Barbara Farris: Recruitability-Essential Skills

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Barbara Farris is an assistant coach at Stetson University in Deland, FL.

Farris has enjoyed a successful playing and coaching career both domestically and overseas.  She comes to Stetson from John Curtis Christian School in New Orleans, where she coached the Lady Patriots to five LHSAA state championships, including four in a row from 2017-20. 

Over a span of 10 seasons at John Curtis, Farris posted a career mark of 279-54 and developed 15 collegiate scholarship athletes, including 2019-20 Gatorade Louisiana Player of the Year and Louisiana Miss Basketball honoree JerKaila Jordan.

Farris' professional playing career began in 1998 when she was selected by the New England Blizzard of the American Basketball League with the third overall pick in the draft. 

Following one season in the ABL, Farris began a successful 10-year WNBA career with Detroit in 2000, helping lead the Shock and to the 2003 WNBA Championship under coach Bill Laimbeer.  She then played two seasons with the New York Liberty and one year with the Phoenix Mercury before returning to Detroit for her final season in 2009.

From 2000-08, Farris also played for various FIBA and international club teams in France, Spain, Turkey, Greece, and South Korea.  She later served as an assistant coach for the New York Liberty from 2012-14 and against from 2018-19.

A WBCA All-American forward at Tulane University, Farris averaged 14.7 points and 8.0 rebounds in her career and became the Green Wave's first four-time all-conference selection. She helped lead Tulane to four NCAA Tournament berths and a conference championship in 1997.  She graduated with a degree in Sociology in 1998 and was inducted into the Tulane Athletics Hall of Fame in 2004.

Farris won two high school state championships as a basketball player and two more as a track athlete at St. Martin's Episcopal School in Metairie, La.  she was inducted into the St. Martin's Alumni Athletic Hall of Fame in 2011.

Farris was also inducted into the Greater New Orleans Sports Hall of Fame in 2017.