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Monday, May 7, 2018

Becky Hammon Becomes First Woman to Interview for Head Coach Position in NBA

Posted By Alisa Pierce on Mon, May 7, 2018 at 1:44 PM

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Instagram/officialbeckyhammon

San Antonio Spurs assistant coach Becky Hammon is to interview for the Milwaukee Bucks' head coach position, sources told ESPN on Friday.

Hammon was hired by the Spurs in 2014, becoming the first female assistant coach in NBA history. Hammon will now be the first woman to interview for a head-coaching job in the league.

Hammon’s achievements have struck a positive chord within the sports community. During her time with the Spurs, Hammon has received praise from other female athletes and coaches such as Chiney Ogwumike, Rosalyn Gold Onwude and Erika de Souza. Hammon’s success also caught the attention of those outside of the sports industry, such as previous presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. Clinton celebrated Hammon’s position as the first female head coach of the NBA Summer League with a tweet in 2015.

Congrats, @BeckyHammon—first woman head coach in the NBA Summer League, and the first woman to win it. (Coincidence?) http://t.co/fAxWYYAUyw
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) July 21, 2015

Despite her impressive track record, Hammon isn’t considered to be one of the Bucks top picks for the position. According to ESPN, the frontrunner for the job is Atlanta Hawks head coach Mike Budenholzer. Budenholzer came to a mutual agreement with the Hawks to part ways after five seasons that included four playoff appearances. Hammon is also up against fellow San Antonians Ettore Messina and James Borrego, also assistant coaches for the Spurs. The San Antonio Express-News reports that Messina, who stepped in as the Spurs’ head coach for the final three games of the team’s first round playoff series against the Golden State Warriors following the death of Gregg Popovich’s wife, Erin, is to be interviewed by the Bucks in the next several days.

Although Hammon’s future with the Bucks is still unknown, Milwaukee ownership and general manager Jon Horst was interested enough to request permission from the Spurs to speak with her. The Bucks also met with Hammon in 2017 about the team’s general manager position despite not having any front-office experience, a move that shows the Bucks deep interest in Hammon.

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Tags: San Antonio, Texas, Becky Hammon, female coach, Milwaukee Bucks, San antonio Spurs, Image

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