Are There Any Female Coaches In The NBA?

There are a number of successful female coaches in the NBA. Here are some of the most notable ones.

The current state of female coaches in the NBA

As of the 2019-2020 season, there are no full-time female head coaches in the NBA. There are, however, a number of female assistant coaches working throughout the league. Becky Hammon became the first full-time female assistant coach in NBA history when she was hired by the San Antonio Spurs in 2014. Since then, more women have been hired as assistants, but no woman has been hired as a head coach.

The lack of female head coaches in the NBA is part of a larger trend in professional sports. In general, women are underrepresented in coaching roles at all levels of sport. This is often attributed to a number of factors, including gender bias and discrimination, the “good old boy” network, and a lack of opportunities for women to get hired into coaching roles.

Despite the lack of female head coaches in the NBA, there is hope that this will change in the future. In recent years, there have been calls for more diversity in professional sports coaching ranks, and some progress has been made in other leagues like the NFL and MLB. It is possible that we will see more women hired as head coaches in the NBA in the years to come.

The history of female coaches in the NBA

The first female assistant coach in the NBA was Becky Hammon, who was hired by the San Antonio Spurs in 2014. Hammon retired from her playing career in the WNBA in 2013.

In 2015, Nancy Lieberman became the first female assistant coach for the Sacramento Kings. Lieberman is also a two-time Olympian and a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame.

In 2018, the Spurs again made history by hiring Lindsey harding as an assistant coach, making her the first black woman to be an assistant coach in the NBA.

The future of female coaches in the NBA

In recent years, the NBA has made a concerted effort to diversify its coaching ranks, with mixed results. In 2014, the league hired Becky Hammon as an assistant coach for the San Antonio Spurs, making her the first full-time female coach in league history. But since then, only one other woman has joined an NBA coaching staff: Nancy Lieberman, who was hired as an assistant by the Sacramento Kings in 2015.

The lack of female coaches in the NBA is due in part to the fact that there are so few women with experience coaching men’s professional basketball. But that could begin to change in the coming years, as more and more women gain experience at the lower levels of men’s basketball. Here are a few names to keep an eye on as potential future head coaches in the NBA:

Jennifer Gillom: Gillom is currently an assistant coach for the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA. She also served as head coach of the Mercury from 2007 to 2009, and has been an assistant coach for several NBA teams, including the Minnesota Timberwolves, Los Angeles Lakers and Houston Rockets.

Kristi Toliver: Toliver is currently an assistant coach for the Washington Wizards. She also played 10 seasons in the WNBA, winning a championship with the Los Angeles Sparks in 2016.

Lindsay Gottlieb: Gottlieb is currently head coach of UC Berkeley’s women’s basketball team. She has led Berkeley to seven NCAA tournament appearances in her eight seasons at the helm.