Becky Hammon, a fan’s perspective
I’d like to take a moment to honor and congratulate my favorite WNBA player of all time, and simply one of my favorite athletes of all time, Becky Hammon. Yesterday, she got her first opportunity as a head coach in the NBA, a path which she always seemed destined for. I’ll never forget seeing her play at the start of her WNBA career. In 1999, my best friend Jessica and I purchased season tickets to see the New York Liberty for the first of 5 seasons to come. It was Becky’s rookie season, and honestly, I didn’t know anything about her. I remember one of the first times she entered the game, seeing this scrappy rookie who seemed to have unlimited energy and played harder than anyone. It didn’t matter that she was the smallest player on the court, she could drive to the hoop and score without fear as well as anyone. Think Allen Iverson. She was also a lethal 3-point shooter, ultimately one of the greatest of all-time, ranking on the list smothered between Hall of Famers and future Hall of Famers. Before long, Coach Richie Adubato couldn’t ignore her play and she forced her way into the starting lineup the following season. When she wasn’t starting, she was the ultimate sixth woman off the bench. As some of the original faces of the New York Liberty franchise started to see their careers wind down, such as Sue Wicks, Teresa Weatherspoon and Rebecca Lobo, who sadly was never fully able to recover from a horrible knee injury she suffered in the first 30 seconds of the opening game of the of the 1999 season, Becky Hammon, along with Crystal Robinson became the new faces of the franchise. Becky ultimately became one of the top scorers in the league, a top passer, a perennial All-Star and yearly member of the All-WNBA team. Above all else, it was clear from the very start that she had a court sense and awareness that was unmatched. She could see what others couldn’t. She understood the game in a way others simply could not. It’s what made her one of the best players in the league and one of the best players of all-time. It’s what makes her a great assistant coach, and it’s what will make her a great head coach, when that day finally arrives.
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You might know Becky Hammon, the former New York Liberty and San Antonio Silver Star. You might know her as the first female coach in the NBA. Unless you watched her play day in and day out, you can’t fully grasp the acute sense of awareness she had when she played the game, and understand why her path to coaching was laid out for her long ago. Similarly to other former great point guards like Jason Kidd, Mark Jackson and Doc Rivers, being the floor general paves the way for you into a career as a head coach. When I first heard she was hired by the Spurs as a coach, my immediate thought was “Of course, there is no one better they could have hired.” It felt like she was finally getting a break she deserved. No one is better at spotting untapped talent than Gregg Popovich. Many saw it as breaking barriers. Coach Pop saw a brilliant basketball mind he could tap into and needed on his staff. One day soon, Becky Hammon will be the first full-time female Head Coach in NBA history, a path she was always meant for. No one will be more deserving.
Congrats on breaking barriers Becky!
