"It's important that we start to see leaders as leaders," — Becky Hammon
January 6, 2022
The gist:
The former "NBA Assistant Coach, turned WNBA head coach knows she’s a role model for aspiration girls, but she says, "little boys" need to see women leaders, too.”
After “years as the frontrunner to become the first woman head coach in major pro men's sports, Hammon shocked many fans with her pivot from the NBA to the WNBA. But the eight-year San Antonio Spurs assistant under legendary head coach Gregg Popovich stressed that the move ‘is a step forward and a step in the right direction for [herself], for women's basketball,’ and for her personal growth as a coach.”
During the Press Conference, announcing her new role, she remarked that, “there's a double standard at play: ‘we have never had these press conferences when it came to a man leading a woman's team.’" And it’s ‘normal’ for male coaches to lead women’s sports teams.
So, what does this teach to boys? Hammom is Mom to two boys herself. "To them, their mom's a leader…and that's how they look at it. That's it." Implying that they don’t see her, as perhaps the public and the fans do, as ‘a woman leader,’ or as a ‘Woman Coach.’
"We can start peeling back the layers of society and what is viewed as [a leader] ... and start hiring people based on what they bring to the table — based [on] their basketball knowledge," she added. "I mean, there's so many great women coaches out there that should be leading their own teams and given those opportunities."
"I hope that trend continues."
The faxx:
- The WNBA, meanwhile, is setting the standard for coaching equity in pro sports. Heading into the 2022 season, more than half of the league's head coaches are women.
Photo: AP Photo/Eric Gay, STF / Associated Press
Link to the INSIDER post here.
