Andraya Carter pitches Becky Hammon, Dawn Staley as potential NBA head coaches

A woman has yet to serve as the head coach of an NBA franchise, but ESPN’s Andraya Carter thinks that could change soon. The basketball analyst named several current coaches that she believes could be the first to lead a professional men’s basketball coaching staff, telling SiriusXM NBA Radio’s David Shepard that Becky Hammon, Dawn Staley, and Niele Ivey stand out most.

“There’s a few, you mentioned Becky Hammon. Dawn Staley, she’s been very open about the Knicks position and interviewing for that at one point. Those are two top, top coaches that I would be very interested in, whether or not they end up getting an opportunity on the men’s side. Niele Ivey is [another] one, that I have my eye on at Notre Dame. … If that would be an opportunity she would be interested in. … Those would probably be my top 3,” Carter said on the air.

Hammon is the current head coach of the WNBA’s Las Vegas Aces. Most recently, she helped them become the second team in WNBA history to win three championships in four years. Staley, who coached Aces superstar A’ja Wilson at South Carolina, is in her 18th season at the helm of the Gamecocks women’s basketball program. And Ivey became the ninth woman to serve on an NBA coaching staff when the Memphis Grizzlies hired her in 2019.

The list didn’t stop there for Carter, either. She proceeded to shout out several other candidates, including Los Angeles Lakers assistant coach Lindsey Harding.

“Obviously Kara Lawson, has experience with the Boston Celtics. She’s now doing a great job at Duke, so, when I think about some crossover there. Lindsay Gottlieb had some experience in the NBA, now at USC. … Off the top of my head, some of the first names that come to mind…Lindsey Harding…was an outstanding player herself. We could see her at some point, leading an NBA or men’s college basketball team,” Carter added. “Who knows?”

While it’s unknown who the first woman to lead an NBA staff will be, Carter doesn’t think there’s any shortage of quality choices. It will seemingly just come down to the right opportunity opening up at the right time.

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