In 2016, Diane Dahm, MD, became the only female head orthopedic surgeon for an NBA team, working with the Minnesota Timberwolves. There are still a limited number of female physicians serving North America's 30 NBA teams.
Here are five female NBA sports medicine specialists to know:
1. During her time with the Timberwolves, Dr. Dahm, also a surgeon at Rochester, Minn.-based Mayo Clinic, has operated on players including forward Robert Covington and center Justin Patton.
2. Lisa Callahan, MD, a primary sports medicine physician at New York City-based Hospital for Special Surgery, was the first woman to serve as head team physician in the NBA, overseeing care for the New York Knicks. She served two terms as president of the NBA Team Physicians Association and was awarded NBA Team Physician of the Year in 2014.
3. Courtney Watson, who has a doctorate in athletic training, joined the Portland Trail Blazers for her first season as head athletic trainer in 2023-24 after spending the previous 15 seasons with the Los Angeles Sparks of the WNBA. Dr. Watson has 20 years of sports medicine experience.
4. Kathleen Weber, MD, a sports medicine and shoulder specialist at Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush in Chicago, serves as the head primary care sports medicine team physician for the Chicago Bulls.
5. Susan Joy, MD, co-director of the Kaiser Permanente Sports Medicine Center in Sacramento, Calif., is a team physician for the Sacramento Kings.