Adam Silver says there will be female head coach in NBA 'sooner rather than later'

He said that it's 'on me to sort of ensure that it happens sooner rather than later'

NBA commissioner Adam Silver told ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk that it won’t be long before a woman becomes a head coach in the league, and he sees it as his responsibility to make sure it happens. From ESPN:

“There definitely will,” Silver said when asked about a woman becoming an NBA head coach. “And I think it is on me to sort of ensure that it happens sooner rather than later.”

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Silver disputed recent comments made by WFAN radio host Mike Francesa, who sparked controversy when he stated that a woman has no shot at being a head coach of a pro men’s team.

“First of all, let me say that I disagree that there will not be a woman head coach in the NBA,” Silver said. “It is hard to say exactly when [it will happen]. There are three women currently in the pipeline, and I think like we have seen in all other aspects of life, while there are certain cases for example, the athletes that participate in the NBA, there are obvious physical differences between men and women and those differences are why we have a men’s league and a women’s league.

“But on the other hand when it comes to coaching, when there is absolutely no physical requirement, when it is not a function of how high you can jump or how strong you are, there is no physical litmus test to being a head coach in the league, there is absolutely no reason why a woman will not ascend to be a head coach in this league. We are very focused in on it.”

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“It is just a question of ensuring that we have more women in the pipeline, that is one of the critically important issues,” Silver said. “In the old days, almost virtually all of our head coaches were former NBA players, and that’s obviously no longer the case now. That used to be another barrier to entry.

“Long before people asked about women being head coaches, people said would it be possible for someone who hadn’t played in the NBA to be a head coach. Of course we are seeing that, so we have broken another barrier there. I do think there are things that the league can and should be doing to accelerate the move toward a woman being a head coach in the league.”

The most obvious candidate here is San Antonio Spurs coach Becky Hammon, who recently turned down University of Florida women’s basketball team job because she wants to stay in the NBA. Hammon, one of the best players in WNBA history, has been with the Spurs since 2014 and had spent time with the coaching staff before that in an unofficial capacity. Nancy Lieberman, another women’s basketball legend, has been a member of the Sacramento Kings coaching staff since last season and also spent two years as the head coach of the NBA D-League’s Texas Legends. Natalie Nakase, the Los Angeles Clippers video coordinator, wants to be a head coach, too. 

Silver’s comments come from an interview meant to promote the NBA’s partnership with Leanin.org for a gender equality campaign. He also said that the league “will be looking very hard at dramatically increasing the representation of women in our officiating ranks.” This is a welcome change, and it should extend to every part of the league, including front offices.