Charles Barkley, an NBA Hall of Famer, boldly expressed his support for Becky Hammon becoming the next head coach in the NBA. When asked if the 48-year-old coaching sensation might be breaking yet another barrier in professional basketball, Barkley didn’t hold back in a recent interview with OutKick.
Barkley declared, “I don’t mind having a female head coach.” “I have absolutely no issue with it.”
A trailblazer in the basketball industry, Hammon’s resume is already self-evident. When she guided the San Antonio Spurs to a championship in 2015, she became the first female head coach in the NBA Summer League.
Since then, she’s only enhanced her coaching status, guiding the Las Vegas Aces to back-to-back WNBA titles and gaining worldwide plaudits for her basketball IQ and leadership.
Barkley is not alone in thinking that Hammon is more than qualified. One of the most renowned coaches in NBA history, Gregg Popovich, praised her “basketball IQ, work ethic, and interpersonal skills” when he hired her as an assistant with the Spurs. Those attributes, paired with her championship background, have positioned Hammon as a genuine possibility for an NBA head coaching job.
It might be the right moment. The San Antonio Spurs, the team where Hammon began her coaching career, are in a special place. The club has a bright young core despite placing close to the bottom of the standings.
Barkley remarked, “Hey, listen, that’s a really good job.” “If I’m not mistaken, you have two lottery picks, Victor Wembanyama, De’Aaron Fox, and (Stephon) Castle, who just won Rookie of the Year.”
Even though San Antonio only has a 6% chance of selecting first in this year’s draft, their future appears bright, as may Hammon’s if she is given the reigns.
The bottom line for Barkley is straightforward: Hammon deserves it. He underlined, “Gender is not the issue.” “The question is who can coach. Additionally, Becky Hammon is an excellent coach.
All eyes will be on whether a game-changing hire is finally in the works as the NBA summer heats up and coaching positions start to open up.
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