{"id":2718,"date":"2026-06-04T13:38:54","date_gmt":"2026-06-04T13:38:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=2718"},"modified":"2026-06-04T13:38:54","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T13:38:54","slug":"espn-hires-former-referee-lauren-holtkamp-sterling-as-rules-analyst-for-select-wnba-games","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=2718","title":{"rendered":"ESPN hires former referee Lauren Holtkamp-Sterling as rules analyst for select WNBA games"},"content":{"rendered":"
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FILE – Referee Lauren Holtkamp-Sterling gestures during the first half of a preseason NBA basketball game between the Detroit Pistons and the San Antonio Spurs, Wednesday, Oct. 6, 2021, in Detroit. (AP Photo\/Carlos Osorio, File)<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

NEW YORK \u2014 Lauren Holtkamp-Sterling is getting back into basketball, this time going behind the microphone.<\/p>

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The former referee<\/a> , who was the third female official to work in the NBA, will be a rules analyst for ESPN during select WNBA games this season. Holtkamp-Sterling retired from officiating two years ago because of knee issues.<\/p>\n

\u201cI missed being part of the professional basketball world. I missed it quite a bit. It was a big part of my life for a long time,\u201d she told The Associated Press in a phone interview. \u201cSo to be able to step back into that world in a way that I\u2019ll be bringing all my previous experiences that I have, but also getting to learn new skills and come at this from another angle, is such a privilege. To do it in a different way thrills me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Holtkamp-Sterling will provide real-time analysis and context on officiating decisions, replay reviews and rules interpretations during select games.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy goal stepping into this role isn\u2019t to simply say whether a call was right or wrong but to help viewers understand why,\u201d she said. \u201cWhat was happening, what was the official looking at? What does the rule actually say? Walk viewers through individual plays and describe what they are looking at and are focused on.\u201d<\/p>\n

Holtkamp-Sterling will work from ESPN studios in Connecticut, starting with a doubleheader on Saturday.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll have my own room set up with a ton of screens and monitors,\u201d she said. \u201cI think of it as similar to the (NBA) replay center in Secaucus (New Jersey) in terms (of) what I\u2019ll have access to with angles.\u201d<\/p>

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Officiating has come under scrutiny the last few seasons in the WNBA. The league formed an officiating task force in the offseason as part of the \u201cstate of the game\u201d group that included players and coaches. The hope was to address growing concerns about physicality in the league.<\/p>\n

Holtkamp-Sterling, who previously was a WNBA referee, said she is still aware of what\u2019s been going on despite being out of the league for a few years.<\/p>\n

\u201cCriticism is part of officiating,\u201d she said. \u201cFans and stakeholders care about the game and everyone wants to see it be the best it can be.\u201d<\/p>\n

She hopes in her role she can help \u201cfans peer behind the curtain of what\u2019s happening from the officiating perspective. Sometimes I will support the call or explain why the call was missed. Hopefully I can give fans a deeper understanding of some of the game\u2019s most pivotal moments.\u201d<\/p>\n

Having a rules analyst is nothing new to ESPN broadcasts. Former referee Steve Javie has been doing it for NBA games for more than a decade. ESPN added former official Dee Kantner to women\u2019s college games this season.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re excited to welcome Lauren to ESPN\u2019s basketball coverage team,\u201d said Rodney Vaughn, ESPN\u2019s WNBA coordinating producer. \u201cHer experience at the highest levels of professional basketball, combined with her ability to explain complex rules and officiating decisions, will bring valuable perspective to our game telecasts.\u201d<\/p>

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___<\/p>\n

AP WNBA: https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/wnba-basketball<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Lauren Holtkamp-Sterling is getting back into basketball, this time going behind the microphone<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2716,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2718","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"yoast_head":"\nESPN hires former referee Lauren Holtkamp-Sterling as rules analyst for select WNBA games - Moving Insider USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=2718\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"ESPN hires former referee Lauren Holtkamp-Sterling as rules analyst for select WNBA games - 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