The NBA is getting ready to return and when they do, the team with the league’s top record will be the Milwaukee Bucks. One person having a close role with the day-to-day operations of the Bucks is a former member of the University of Regina Cougars women’s basketball team.
Sidney Dobner graduated from the Cougars after the 2015-16 season having gone through three-and-a-half years with the team. With basketball in her blood, the California native continued her career in the Netherlands before she went back home to coaching. She says the chance to join Milwaukee was one of a right place at the right time kind of thing.
“I was fortunate enough to get to work with (former NBA player) Don McLean as well as the CAA agency. I was a part of the agency’s pro-day where scouts come out to watch potential draftees one last time.” Dobner said during an appearance on 620 CKRM’s “Sportscage” this week. “I helped those guys out with that pro-day busting my butt doing what I can to help those guys get drafted. There were guys in the stands like Magic Johnson and Phil Jackson and I had no idea they were there to watch me. When the workout was over, the Bucks approached me and asked if I wanted to work in the NBA.”
Dobner thought at first that it was a joke, but she found out soon that it wasn’t. She found herself on her way to Milwaukee where she landed a position as a coaching associate with the Wisconsin Herd which is the Bucks G-league affiliate. In doing so, she became the first woman to work in the organization’s personnel or coaching departments.
“It sounds like a made-up story everytime I tell it, but it happened.” Dobner said with a laugh.
Right now, she is in basketball operations with the hope being to move back into the coaching side next season. She says she wants her career to go as far as she can.
“I definitely have a passion for coaching.” Dobner said. “I love being on the floor. It is driving me crazy not being able to be in the gym 24-7 right now because of coronavirus. I would love to be coaching in the NBA at some point, but right now I am very grateful to be one of the few women to hold a key position in the league.”
In the meantime, Dobner will try to help the Bucks achieve an NBA championship while jokingly saying she hopes to avoid having likely MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo dunk over her in practice.
