Pokey Chatman Named Head Coach of the Brazilian National Team
How can Chatman impact women's basketball in Brazil?
I am an independent writer, and it would help me greatly if you upgraded to a paid subscription. You can do that starting at $5/month with our tip-off sale.
Follow Roberta F. Rodrigues on X (formerly Twitter). For all inquiries, e-mail contato@betabasket.com.br.
Pokey Chatman, Seattle Storm assistant coach and associate general manager, has been appointed as the new head coach of the Brazilian national team, the Confederação Brasileira de Basketball (CBB) announced on Wednesday. The program aims to secure a spot in the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles after missing the last two editions.
“I am honored to have been chosen to lead Brazil during this Olympic cycle. The work to bring the country back to the international stage starts right away,” said Chatman. “My dream is to restore Brazil’s relevance in women’s basketball.”
Chatman’s first major challenge as head coach will be the 2025 AmeriCup in Santiago, Chile, taking place from June 28 to July 6, 2025. The top six teams from the tournament will earn spots in the FIBA Women's World Cup Qualifying Tournaments. This event determines the 16 nations that will compete in the 2026 World Cup in Germany and plays a key role in the qualification process for LA2028.
Before being named head coach, Pokey Chatman served as a technical consultant to the national team and interim head coach Bruna Rodrigues during two events: the FIBA Women's World Cup Pre-Qualifying Tournaments 2024 and the South American Women's Championship 2024. Due to prior commitments with the Seattle Storm, she could not be present with the team during those tournaments.
“I’m still on the outside, as an observer. There’s a long way to go, but I’m excited to meet everyone involved—not just the players, but everyone who is part of this cycle,” Chatman told Beta Basket in September following the conclusion of the South American tournament.
Chatman’s appointment has sparked hope for better days in Brazilian women’s basketball. The news was even described as a “Christmas gift” by CBB President Guy Peixoto Jr.
“I feel enormous joy in giving this Christmas gift to women’s basketball in Brazil, bringing in someone so commanding,” said Peixoto Jr.
Joy, however, has not been the defining sentiment in Brazilian women’s basketball in recent years…
A series of unfortunate events
The Brazilian national team last competed in an intercontinental tournament in 2016 when it automatically qualified for the Rio Olympics as the host country. The green-and-yellow squad went 0-5, failing to advance past the group stage and finishing in 11th place, ahead of only Senegal.
In 2019, a new head coach, José Neto, took the helm.
Under Neto, the team experienced another disappointing campaign in the 2020 Olympic Qualifying Tournament. Brazil lost not only to powerhouses Australia and France but also to Latin American underdog Puerto Rico, squandering its chance to secure a ticket to Tokyo. In the 2022 World Cup Qualifying Tournament, another setback followed: zero wins in three games and a guaranteed absence from yet another major event.
In February 2024, Brazil hosted an Olympic Qualifying Tournament with high hopes of earning a spot in Paris. Despite playing in front of a home crowd and fielding a roster that included stars like Kamilla Cardoso, Damiris Dantas, and Érika de Souza, the team fell short of its goal. What followed marked the end of the road for Neto and his coaching staff.
Amid ongoing political tensions dividing the country, Diego Falcão, the women’s national team athletic trainer and Neto’s right-hand man, reposted anti-abortion content on his social media. This sparked outrage among players and created a rift between the squad and the coaching staff. Beta Basket was the first outlet to report that the CBB was prepared to fire Falcão and that Neto would resign if his colleague were dismissed. That is exactly what happened.
With a major event less than a month away, CBB had to rush to assemble a new coaching staff to lead the team in the aforementioned FIBA Women's World Cup Pre-Qualifying Tournaments 2024 and South American Women's Championship 2024. Bruna Rodrigues was named for the top job, with Léo Figueiró as her assistant coach.
The results, though, were underwhelming. In Rwanda, Brazil had a 1-2 campaign, beating only the Philippines and losing to Senegal and Hungary. In the continental tournament, despite a better performance (4-2), its neighbor Argentina proved superior and edged the Brazilian squad in the finals, making it the second time in the last three years that the Argentinians bested Brazil.
Big challenges and opportunities ahead
Pokey Chatman has her work cut out for her. Years of mismanagement, including claims of corruption and sexism, have taken Brazil from world champions in 1994 to international pariahs. While dominant on the continental level, the program struggles to find its footing beyond the Americas. Other South American countries are far from developing successful women’s basketball programs, and the United States and Canada often bring their B teams to continental tournaments. As a result, winning these competitions is not an accurate measure of a national team’s strength.
On and off the court, the challenges are immense. Chatman will need to prioritize assembling a coaching staff that aligns with her vision and strategy. The reality of women’s sports in Brazil is vastly different from that in the United States. While the WNBA thrives with growing numbers, Liga de Basquete Feminino (LBF) teams struggle to stay afloat, with most relying heavily on public funding. In Brazil, outside of soccer, few sports offer athletes the opportunity to earn a living, leaving little incentive to pursue greatness in other disciplines.
The technical level of play is also concerning. At the tournament in Rwanda, Brazil ranked third in turnovers, averaging 19 per game. Later, in the South American Championship, the team ranked fourth in miscues with 17.7 turnovers per game. For context, the WNBA’s Washington Mystics led the league in turnovers this past season with 16.1 per game.
However, there is light at the end of the tunnel, and Pokey Chatman may be the key to turning the page on this difficult chapter. Kamilla Cardoso, the third pick in the 2024 WNBA draft by the Chicago Sky, is a cornerstone for Brazil’s future. She is joined by Indiana Fever forward Damiris Dantas and Stephanie Soares, the fourth pick in the 2023 draft. University of Florida alumna Emanuely de Oliveira shone in Rwanda and Chile, while Fairfield graduate Izabela Nicoletti contributed significantly in the South American Championship, averaging 9.7 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists per game.
The next generation of Brazilian players also shows promise. Aaliyah Guyton, daughter of Brazilian legend Adriana Moisés—who once played for the Phoenix Mercury—is set to play for Iowa once she recovers from an ACL injury. Manu Alves, a four-star recruit, has recently committed to Illinois.
The new generation of Brazilian players needs a leader who understands the current women’s basketball landscape, and Pokey Chatman fits that mold perfectly. With her experience at the college, WNBA, and international levels, she brings a mindset attuned to trends and player development. Her recruiting history is impressive—she drafted Elena Delle Donne and brought Erica Wheeler to the WNBA—and she has a proven ability to lead young teams to success. Notably, she laid the foundation for the Chicago Sky, which later won a championship, and helped shape today’s Indiana Fever.
Beta Basket will surely be watching.