Why Grizzlies’ Taylor Jenkins is ‘fired up’ about former assistant’s Liberty opportunity

The reigning WNBA champion New York Liberty have added to their coaching staff, bringing in former Memphis Grizzlies assistant Sonia Raman.

Raman will join Zach O’Brien and Olaf Lange on Sandy Brondel’s staff, replacing Ronika Hodges, who is now at the Connecticut Sun.

The Grizzlies hired Raman in 2020, and her duties as an assistant included scouting, film and player development.

Her former boss, Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkinsshe praised Raman’s coaching moves, drawing from her days at Memphis and before that as the head women’s basketball coach at MIT.

“I know she will bring so much to Liberty,” he said. “Her passion for player development, the Xs and O’s, the analytics, the way she studied the game back in her college days, at MIT and having so much success right there, has brought us success over the last few years with the Grizzlies.” I’m passionate about her.”

Prior to her time in the NBA, Raman spent 12 seasons as the head coach of the Engineers where she became the program’s all-time winningest coach. She also led MIT to its first two Division III NCAA Tournament appearances in 2018 and 2019.

Sandy Brondell’s ‘good to great’ attack to get a boost with Sonya Raman joining Liberty

Led by the big three of Breanna Stewart, Sabrina Ionescu and Jonkel Jones, the 2024 Liberty were already one of the best offensive teams in the WNBA, averaging 85.6 points per game. When is it Liberty struggled on offenseshot selection was often the culprit as the staff emphasized ball movement and Brondel’s “good to great” philosophy.

The first Indian-American to ever coach in the NBA, Raman worked one-on-one with Memphis players on that very principle. Grizzlies forward Santi Aldama praised the Ramans teaching ability in a March 2024 story for the Memphis Commercial Appeal.

“For her, it’s about seeing the little things,” he told the outlet. “I remember last year she was great at making better passes for a better shooting percentage.” It was just a matter of figuring out how we could make better percentage passes that lead to better percentage shots.”

Raman’s offensive thinking is part of what impressed Brondel.

“Specializing in the offensive side of the ball, she brings a wealth of experience to our staff and aligns with our core game principles as we continue to evolve,” she said in a statement.

The Liberty will open the 2025 regular season on Saturday, May 17 against the Las Vegas Aces in a matchup of the last two WNBA champions.