Cleveland Cavaliers Hire Cal's Lindsay Gottlieb As Assistant Coach

New Cleveland Cavaliers coach John Beilein has made a notable addition to his coaching staff by bringing on Cal women’s basketball coach Lindsay Gottlieb. Adrian Wojnarowski broke the news this afternoon, and the Cavs announced the hire shortly afterwards. Gottlieb will be the first women’s college head coach to join an NBA staff.

Gottlieb led the Bears for eight seasons, reaching the NCAA Tournament in all but one campaign and making the 2013 Final Four in her second year at the school. She coached several WNBA players during her time at Cal and compiled a 179-89 record. Overall, she brings 11 years of head coaching experience to the Cavs, in addition to nine years of time working as an assistant.

According to Woj, Gottlieb will have a “prominent role” on the Cavs staff, comparable to Spurs assistant Becky Hammon and former Kings assistant Nancy Lieberman. Cavs GM Koby Altman reportedly had the idea of hiring a women’s coach onto Beilein’s staff, and once Beilein met with her, he “became determined to recruit her to Cleveland.” Gottlieb has apparently been a regular guest of Bob Myers and Steve Kerr at Warriors practices, and she’s also spent time at L.A. Clippers training camps.

From Gottlieb’s statement:

“The vision for the Cavs’ future is compelling and I look forward to helping make it a reality. At the same time, on a personal level, I am honored to hopefully impact young girls and women to be empowered to pursue their own visions and to be inspired to turn them into reality as well.”