Natalie Sago Made History, and She's Ready to Show Why She Belongs

Natalie Sago got a phone call Saturday that changed everything. Albert Sanders, the NBA's executive director of referee operations, was on the line. She was pulling into Salt Lake City airport after a game, and when she saw his name pop up on her phone, she thought the worst. "I was like: 'Oh boy, here we go. Did we screw something up in the game last night in Utah?'" she told ESPN. Turns out, it was way better than that.

The NBA announced Monday that Sago is one of 36 officials selected for the play-in tournament and first round of the playoffs. That makes her the third woman in NBA history to earn a postseason assignment, joining Violet Palmer and Ashley Moyer-Gleich. It's a massive deal in a league where fewer than half of all referees get playoff work each season.

A Long Time Coming

Sago has been grinding for this moment. She's worked more than 400 NBA games and has been on the league's full-time staff since 2018, when she and Moyer-Gleich made history together as the fourth and fifth women ever to reach that level. More women have followed since then, but playoff assignments have remained selective. Sago has been waiting, wondering when her shot would come. Now it's here.

Palmer worked nine playoff games between 2006 and 2012. Moyer-Gleich worked two in 2024. Sago's first assignment will be the 12th playoff game by a woman in NBA history. The selection process isn't random. The league bases playoff assignments on "NBA Referee Operations grades and rankings, play-calling accuracy and team rankings," with further evaluations after each round.

Ready to Set the Standard

Monty McCutchen, who oversees referee development and training for the NBA, put it perfectly: "When you're on a high wire with no net under you and you're depending on the person to catch you, you don't really care what gender they are. What you care about is whether they've been trained properly, and whether you can trust that they will be there for you when you need them."

Sago knows what's on her shoulders. "It's such an honor," she said. "I couldn't be more excited and ready to just put on a performance for the other women coming behind me and all the young little girls that are going to be watching the playoffs."

She wants to normalize this. "I hope it does become normal," Sago said. "As long as we can do the work and do it well and work hard, it's the same thing the men do on the staff. I just want us all to be NBA referees."

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.