Violet Palmer became the first ever female referee to officiate in the National Basketball Association (NBA). In fact, Palmer was the first ever female official across any major U.S. professional sport. What started out as a training experiment turned into a nearly 20-year career for Palmer as a trailblazer in NBA officiating. She debuted her NBA officiating career with a game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Vancouver Grizzlies. She went on to officiate 54 games that season. In total, Palmer has officiated 919 NBA games, which included nine postseason games over the course of her career. She became the first woman to oversee an NBA postseason game in 2006, Game 2; first-round of the Eastern Conference matchup between the Indiana Pacers and then-New Jersey Nets. Palmer’s retirement from NBA officiating in 2016 has allowed her to be present to revel in all of her accolades. Palmer is currently the coordinator of Women’s Basketball Officials for the Pac 12 Conference, the West Coast Conference (WCC) and the Western Athletic Conference.