Gotta hand it to her — 5’6” undrafted guard, made it big in pro ball in the U.S. and internationally, already coached a men’s summer league to a championship. If she’s a fit for an NBA team, give her a shot. Definitely not a PC quota hire; she’d get the job on merit.
She has not spent the time coaching at any level and should not be considered for an NBA post due to her lack of experience and resume. She was hired by San Antonio as an assistant in 2014, so she has only 3 to 4 years as a pro assistant. She may have played a number of years with a talent for scoring in the WAC conference. but that doesn’t make for a head coach in the NBA where the game is far different with its physicality and mental demand than almost any basketball league like it in the world.
Winning a championship in a summer league is like NFL pre-season games. They don’t mean anything and the teams are working with players on certain parts of their game to develop them. Winning in that league is not part of the plan. Getting players prepared for the NBA roster by teaching them new thoughts and player actions and conditioning are. She was there to teach, not to win.
So being a player in a sport does not necessarily make someone a coach. Learning how to spot players mistakes, mental problems, and their ability to conform to the team play aspects required takes years of practice and instruction at the NBA level. This is why so few successful coaches come out of the players ranks in the NBA. The two teams that have produced successful coaches most in the NBA are Boston and Los Angeles. Coaches from those two teams are taught about thinking the game and not just playing it, And that’s at the highest level.
I wish her well. But if she enters the coaching ranks with her gender being forefront in the hiring process and fails, she will put back the option of hiring qualified women as head coaches in the NBA for years. And there are many out there that would be qualified with a couple of years in the NBA as an assistant. But they are coming out of high profile college programs and most wouldn’t want it as they are well taken care of in their position. And most of those have been coaching at their position for over 30 years or are retired. Why would they want the headache?
rwood