MIAMI, FLORIDA – JANUARY 15: Assistant coach Becky Hammon of the San Antonio Spurs
(Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
Becky Hammon is coaching the San Antonio Spurs today.
Serving as an assistant coach on Gregg Popovich’s San Antonio Spurs is one of the best ways to get funneled towards vacant head coaching jobs in the NBA. Knowing that assistants like Becky Hammon are being eyed for head coaching gigs, Popovich is letting Hammon commandeer the Spurs for a brief moment during the NBA’s restart.
Hammon is one of three Spurs assistant coaches that will get a crack at coaching this team during scrimmages. Hammon herself is coaching the Spurs today against Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks, with Popovich serving as an assistant.
Becky Hammon might be auditioning for teams looking for a new head coach.
After a long WNBA career, most of which was spent with the San Antonio Stars, in which she made six All-Star teams, Hammon joined Popovich’s staff as an assistant coach in 2014, gradually moving up the assistant coach ladder. Currently, she and Spurs legend Tim Duncan are Popovich’s two most trusted assistants. With Duncan not in Orlando, Hammon is getting her chance to shine. She has a lot of work to do, as the Spurs are missing several key contributors on the court due to injury.
Hammon, who remains interested in the New York Knicks’ vacancy, has paid her dues as an assistant with the Spurs. Her gender should not exclude her from receiving a well-deserved promotion, as she has the tactical know-how and personality management skills to turn any struggling franchise around.
If Popovich lets go of the reigns and ends up allowing Hammon to assume a greater role during the NBA’s restart, owners and GMs around the league might start to feel more comfortable with making history via her hiring. A proven record of success, even in the Orlando bubble, on her resume could help Hammon seal a head coaching gig.