Lakers Announce Staff Hirings

The Los Angeles Lakers announced today the hirings ofJennifer Swanson as Head Physical Therapist, Stacey Robinson as Massage Therapist, and Sean Light as Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach. The trio will report to Head Athletic Trainer Marco Nuñez, joining Assistant Athletic Trainer Nina Hsieh, Strength and Conditioning Coach Tim DiFrancesco, and Equipment Manager Carlos Maples on the training staff.

The team has also hired Lorena Martin as Director of Sports Performance Analytics and Jae Kim as Basketball Data Analyst, both of whom will report to Director of Basketball Analytics Yuju Lee.

The team also hired Joshua Wright as Assistant to the Head Coach, reporting to Head Coach Luke Walton.

Swanson brings over 12 years of experience working with professional and collegiate athletes from the NFL, NHL, MLS, and MLB, among others, to her position. Most recently, she served as Director of Sports Performance with the Chicago Bulls from 2013-16, integrating the medical, rehabilitation, strength and conditioning, massage therapy, and nutrition programming into customized individual plans to decrease injury risk and maximize on-court performance. She obtained her doctorate in physical therapy from Duke University in 2004 and a Bachelor of Science degree in exercise science with a minor in psychology from the University of California, Davis in 2001. In addition, the Gilroy, CA native completed a sports physical therapy residency at the University of Pittsburgh/Center for Rehab Services in 2006, where she also spent one year as a physical therapy intern with the Pittsburgh Steelers. She is a board certified specialist in sports and orthopedics, as well as a certified strength and conditioning specialist.

Martin most recently completed three years of postdoctoral research at the University of California San Diego. Dr. Martin’s credentials include post-doctorates in epidemiology, biostatistics, and GIS spatial analysis, a doctorate in exercise physiology, and both master’s and bachelor’s degrees in psychology. She also spent time as a visiting scientist at the SALK Institute for Biological Studies in the Belmonte Gene Expression Laboratory. In addition, Dr. Martin has taught multiple courses at various universities including the University of Miami, Florida International University, and Northwestern University in the fields of research methods, statistics, sports performance, and data science, which later resulted in her developing a course in sports performance analytics for Northwestern University. Additionally, she published a sole-authored book, Sports Performance Measurement and Analytics, earlier this year based on sports performance research, her experiences as a former professional tennis player, and knowledge from her previous work with professional sports teams in the NBA, NFL, and ATP Tour, as well as within hospital and clinical research settings.

Robinson comes to the Lakers after working with Joubert Physical Therapy in Beverly Hills for the last 10 years, helping with the athletic rehabilitation of a variety of clients, including professional athletes. Last year, she performed sports massage, tissue work, and stretching on individual New York Yankees players. Her professional sports experience as a massage therapist extends to working with the Dallas Cowboys for three seasons during training camp, and the Los Angeles Avengers of the Arena Football League. She holds a business degree with an associate of science minor from Fullerton Junior College while simultaneously attending the Institute of Professional Practical Therapy, where she earned her sports massage therapy certification.

Light joins the team after serving as a strength and conditioning coach for the past four seasons with minor league affiliates in the Arizona Diamondbacks farm system. He assisted at spring training with the parent club each of the last four years, and was previously a strength and conditioning intern with the New York Yankees in 2012. He graduated from Quinnipiac University in 2010, where he played three years of Division I basketball. Light is a registered strength and conditioning coach and massage therapist.

Kim was most recently analytics manager for the University of California, Berkeley men’s basketball team for the 2015-16 season. In his role, he composed regular analytical scouting reports for the coaching staff and assisted in the recruitment process, promoting the Golden Bears program to prospective athletes. Kim received a Bachelor of Science degree from the Haas School of Business while at Cal. A native of South Korea, he studied statistics and worked as a legislative assistant for the National Assembly of South Korea.

Wright holds a degree in kinesiology from Georgetown College, where he was a member of the football team. Last season, the Elizabethtown, KY native volunteered with the Wake Forest men’s basketball program.