A Matter of When, Not If, Becky Hammon Becomes NBA's First Female Head Coach
*By Max Godnick*
The last person to break glass in the NBA was [Shaquille O'Neal](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p3MTNj7z5dQ), 25 years ago.
Becky Hammon, an assistant coach for the San Antonio Spurs, could be the next.
Hammon interviewed this week to be the head coach of the Milwaukee Buck. A six-time WNBA All-Star, Hammon was the first woman to be an NBA assistant coach and has served on Spurs' Coach Gregg Popovich's staff since 2014. If she were hired by the Bucks, she would be the first woman to coach a men's team in any of the country's four biggest sports leagues ー the NBA, NFL, Major League Baseball, and NHL.
Popovich told [The New Yorker] (https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/04/16/how-far-can-becky-hammon-go-in-the-nba) in April that he believes his assistant is "ready" to lead her own team.
Hammon is up against other, more-experienced candidates for the Bucks job, including the 2015 NBA coach of the year, Mike Budenholzer. Though most NBA pundits think her chances of being hired are slim, the fact that Hammon is being considered may represent progress for gender equality in professional sports, said James Yoder, the founder of Chat Sports.
"It would be a monumental move in sports history for her to get that job," said Yoder in an interview Thursday with Cheddar.
The Bucks will probably not hire Hammon, Yoder said, but it's a matter of when, not if a woman breaks the NBA's glass ceiling, and it's likely to be Hammon.
"I think before too long, maybe one or two seasons, she will end up landing an NBA coaching job," he said.
Yoder added: "Any woman who thought that she couldn't break into men's sports from a coaching perspective has got to be rooting for Becky Hammon."
For the full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/the-nba-makes-herstory-with-first-female-head-coach-interview).
Michael Jenkins gives his picks for the final week of the NFL regular season while Joe Osborne dishes out his insight for how to approach a week where some teams choose to sit out their star players. Meanwhile, Austin Mock explains his strategy for selecting a winner in the national title game between Georgia and Alabama.
Sponsored by BetMGM
It's no secret tech giant Amazon has a mission of becoming a major player in sports media, and the company is poised to make progress on that goal in 2022. Amazon Prime Video will be the exclusive home to Thursday Night Football for the 2022-23 NFL season. In December, the New York Post reported that Amazon is in the beginning stages of developing studio sports programs, and hopes to soon have a full daily lineup of sports shows. Front Office Sports senior reporter A.J. Perez joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
The seven-time Pro Bowler Antonio Brown thrust himself into the spotlight again after an on-field meltdown against the New York jets that ended with him pulling off his jersey and exiting the field at MetLife Stadium, leading his Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians to say that Brown was "no longer a buc." Sports commentator and former quarterback Lester Ricard Jr. joined Cheddar's "Closing Bell" to discuss the troubled star's latest actions as well as his checkered past few years in and around the league. "About three or four years ago, Antonio Brown, his career was trending towards a Hall of Famer, one of the best wide receivers of all time," said Ricard Jr. "I don't know if he's self-imploding or whatever's going on with him." Ricard went on to speculate about a specific hit Brown may have taken years back he felt could have led to the current behavior.
Sports betting is going mainstream in the United States. Dozens of states have legalized it, California is set to do the same this year. Arizona, which legalized sports betting in September, set new national records for gambling in its first months. Daniel Graetzer, CEO of Maximbet, joins Cheddar News to discuss what's next for the booming industry.
There is a new player in the mobile app stock trading space.
Zingeroo recently announced a funding round of $8.5 million. The company says it aims to bring 'friendly competition' to stock trading, by literally breaking trading down into daily and weekly competitions between friends. Zingeroo also says it hopes its new approach can make trading more accessible, educational, and social than ever before. Zingeroo co-founder and CEO Zoe Barry joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell for more.
Back in July of 2021, the NCAA announced a new policy in favor of allowing student-athletes to be given the chance to gain income through endorsement deals as well as public appearances. The Name, Image, and Likeness policy have found great appreciation among athletes who now can grow their businesses without having to sacrifice their playing eligibility. However, some critics believe this new policy could cause some chaos in the locker room. Sports Reporter at the Wall Street Journal Laine Higgins, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
Chris Vannini, National College Football Reporter for The Athletic, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where he breaks down the complications COVID-19 is having on college bowl season, with five games cancelled as of Thursday.
Eric Mitchell, sports analyst and co-founder & head of media relations at Lifeflip Media joins Cheddar News to discuss how covid-19 is impacting pro sports.
