Violet Palmer

Violet Palmer Owner and Director, Basics Referee School

Violet Palmer is a trailblazing sports official, motivational speaker, and leader in collegiate and professional basketball. She made history in 1997 as the first female referee to officiate an NBA game, breaking barriers in a male-dominated field. Over her 15-year career in the NBA, Palmer officiated 757 regular season games and 8 playoff games, earning widespread respect for her skill and professionalism.  

Palmer currently serves as a Manager for Referee Development for the NBA and Coordinator of Officials for the Pac-12, Big Sky, West Coast Conference (WCC), and Western Athletic Conference (WAC). Her leadership continues to shape the future of officiating across multiple levels of the sport.  

A native of Compton, California, Palmer’s passion for basketball began early. She played starting point guard for Cal Poly Pomona, leading the team to back-to-back NCAA Division II national championships in 1985 and 1986. She was inducted into the CCAA Hall of Fame in 2023, and the Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame in 2020, and was honored with the 2013 WNBA Boost Mobile Pioneer Award and the 1999 Naismith Women’s College Official of the Year.  

In recognition of her contributions to sports and her commitment to mentoring future generations, Palmer received an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona in 2022, where she remains actively involved with the women’s basketball program. She was also named a Distinguished Alumni by the Cal Poly Pomona Alumni Association in 2016.  

Palmer is married to Tanya Palmer/Stine, a celebrity hairstylist and mother of three. The couple wed in 2014 after 20 years together. Violet’s father, James Palmer, is a proud Cal Poly Pomona alumnus, class of 1954.