Basketball Hall-of-Famer Confident She Can Trailblaze to Become NBA’s First Female Head Coach: I Can ‘Stand in Front of Men and Lead Them’

Photo by Elsa/Getty Images

It wasn’t too long ago when New York sports radio icon Mike Francesa stood on his soapbox and claimed a woman becoming a head coach in the NBA was a “million-to-one” shot, and “not something that makes sense to even aspire to.”

Four years later, we’re getting close to breaking that glass ceiling, with the Portland Trail Blazers reportedly interviewing two women for their head coaching vacancy, along with several male candidates.

One of those candidates, basketball Hall-of-Famer Dawn Staley told Kurt Streeter of The New York Times, she’s up to the task of trailblazing the industry, and fully confident in her ability to be a head coach at the NBA level.

“I come with a lot of credentials,” Staley said. “I surely have the confidence. I surely can stand in front of men and lead them. First-team All-Stars. MVPs. I’m okay with that.”

In addition to Staley, San Antonio Spurs assistant coach Becky Hammon is the other woman reportedly interviewing for the job in Portland.

“There are a lot of women good enough” to lead an NBA team, Staley added – and she’s certainly one of them. The 51-year-old Staley led the South Carolina Gamecocks to a national championship in 2017 and was recently named Coach of the Year in 2020. A three-time Olympic gold medalist and a six-time All-Star, Staley is also one of the greatest WNBA players in league history.

“A lot of people would be out there, just waiting for you to make a mistake, waiting for you to be wrong,” Staley said. “There’s a whole dynamic that men, White or Black, just don’t have to think about. It’s a female thing. The expectation will be so much greater than the male coach. So much greater.”

Have a tip we should know? tips@mediaite.com