Will Becky Hammon get the chance to be an NBA head coach? If so, when?
Hammon doesn’t know the answer; forces beyond her control will make that decision. What she does know is she will be ready when the chance comes, something she talked about on NBC’s “Inspiring America: The 2021 Inspiration List” that airs Saturday night on NBC (8 p.m.).
“I mean, this ball is never moving fast enough, in my opinion [on women coaches in the NBA],” Hammon said in the interview. “People don’t like doing something new and different. It’s uncomfortable. It takes a massive amount of risk. Somebody’s going to have to take a chance...
“In some ways, I feel like it could be in a year. In other ways, it could be 10 years. I’m not really sure. What I’m sure of is, I’ll be ready.”
Hammon also talked about being the first woman to be coach an NBA team when Gregg Popovich was ejected from a game back in December.
.@BeckyHammon says she wasn't thinking about stepping into history when she became the first woman to coach an NBA team. "What dawned on me is I want to beat the Lakers," she tells @hodakotb.
— CNBC (@CNBC) April 27, 2021
"Inspiring America: The 2021 Inspiration List" will air May 1 at 8 p.m. ET on NBC. pic.twitter.com/IadfAimbhH
Will Hammon ever get the chance to be a head coach in the NBA? Maybe. Hopefully. But the list of deserving assistant coaches who didn’t get their chance over the years is long, and they didn’t face the added hurdle of being a woman. It’s going to take a bold step by the right organization for it to happen.
Talk to players who have played while she has been on the staff in San Antonio and, to a man, they respect Hammon and her coaching passion and knowledge. She can do the job, and we know this much — she’ll be ready when the time comes.