head coach
Chatman resigned as the head women's basketball coach at LSU on March 7, 2007, after school officials became aware of an alleged inappropriate sexual relationship between Chatman and a former player. Former LSU assistant coach Carla Berry, a college teammate of Chatman's, reported the alleged relationship to the university in February. Assistant coach
Bob Starkey was named interim coach and led the team during the
2007 NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Tournament, in which the Tigers made their fourth consecutive Final Four.
Chatman claimed that after LSU learned about the alleged relationship, it conducted a cursory investigation before giving her an ultimatum—resign within two hours or be fired. She initially demanded to be paid the remaining $900,000 on her contract. Ultimately, LSU and Chatman settled out of court for $160,000.
Spartak

In August 2007 she signed as assistant coach of the
Women's Basketball Club Spartak Moscow Region (who had just won the 2007 Euroleague Women's Final). Spartak won the next three championships and in 2010, as the head coach, Chatman led the team to a 16–0
Euroleague
The EuroLeague is a European men's professional basketball club competition. The league is widely recognised as the top-tier and the most prestigious men's basketball league in Europe. The league consists of 20 teams, of which 16 are given lon ...
record and their fourth straight Euroleague Championship.
Chicago Sky
On October 29, 2010, Chatman was named the
general manager
A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...
and head coach of the Chicago Sky of the WNBA. She was let go by the Sky in October 2016.
Indiana Fever
On November 18, 2016, Chatman was announced as the new head coach of the
Indiana Fever
The Indiana Fever are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Fever compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) a member of the Eastern Conference (WNBA), Eastern Conference. The team was founded for ...
. She assumed the role after
Stephanie White
Stephanie Joanne White (formerly Stephanie White-McCarty; born June 20, 1977) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is the head coach of the Indiana Fever of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She w ...
left to accept the head coaching job at
Vanderbilt. On September 10, 2019, Chatman was fired as
general manager
A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...
and head coach of the Indiana Fever of the WNBA.
Seattle Storm
On January 21, 2022, Chatman was announced as an assistant coach of the
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 ...
of the WNBA.
USA Basketball
As player
Chatman was a member of the
USA Women's U18 team which won the gold medal at the FIBA Americas Championship in
Sao Paulo, Brazil
SAO or Sao may refer to:
Places
* Sao civilisation, in Middle Africa from 6th century BC to 16th century AD
* Sao, a town in Boussé Department, Burkina Faso
* Serb Autonomous Regions (''Srpska autonomna oblast'', SAO), during the breakup of ...
. The event was known as the Junior World Championship Qualifying Tournament at the time. The event was held in August 1988, when the USA team defeated the host team Brazil by a score of 70–68 to win the championship.
As coach
Chatman served as an assistant coach of the
USA Women's World University Games Team
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...
at the World University Games (also known as the
Universiade
The FISU World University Games, formerly the Universiade, is an international multi-sport event, organized for university athletes by the International University Sports Federation (FISU). The former name is a Blend word, portmanteau of the wor ...
) held in
Izmir, Turkey in August 2005. The team won their first game against the Czech Republic 88–64; the 24-point margin in that contest would be the closest any team would come to beating the USA until the gold-medal final. After defeating South Africa, China, and Poland to move on to the quarterfinals, they then beat Taiwan and Russia – each by more than 50 points. This set up the championship game with
Serbia & Montenegro
The State Union of Serbia and Montenegro or simply Serbia and Montenegro, known until 2003 as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and commonly referred to as FR Yugoslavia (FRY) or simply Yugoslavia, was a country in Southeast Europe locate ...
which the USA won 79–63 to complete a 7–0 record and win the gold medal.
Head coaching record
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2011
The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...
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2012
2012 was designated as:
*International Year of Cooperatives
*International Year of Sustainable Energy for All
Events January
*January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins.
* January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...
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CHI
__NOTOC__
Chi may refer to:
__NOTOC__ Greek
*Chi (letter) (Χ or χ), the twenty-second letter of the Greek alphabet
Chinese
* ''Chi'' (length) (尺), a traditional unit of length, about ⅓ meter
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2013
2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years).
2013 was designated as:
*International Year of Water Cooperation
*International Year of Quinoa
Events
January
* January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...
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CHI
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Chi may refer to:
__NOTOC__ Greek
*Chi (letter) (Χ or χ), the twenty-second letter of the Greek alphabet
Chinese
* ''Chi'' (length) (尺), a traditional unit of length, about ⅓ meter
*Chi (mythology) (螭), a dragon
* Chi (surname) ...
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2014
The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...
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, align="center" , Lost
WNBA Finals
The WNBA Finals is the championship series of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) and the conclusion of the league's postseason each fall. The series was named the WNBA Championship until 2002.
The series is played between the win ...
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CHI
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Chi may refer to:
__NOTOC__ Greek
*Chi (letter) (Χ or χ), the twenty-second letter of the Greek alphabet
Chinese
* ''Chi'' (length) (尺), a traditional unit of length, about ⅓ meter
*Chi (mythology) (螭), a dragon
* Chi (surname) ...
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2015
2015 was designated by the United Nations as:
* International Year of Light
* International Year of Soil __TOC__
Events
January
* January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...
, 34 , , 21, , 13, , , , align="center" , 2nd in East, , 3 , , 1 , , 2 , ,
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CHI
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Chi may refer to:
__NOTOC__ Greek
*Chi (letter) (Χ or χ), the twenty-second letter of the Greek alphabet
Chinese
* ''Chi'' (length) (尺), a traditional unit of length, about ⅓ meter
*Chi (mythology) (螭), a dragon
* Chi (surname) ...
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2016
2016 was designated as:
* International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly.
* International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...
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WNBA Semi-Finals
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IND
Ind or IND may refer to:
General
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2017
2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly.
Events January
* January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...
, 34 , , 9, , 25, , , , align="center" , 6th in East, , - , , - , , - , , -
, align="center" , Missed Playoffs
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IND
Ind or IND may refer to:
General
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2018
Events January
* January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency.
* January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...
, 34 , , 6, , 28, , , , align="center" , 6th in East, , - , , - , , - , , -
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IND
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General
* Independent (politician), a politician not affiliated to any political party
* Independent station, used within television program listings and the television industry for a station that is not affiliated with ...
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2019
This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year.
Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...
, 34 , , 13, , 21, , , , align="center" , 6th in East, , - , , - , , - , , -
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References
External links
Profile at LSU Athletic Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chatman, Pokey
1969 births
Living people
African-American basketball coaches
All-American college women's basketball players
American expatriate basketball people in Russia
American women's basketball players
Basketball coaches from Louisiana
Basketball players from Louisiana
Chicago Sky coaches
LSU Tigers women's basketball coaches
LSU Tigers women's basketball players
Point guards
People from Ama, Louisiana
Sportspeople from St. Charles Parish, Louisiana
Seattle Storm coaches
Basketball players from Baton Rouge, Louisiana
21st-century African-American sportswomen
21st-century American sportswomen
20th-century African-American sportswomen
20th-century American sportswomen
Women's National Basketball Association general managers