Bakersfield Jam Announce 2014-15 Staff
November 6, 2014 - NBA G League (G League)
Bakersfield Jam News Release
BAKERSFIELD, November 6, 2014 - The Bakersfield Jam today announced that Tim Lewis, Tyler Marsh, and Dylan DeBusk have been named Assistant Coaches to Head Coach Nate Bjorkgren's coaching staff for the 2014-15 season.
Lewis enters his first year as an Assistant Coach with Bakersfield, having most recently served as an Assistant Coach at Panamanian Basketball Federation. Prior to his time in Panama, he was the Head Coach of the Hitachi Sunrockers (Japan), and the Ratiopharm Ulm (Germany). A native of Great Britain, Lewis spent six years as an Assistant Coach and Performance Analyst for the Great Britain Senior Men's Olympic Program. He also served five years as Head Coach of Great Britain's U-20 National Basketball Team.
Lewis received a Bachelor of Science degree in Leisure Management/Business from the University of New Hampshire.
In his first season with the Jam, Marsh will serve as an Assistant Coach. Prior to joining the Jam, Marsh was an Assistant Coach on Bjorkgren's Iowa Energy team last season. He was also part of the 2012-13 Rio Grande Valley Vipers NBA D-League Championship team as the Director of Basketball Operations/Player Development.
The Miami, Florida native played college basketball for Birmingham Southern and the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Marsh earned a degree in Business Administration from Birmingham Southern College and is currently pursuing a Master's degree at Texas Southern University in Human Performance and Development.
DeBusk enters his first year with the Jam and will serve as an Assistant Coach and Video Coordinator for the team. He was also a member of Bjorkgren's Iowa Energy staff last season as a Basketball Operations Assistant. Prior to his role with the Energy, he was a student manager for the Arizona State University Men's Basketball team for two years.
Originally from Cave Creek, Arizona, DeBusk earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance at Arizona State University.
In addition to the new members of the coaching staff, Brian Levy, Shaun Mirza, and Johnathan Mak return to the Jam for the 2014-15 campaign.
In his fifth season with the Jam, Levy will serve as the Assistant General Manager. He joined the Jam in 2010 as the Head Video Coordinator for the 2010-2011 season, was then named Director of Player Personnel for the 2011-12 season and was promoted to Assistant General Manager in 2012. Levy began his career in sports as a Sponsorship & Corporate Marketing intern with the Washington Wizards and Washington Mystics. He also interned with the New Jersey Sports & Exposition Authority preparing for the 2007 Breeder's Cup at Monmouth Park Racetrack. Levy also served as the Director of Operations for the East Kentucky Miners of the CBA.
A New Jersey Native, Levy attended Stevens Institute of Technology as a Business Technology major.
Mirza enters his fourth season as Head Athletic Trainer for Bakersfield. His responsibilities with the Jam include day-to-day health needs of the team, prevention, evaluation, and rehabilitation of athletic injuries. In addition to his athletic training duties, Mirza will serve this season as the Strength and Conditioning Coach for the team. This past summer in Las Vegas, he was part of the athletic training staff for the Phoenix Suns summer league team. He also served as the Head Athletic Trainer at the 2014 NBA D-League Mini-Camp and the 2013 NBA D-League Select Team at summer league.
A Chicago, Illinois native, Mirza holds two degrees: a master's degree in Athletic Training from A.T. Still University (Arizona) and a bachelor's degree in Athletic Training from Illinois State University. Mirza served on active duty in the U.S. Army where he was a mechanic and paratrooper.
Mak returns for his second season as Assistant Athletic Trainer. In addition to his role with the Jam last season, he was also the Head Athletic Trainer for Bakersfield Christian High School. Prior to joining the Jam, Mak held various clinical positions at Illinois State University where he worked with their men's basketball, football and women's soccer teams. He was also an athletic trainer at Hopedale Medical Complex, where he incorporated academic skills as they applied to all entities of sports medicine program.
Originally from Chicago, Illinois, Mak earned his bachelor's degree in Athletic Training from Illinois State University. He is a certified Performance Enhancement Specialist and specializes in sports nutrition.
The team also announced the Front Office additions of Natalya Pyatkovska, Executive Vice President of Business Operations and Partnerships, and Cindy Altamirano, Entertainment Production and Community Relations Manager.
Pyatkovska returns for her second stint with the Bakersfield Jam as the team's Executive Vice President of Business Operations and Partnerships, having previously served as the Director of Public Relations and Business Operations. She spent the past three seasons with the Detroit Pistons, splitting time as the Assistant to the President, Business Operations & Strategy as well as Public Relations departments. Pyatkovska's professional experience also includes internships with Los Angeles Lakers Public Relations, Los Angeles Sparks Marketing & Game Operations and Tampa Bay Buccaneers Public Relations.
A native of Ukraine, Pyatkovska graduated from UCLA with a degree in Communication Studies. She worked with the Women's Basketball Team and the Athletic Recruiting Blue & Gold Organization while at UCLA.
Altamirano enters her second season with the Jam, first as Entertainment Production and Community Relations Manager. Last season as the Public Relations Intern, she assisted the front office in day-to-day as well as game-day operations. Prior to joining the Jam, Altamirano worked as an Independent Creative Writer.
A Los Angeles, CA native, Altamirano graduated from California State University of Bakersfield with a degree in Business Administration. During her time in college, she served as a CSU International Program Alumni Assistant after studying abroad in Spain for a year.
NBA G League Stories from November 6, 2014
- Bakersfield Jam Announce 2014-15 Staff - Bakersfield Jam
- Austin Spurs Waive Three from Training Camp - Austin Spurs
- Texas Legends Announce Revolutionary Partnership with State of Chihuahua, Mexico - Texas Legends
- Vipers Announce 2014-15 Coaching Staff Additions - Rio Grande Valley Vipers
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
