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Barbara Farris

Women's Basketball Athletic Communications

Hatters Name Barbara Farris Assistant Coach

DeLand, Fla. -- Former WNBA champion and coaching veteran Barbara Farris has been named Assistant Coach for women's basketball at Stetson University, Hatters head coach Lynn Bria announced on Monday.

Farris has enjoyed a successful playing and coaching career both domestically and overseas.  She comes to Stetson from John Curtis Christian School in New Orleans, where she coached the Lady Patriots to five LHSAA state championships, including four in a row from 2017-20. 

"What I like about Barbara is that she has been a winner everywhere she has been," Bria said.  "I think she brings an incredible amount of experience to our program, from her successful career at Tulane to playing in the WNBA and overseas and then to coaching at the highest level. She has also had tremendous success as a high school coach.  She is just a great fit for us and our values, and I am real excited to have her."

Over a span of 10 seasons at John Curtis, Farris posted a career mark of 279-54 and developed 15 collegiate scholarship athletes, including 2019-20 Gatorade Louisiana Player of the Year and Louisiana Miss Basketball honoree JerKaila Jordan.

"I am grateful to Coach Bria and the athletic administration at Stetson for giving me the opportunity to contribute to the success of the Hatter Women's basketball program," Farris said.  "Stetson is a place where I believe we can use intercollegiate sports as an avenue to develop our student-athletes as players and people.  The education here in the classroom and on the basketball court will produce strong independent young women who are ready for life and the world outside DeLand.  I really look forward to meeting the players in person, cultivating relationships and getting back to the business of basketball."

Farris' professional playing career began in 1998 when she was selected by the New England Blizzard of the American Basketball League with the third overall pick in the draft. 

Following one season in the ABL, Farris began a successful 10-year WNBA career with Detroit in 2000, helping lead the Shock and to the 2003 WNBA Championship under coach Bill Laimbeer.  She then played two seasons with the New York Liberty and one year with the Phoenix Mercury before returning to Detroit for her final season in 2009.

From 2000-08, Farris also played for various FIBA and international club teams in France, Spain, Turkey, Greece, and South Korea.  She later served as an assistant coach for the New York Liberty from 2012-14 and against from 2018-19.

A WBCA All-American forward at Tulane University, Farris averaged 14.7 points and 8.0 rebounds in her career and became the Green Wave's first four-time all-conference selection. She helped lead Tulane to four NCAA Tournament berths and a conference championship in 1997.  She graduated with a degree in Sociology in 1998 and was inducted into the Tulane Athletics Hall of Fame in 2004.

"I think she will be an outstanding recruiter because she is such a solid, relatable person," Bria said.  "She is good with all sorts of people and age groups, and she has had to manage her own program.  Having graduated from a school like Tulane, I think she really understands the academic demands of our university." 

Farris won two high school state championships as a basketball player and two more as a track athlete at St. Martin's Episcopal School in Metairie, La.  she was inducted into the St. Martin's Alumni Athletic Hall of Fame in 2011.

Farris was also inducted into the Greater New Orleans Sports Hall of Fame in 2017.

About Stetson University Athletics: Stetson University's Athletics Program has a vision of developing a culture of champions athletically, academically and within the community. This vision is accomplished through a mission of recruiting and developing student-athletes, coaches and staff, creating a culture of champions, within and outside of competition. The department operates with five core values: Championship Culture, Integrity, Excellence, Pride/Tradition and Leadership. To learn more about the Vision, Mission and Core Values for Stetson Athletics, visit GoHatters.com and click on Mission Statement under the Inside Athletics tab.
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