February 27, 2026 • 9 mins
Seattle Storm new Assistant Coach Jarell Christian joins Dick Fain to talk about the new job and coaching history in basketball, his relationships with the new staff, what connections he’s had with players during the CBA dispute, and what’s happening now.
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
Testing live from the R and R Foundation Specialist broadcast studio.
Now back to Softie and Dig powered by Emerald Queen Casino,
the Betty and Capital of the Northwest on Sports Radio
ninety three point three KJR FM.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
And Well the Backsports Radio ninety three point three KJR FM.
Deck Fane back with you and excited for storm season
to start. Obviously, I'll be going into what about my
seventeenth year something like that calling the games on radio
and or television.
Speaker 3 (00:33):
And a whole new unit coming through.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
We got a brand new basketball team, brand new coaching staff,
and joining us one of the brand new assistants. It
was just officially named last week. Jurell Christian joins us
here on ninety three point three eight KJRFM.
Speaker 3 (00:48):
Coach.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
How are you.
Speaker 4 (00:50):
I'm doing well. I'm doing well. I'm currently here in Boston, Massachusetts,
and so you know, I'm here in a little b
lizard right now. He's got about thirteen inches of snow.
So this is a good breakaway for me.
Speaker 3 (01:02):
Oh man, Well, God bless you out there.
Speaker 2 (01:04):
I know not many people are going very far, not
traveling very far, but you're out there. I know that
you've spent a lot of time in the G League
out in the Northwest or in the Northeast rather most recently,
just kind of talk about that transition and going from
G League basketball where you were a coach and general
manager now to coaching on the w NBA side.
Speaker 4 (01:26):
Yeah, I mean, I think for me personally, it's been
it's been a fun ride. You know. I've spent twelve
seasons in the NBA in a lot of different roles.
I've been an assistant coach in the NBA, I've been
a head coach in the G League the GM and
a video guy in the G League. So I've kind
of done a little bit of everything at that level
for the most part, and I think for me it's
(01:48):
gonna be a fun transition. You know. For the last
couple of seasons, I was also an NBA scout with
the Boston Celtics, so I got to get my evaluation
hat on and learn a little bit from Brad Stevens
and the rest of that front office group, who is
you know, amazing evaluators and people and bakers of the game.
So it just gives me a different lens. They kind
of see things through, and so I'm excited to get
(02:08):
started with with Seattle and help Sonya and to Lisa
try to bring bring the light their vision.
Speaker 2 (02:14):
Well, how did you get together with Sonia and to Lisa?
What does the relationship look like between you you guys
over the years.
Speaker 4 (02:22):
That is a great question, you know, ironically, I did
not know Sonya up until she got the job and
she reached out. You know, obviously we had, you know,
been kind of around the same circles of her time
with the Grizzlies, and at that point, I think I
was also with the Wizards, saying a little bit with
the Celtics, but we had never you know, had a conversation,
(02:43):
never really spoken. You know, we had a lot of
mutual friends, and so one of our mutual friends was
with her with the New York Liberty, and so he
was a good friend of mine, and he passed along
my name and my contact information when she got the
job in Seattle, and and she reached out, and we
instantly hit it off, and you know, things kind of
(03:03):
spark from there.
Speaker 2 (03:04):
I saw you working out as out of the video
with you working out some players. We don't have a
lot of players on this team, but the few players
we have on this team right now, I know a
lot of a lot of teams are looking to build
once this CBA gets finalized.
Speaker 3 (03:19):
But what have you seen from the few that did
you have been able to work with?
Speaker 4 (03:23):
Yeah, I mean basically, we just had Jordan and Market
and I got a chance to work with her for
the first you know, a couple of days I was there,
and you know, everybody knows Jordan she's she's an unbelievable talent,
and she plays with this energy and this passion and
a versatility on both ends of the floor, something that's special.
So I was just trying to tap into that during
(03:44):
the workout through a lot of different things at her
you know, And I think one of the things that
makes her a special player and that's going to be
really impactful for us is just being able to defend
at a high level, but also someone that can get
to the paint and create for herself and our teammates.
And so, you know, I love the energy that she
was playing with and that she competed with in the workout.
She's the first competitor, as everybody knows, you know, she
(04:05):
hates to lose, and you know, we made some of
those workouts and some of those drills challenging, you know,
her versus the coach or her versus myself, And it
was one of those things where you can just see
the passion for competition that she has and obviously sitting
out all of last season, she's just itching to get
back to it. So it was fun to be a
part of that with her.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
What did you know about the Storm organization before you
even ran into Sonia or to Lisa or anything. What
was what stuck out in your mind about this organization
as a whole.
Speaker 4 (04:36):
The thing that sticks out to me, honestly is that
the championship caliber organization that they are. You know, they've
won championships in the past, They've got a great leadership group,
and just from like ownership management, everything that I've heard
and everything that I've known, everything that I've watched over
the years has been high level and it's been elite.
Speaker 1 (04:55):
You know.
Speaker 4 (04:55):
They're all about bringing in the right people, They're all
about character, and they're all about culture. And those are
all things that I aligned with and things that I've
always kind of, you know, wanted to look for at
an employer or a partner. In my last twelve thirteen
years of the NBA, life, and you know, it just
seemed like a great partnership. So I'm just excited to
be a part of it. And again, we're all about
building a culture and you know, competing for championships at
(05:17):
the end of the day, and that's something that they've
been known for over the years.
Speaker 2 (05:20):
Dreyell Christian joining us at brand New Storm Assistant. We've
got some things in common. We're both kids of school teachers,
both my mom and dad, just like yours. We're both
basketball coaches. I'm not a professional basketball coach, my high
high school basketball coach. But how is your upbringing kind
of led you to becoming a coach, because I certainly,
you know, my two folks being teachers, my dad was
(05:42):
a coach. That certainly led me into that kind of phase.
Speaker 3 (05:45):
In my life.
Speaker 4 (05:47):
Yeah, you know, ironically, my father was participating in the
nineteen eighty Olympic Trials as a sprinter, and so he
is a high school track coach and hall of fame.
I can still it runner at Asama Mater in college.
And my mother was a retired special education teacher in
middle school for over thirty years. And I never really
(06:08):
thought about it until, you know, I had kids, but
I think for me getting into coaching, I probably attributed
that to my mother, to be honest with you, just
because I don't necessarily see it as coaching. I see
it more as teaching, you know, teaching the game of basketball,
teaching different philosophies, and just watching my mother, you know,
(06:29):
teach special education to thirty plus years and you know,
the time, the attention and energy and the effort that
each student requires in that field was something something special
to watching. Again, Like when I was growing up, I
never really thought about it in that way, but once
I got into parenthood and even coaching, like it made
me reflect on that time as as a middle school kid,
(06:52):
watching my mother go through all of that and put
up with those students, and like the love that her
students always came back. You know, it's just to appreciate
that all of her students had for her, and it was,
you know, just a testament to you know, her passion
for what she was doing, but her passion for helping people,
you know, get to something bigger. And I think that's
the best part about coaching, is being able to help
(07:14):
your your athletes get to, you know, whatever their goals
or whatever their dreams may be.
Speaker 2 (07:19):
Finally, this has got to be a really unique situation
for any new coaching in this league because I mean, basically,
the league's on pause right now. It's not on stop,
but it's certainly not on go. It's it's just on pause.
And with all these you know I alluded to, you know,
most teams only having a small handful of players even
on their roster right now, and the CBA not signed.
Speaker 3 (07:39):
What is what are you guys doing?
Speaker 2 (07:41):
Like what is the coaching staff doing when you don't
know who's gonna be on your team and you really
don't know who's gonna be on the teams that you're
playing against, So it's tough to like advance scout or
use any film from last year.
Speaker 4 (07:55):
Yeah, I mean, I think the good thing about our
staff is that, you know, let's say, accept of Michael
Jordan and coach Sonia, you know, we haven't really worked
together before. So I think this is a great time
for us to kind of get to know one another
and just have you know, tasuble conversations without it always
being about basketball. I think one thing that you know,
(08:16):
once you become a first time head coach, especially of
a professional team, you're going to have to rely on
your staff a lot, and one way you can rely
on them is if you actually know who they are
and a little bit about them, you know, outside of basketball,
outside of the sports, get to know their families and
things that make them tick. And so that's really what
we're doing. We're just diving into learning as much about
each other and spending that time, whether through a group
(08:38):
chat or you know, hopping on a on a video conference,
just us trying to get to know one another. And
then of course, you know, us just talking about different
philosophies and different schemes that we think would be beneficial
with the player and the personnel that we do have.
And so I think one thing that's that's going to
be really exciting, especially I'm excited for Coach Sonia is
you know, it's going to be our first crack at it,
(08:58):
you know, at the w A head coach, and so
I'm excited to kind of see her vision. I'm excited
to kind of help that vision come to light.
Speaker 3 (09:06):
I love it. I love it.
Speaker 2 (09:07):
I can't wait to talk to you, work with you
all summer long and as we get the Storm basketball
season rolling for twenty twenty six.
Speaker 3 (09:13):
Thanks for joining us so much, Drell.
Speaker 4 (09:16):
Awesome, thank you, I appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (09:17):
Gonna be interesting to see if we actually start on time.
They've got a hard date coming up in the next
two weeks to get something moving, all right. Fox Sports
Radio comes up next. Have a great weekend. I'll be
back with Jackson Bevans. I'll have Jackson and Jackson, Jackson
Feltz and Jackson Bevins with me on one Monday, three
to seven on ninety three point three K
Testing live from the R and R Foundation Specialist broadcast studio.
Now back to Softie and Dig powered by Emerald Queen Casino,
the Betty and Capital of the Northwest on Sports Radio
ninety three point three KJR FM.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
And Well the Backsports Radio ninety three point three KJR FM.
Deck Fane back with you and excited for storm season
to start. Obviously, I'll be going into what about my
seventeenth year something like that calling the games on radio
and or television.
Speaker 3 (00:33):
And a whole new unit coming through.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
We got a brand new basketball team, brand new coaching staff,
and joining us one of the brand new assistants. It
was just officially named last week. Jurell Christian joins us
here on ninety three point three eight KJRFM.
Speaker 3 (00:48):
Coach.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
How are you.
Speaker 4 (00:50):
I'm doing well. I'm doing well. I'm currently here in Boston, Massachusetts,
and so you know, I'm here in a little b
lizard right now. He's got about thirteen inches of snow.
So this is a good breakaway for me.
Speaker 3 (01:02):
Oh man, Well, God bless you out there.
Speaker 2 (01:04):
I know not many people are going very far, not
traveling very far, but you're out there. I know that
you've spent a lot of time in the G League
out in the Northwest or in the Northeast rather most recently,
just kind of talk about that transition and going from
G League basketball where you were a coach and general
manager now to coaching on the w NBA side.
Speaker 4 (01:26):
Yeah, I mean, I think for me personally, it's been
it's been a fun ride. You know. I've spent twelve
seasons in the NBA in a lot of different roles.
I've been an assistant coach in the NBA, I've been
a head coach in the G League the GM and
a video guy in the G League. So I've kind
of done a little bit of everything at that level
for the most part, and I think for me it's
(01:48):
gonna be a fun transition. You know. For the last
couple of seasons, I was also an NBA scout with
the Boston Celtics, so I got to get my evaluation
hat on and learn a little bit from Brad Stevens
and the rest of that front office group, who is
you know, amazing evaluators and people and bakers of the game.
So it just gives me a different lens. They kind
of see things through, and so I'm excited to get
(02:08):
started with with Seattle and help Sonya and to Lisa
try to bring bring the light their vision.
Speaker 2 (02:14):
Well, how did you get together with Sonia and to Lisa?
What does the relationship look like between you you guys
over the years.
Speaker 4 (02:22):
That is a great question, you know, ironically, I did
not know Sonya up until she got the job and
she reached out. You know, obviously we had, you know,
been kind of around the same circles of her time
with the Grizzlies, and at that point, I think I
was also with the Wizards, saying a little bit with
the Celtics, but we had never you know, had a conversation,
(02:43):
never really spoken. You know, we had a lot of
mutual friends, and so one of our mutual friends was
with her with the New York Liberty, and so he
was a good friend of mine, and he passed along
my name and my contact information when she got the
job in Seattle, and and she reached out, and we
instantly hit it off, and you know, things kind of
(03:03):
spark from there.
Speaker 2 (03:04):
I saw you working out as out of the video
with you working out some players. We don't have a
lot of players on this team, but the few players
we have on this team right now, I know a
lot of a lot of teams are looking to build
once this CBA gets finalized.
Speaker 3 (03:19):
But what have you seen from the few that did
you have been able to work with?
Speaker 4 (03:23):
Yeah, I mean basically, we just had Jordan and Market
and I got a chance to work with her for
the first you know, a couple of days I was there,
and you know, everybody knows Jordan she's she's an unbelievable talent,
and she plays with this energy and this passion and
a versatility on both ends of the floor, something that's special.
So I was just trying to tap into that during
(03:44):
the workout through a lot of different things at her
you know, And I think one of the things that
makes her a special player and that's going to be
really impactful for us is just being able to defend
at a high level, but also someone that can get
to the paint and create for herself and our teammates.
And so, you know, I love the energy that she
was playing with and that she competed with in the workout.
She's the first competitor, as everybody knows, you know, she
(04:05):
hates to lose, and you know, we made some of
those workouts and some of those drills challenging, you know,
her versus the coach or her versus myself, And it
was one of those things where you can just see
the passion for competition that she has and obviously sitting
out all of last season, she's just itching to get
back to it. So it was fun to be a
part of that with her.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
What did you know about the Storm organization before you
even ran into Sonia or to Lisa or anything. What
was what stuck out in your mind about this organization
as a whole.
Speaker 4 (04:36):
The thing that sticks out to me, honestly is that
the championship caliber organization that they are. You know, they've
won championships in the past, They've got a great leadership group,
and just from like ownership management, everything that I've heard
and everything that I've known, everything that I've watched over
the years has been high level and it's been elite.
Speaker 1 (04:55):
You know.
Speaker 4 (04:55):
They're all about bringing in the right people, They're all
about character, and they're all about culture. And those are
all things that I aligned with and things that I've
always kind of, you know, wanted to look for at
an employer or a partner. In my last twelve thirteen
years of the NBA, life, and you know, it just
seemed like a great partnership. So I'm just excited to
be a part of it. And again, we're all about
building a culture and you know, competing for championships at
(05:17):
the end of the day, and that's something that they've
been known for over the years.
Speaker 2 (05:20):
Dreyell Christian joining us at brand New Storm Assistant. We've
got some things in common. We're both kids of school teachers,
both my mom and dad, just like yours. We're both
basketball coaches. I'm not a professional basketball coach, my high
high school basketball coach. But how is your upbringing kind
of led you to becoming a coach, because I certainly,
you know, my two folks being teachers, my dad was
(05:42):
a coach. That certainly led me into that kind of phase.
Speaker 3 (05:45):
In my life.
Speaker 4 (05:47):
Yeah, you know, ironically, my father was participating in the
nineteen eighty Olympic Trials as a sprinter, and so he
is a high school track coach and hall of fame.
I can still it runner at Asama Mater in college.
And my mother was a retired special education teacher in
middle school for over thirty years. And I never really
(06:08):
thought about it until, you know, I had kids, but
I think for me getting into coaching, I probably attributed
that to my mother, to be honest with you, just
because I don't necessarily see it as coaching. I see
it more as teaching, you know, teaching the game of basketball,
teaching different philosophies, and just watching my mother, you know,
(06:29):
teach special education to thirty plus years and you know,
the time, the attention and energy and the effort that
each student requires in that field was something something special
to watching. Again, Like when I was growing up, I
never really thought about it in that way, but once
I got into parenthood and even coaching, like it made
me reflect on that time as as a middle school kid,
(06:52):
watching my mother go through all of that and put
up with those students, and like the love that her
students always came back. You know, it's just to appreciate
that all of her students had for her, and it was,
you know, just a testament to you know, her passion
for what she was doing, but her passion for helping people,
you know, get to something bigger. And I think that's
the best part about coaching, is being able to help
(07:14):
your your athletes get to, you know, whatever their goals
or whatever their dreams may be.
Speaker 2 (07:19):
Finally, this has got to be a really unique situation
for any new coaching in this league because I mean, basically,
the league's on pause right now. It's not on stop,
but it's certainly not on go. It's it's just on pause.
And with all these you know I alluded to, you know,
most teams only having a small handful of players even
on their roster right now, and the CBA not signed.
Speaker 3 (07:39):
What is what are you guys doing?
Speaker 2 (07:41):
Like what is the coaching staff doing when you don't
know who's gonna be on your team and you really
don't know who's gonna be on the teams that you're
playing against, So it's tough to like advance scout or
use any film from last year.
Speaker 4 (07:55):
Yeah, I mean, I think the good thing about our
staff is that, you know, let's say, accept of Michael
Jordan and coach Sonia, you know, we haven't really worked
together before. So I think this is a great time
for us to kind of get to know one another
and just have you know, tasuble conversations without it always
being about basketball. I think one thing that you know,
(08:16):
once you become a first time head coach, especially of
a professional team, you're going to have to rely on
your staff a lot, and one way you can rely
on them is if you actually know who they are
and a little bit about them, you know, outside of basketball,
outside of the sports, get to know their families and
things that make them tick. And so that's really what
we're doing. We're just diving into learning as much about
each other and spending that time, whether through a group
(08:38):
chat or you know, hopping on a on a video conference,
just us trying to get to know one another. And
then of course, you know, us just talking about different
philosophies and different schemes that we think would be beneficial
with the player and the personnel that we do have.
And so I think one thing that's that's going to
be really exciting, especially I'm excited for Coach Sonia is
you know, it's going to be our first crack at it,
(08:58):
you know, at the w A head coach, and so
I'm excited to kind of see her vision. I'm excited
to kind of help that vision come to light.
Speaker 3 (09:06):
I love it. I love it.
Speaker 2 (09:07):
I can't wait to talk to you, work with you
all summer long and as we get the Storm basketball
season rolling for twenty twenty six.
Speaker 3 (09:13):
Thanks for joining us so much, Drell.
Speaker 4 (09:16):
Awesome, thank you, I appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (09:17):
Gonna be interesting to see if we actually start on time.
They've got a hard date coming up in the next
two weeks to get something moving, all right. Fox Sports
Radio comes up next. Have a great weekend. I'll be
back with Jackson Bevans. I'll have Jackson and Jackson, Jackson
Feltz and Jackson Bevins with me on one Monday, three
to seven on ninety three point three K
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