Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus Women's Basketball

Tanisha Wright was named the seventh head coach in the history of the Penn State Basketball program on March 19. Wright enters her first season at the helm of the Lady Lions in 2026-27. The Lady Lion legend returns to her alma mater after a decorated playing and coaching career in the WNBA. Most recently, she served as an assistant coach for the Chicago Sky in 2025. Prior to her stint in the Windy City, Wright spent three years as the head coach for the Atlanta Dream from 2021-24. With the Dream, she led her squad to back-to-back playoff appearances for the first time since 2013 in addition to three consecutive double-digit win seasons. Wright was named the AP Coach of the Year in 2022 following a 14-win season, the organization’s best mark since 2018. The four-year PSU letterwinner mentored Rhyne Howard and Allisha Gray to consecutive All-Star appearances in 2022-23 and 2023-24 respectively. Along with Howard’s All-Star nod, Wright guided her to earning the 2022 WNBA Rookie of the Year, marking only the second in franchise history. Wright secured her first coaching position in the WNBA as an assistant coach for the Las Vegas Aces from 2020-21. During her time with the Aces, she helped lead the team to the WNBA Finals in 2020 and the semifinals in 2021, before landing her first head coaching position with the Dream. Wright also has experience coaching at the national team level. She made her first appearance with USA Basketball as a court coach for women’s national team at th

Jason Crafton enters his second season with the Lady Lions in 2026-27 and will serve as the general manager for the women’s basketball program. He arrived in Happy Valley with an abundance of experience of over 20 years at various different levels in a variety of different roles. In his role as the first-ever general manager for the Lady Lions, Crafton is responsible for roster building and maintenance, generating NIL strategies and overall program development on and off the court. In his first season on the Penn State staff in 2025-26, Crafton served as an assistant coach in addition to his role as the general manager. The industry veteran mentored Kiyomi McMiller, a second team (media) and third team (coaches) All-Big Ten selection to a stellar season. The sophomore guard produced six-straight 30-point performances, becoming the first division I women’s college basketball player to do so since Caitlyn Clark in 2023-24. She also produced a 40-point outing against USC, becoming the first Lady Lion to produced 40 points in a Big Ten contest since 2001. Prior to arriving in Happy Valley, Crafton served as the Chief Program Strategist for the Columbia men’s basketball team, helping the Ivy League squad achieve its best non-conference start in 50 years with an 11-2 record. In this position, he worked closely with head coach Jim Engles and the rest of the staff to provide innovative ideas to enhance the growth of the program on and off the court. Before his short stint at Columbia

Olivier Cadet begins his first season on the Lady Lion staff in 2026-27. He arrives in Happy Valley with several years of college basketball experience in his toolbox including three trips to the NCAA Tournament. Most recently, he served as an Assistant Coach and Director of Skill Development at the University of Georgia. Cadet spent four seasons in Athens, Ga. where he was impactful on the court, but also off the court for the Bulldogs. In addition to his on-court leadership in practices and individual sessions, Cadet led the video analytics for opponent scouting. Throughout his time at Georgia, the Broward Country Florida native mentored three All-SEC selections including Dani Carnegie, Javyn Nicholson and Diamond Battles, and coached Trinity Turner and Mia Woolfolk who earned spots on the SEC All-Freshman squads. Most recently, Cadet was instrumental in an NCAA Tournament run for the Bulldogs in 2025-26. The team garnered the no. 7 seed in the Iowa City, Iowa Regional, making their 37th appearance in the national tournament which is tied for third-most among all NCAA Division I women’s basketball programs. Professional basketball experience is also in his tool kit, with a summer internship as an NBA Player Development intern in 2023 on his resume. In his time in New York City, Cadet assisted Chris Brickley, a well-known trainer to those in the professional basketball world. He aided Brickley with on-court workouts for NBA stars such as Klay Thompson, Jimmy Butler, Donovan