Dawn Staley was among the many names the New York Knicks were considering to replace Tom Thibodeau. However, despite being one of the most successful college basketball coaches in the last two decades, she could not make the cut. Former Sacramento Kings head coach Mike Brown was chosen as the Knicks’ next head coach.
Staley could have become the first female head coach in the NBA’s history, setting a precedent. But would the two-time national championship-winning coach ever consider coaching in the WNBA, which would have been an easier precedent? Candace Parker asked Staley this question on her podcast ‘Post Moves‘ with Aliyah Boston. To this, Staley replied,
“No. I don’t wanna coach in the WNBA. I could have coached in the WNBA a long time ago. That really isn’t my passion. My true passion is young people, like preparing the young people for the WNBA because I want the WNBA to be around for a long time.”
For now, Staley wants to continue nurturing more talents like ‘Aliyah Boston’ as fine WNBA-ready products. But that doesn’t mean that she has no big ambitions either.
“I want ownership. I want to Own. I don’t want to be a coach. Coach is just a part of the process. I want to be in the room helping to make decisions on how you put a product on the floor, how you get it to the community, how you get people in the stands. That’s the sweat equity that I want but I want that as an owner.”
Now, with the WNBA expanding rapidly into several cities, it’s a great chance for Staley to explore ownership opportunities. Perhaps, it’s a safe bet to even expect Staley as a WNBA team owner a few years down the line.
Dawn Staley would have taken the offer to become the Knicks’ head coach
Despite winning two Natties and keeping an 81.2 per cent win rate for the South Carolina Gamecocks, Dawn Staley still didn’t make it to the final cut of the Knicks’ head coaching role. But when Candace Parker asked if Staley would have taken that role, she agreed in a jiffy.
““If the Knicks would have offered me the job, I would have had to do it. Not just for me, it’s for women, just to break open that. It’s the New York Knicks, and I’m from Philly, but it’s the freaking New York Knicks,” Staley said (47:50)
But she says that the NBA is still not quite ready for a female head coach. She also revealed how she saw the opportunity slip from her hand. When she asked the Knicks management how they would deal with the media fire and questions coming in after hiring her, they immediately had second thoughts.
Perhaps some team might have to set the precedent that way in the league for such changes to be considered.
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