When speaking with the media on October 14, South Carolina Gamecocks coach Dawn Staley (who interviewed for the New York Knicks’ NBA head coaching job a few months ago) got honest about whether she thinks a woman will ever be a head coach in the NBA.
“No. But I hope I’m wrong,” Staley said, per an X post from Michael Sauls of The State.
She later added, “If I’m the Knicks coach, you have a five-game losing streak, it’s not going to be about the losing streak, it’s going to be about being a female coach.”
Here’s Dawn Staley’s full comments re the tweet below.
The first question was: “How much interest, how
much of a desire would you have to be a trailblazer
and be the first woman’s coach in the NBA or men’s
college basketball someday?” https://t.co/ZjbWTp0Dbd pic.twitter.com/SVTu9mMR1f
— Michael Sauls (@mcsauls) October 14, 2025
This brutal honesty caught a lot of attention, as this has been a hot topic in the sports media sphere in recent weeks.
The woman who got closest to being an NBA head coach was Las Vegas Aces coach Becky Hammon, who spent time coaching with the San Antonio Spurs’ NBA franchise before joining Las Vegas.
She became the first woman to be a head coach in the NBA Summer League’s history at one point. And Hammon also became the first female acting head coach in NBA history when she took over on the Spurs’ sideline for the legendary Gregg Popovich after Popovich was ejected during a December 2020 game.
Becky Hammon Speaks on a Woman Potentially Being a NBA Head Coach in the Future
Hammon conducted her Aces exit interview on October 16. She was asked about Staley’s comments and whether she thinks there will be a woman head coach in the NBA in her lifetime.
Sep 9, 2025; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Las Vegas Aces head coach Becky Hammon holds a presser before a game against the Chicago Sky at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images | Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images
“When I left the NBA, in some ways, I thought, ‘You know, [a female head coach] could happen in two years.’ And in some other ways, I thought, ‘This ain’t gonna happen for another 20 years,'” Hammon said, per a YouTube video from The Ballers Magazine.
“It could happen. There’s really no good reason why it shouldn’t, or couldn’t. Other than people are uncomfortable with change, or doing something that’s never been done… If my hypothetical balls are bigger than the person sitting in there, this probably isn’t gonna happen.
“Most of the time, when you [interview to be a head coach], something went wrong, something is not right. A lot of times, the people that are doing the hiring, their jobs are on the line, too,” Hammon added. “So people aren’t so gung-ho to do something that’s never been done, right? I could go in there and get a job, and I could do it all right, and do as good a job, or a better job, than a man. And maybe he fails, but it’s not gonna be looked at in the same way as if I were to do the same thing.”
Hammon continued, “So it’s a lot to sign up for. I think some of it needs to start changing. The fact that there’s not one woman on the men’s side, in a head coaching position… If you want to look for reasons why not to do something, you can always find them. And if you want to look for a reason to do things, you can find those too. It’s just a matter of what you’re looking for.
“And I think if somebody wants to authentically look into it, there’s no reason why it couldn’t or shouldn’t be done.”
Props to Hammon for her candid response to a potentially difficult question to answer.
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