LeBron James Advocates The Notion Of Female NBA Coaches

The face of the Cleveland Cavaliers, LeBron James, professed he would be in favor of being coached by a woman.

The NBA superstar was recently queried about San Antonio Spurs assistant coach Becky Hammon. During the interview, James told ESPN’s Dave McMenamin that basketball knowledge is the most crucial ingredient at the end of the day.

“I mean, if she knows what she’s doing, we’ll love it,” James said Thursday.

“I mean, listen, at the end of the day, basketball… it’s not about male or female. You know the game, you know the game.”

USA Today’s Scott Gleeson reported that Hammon was rumored to be a top candidate for a head coaching vacancy at Colorado State last month. However, the job was ultimately given to Niko Medved.

Kyle Newport of Bleacher Report is familiar with the fact that Hammon was hired by the Spurs in August of 2014. Upon it occurring, she became the first full-time assistant female coach the game has ever seen. Hammon, who attended Colorado State, was a six-time All-Star in the WNBA.

James elaborated on the significance of basketball knowledge alone when addressing the subject. In his talk with the media, he exhibited that players are held to the same standard, according to McMenamin.

“If you know the game, then everybody is accepting of that,” James said.

“It’s the same thing with players. You have different walks and shapes and lives of players, but if you can play, you can play. You always accept it. You can’t play, you can’t play. If you know the game, you’re always accepted. If you don’t know the game, it’s all about your knowledge of the game. It shouldn’t matter if you’re a male or a female.”

James’ equitable position on the idea of female NBA coaches says a lot about where the league is today. DJ Dunson of Yahoo Sports imparts that while Hammon is still the NBA’s only female coach, the league’s front office positions are occupied by many women.

Brett Bodner of the New York Daily News recollects an additional turning point for women. In his article, he remembers when Nancy Lieberman became the first female coach on a men’s professional team. In November of 2009, Lieberman coached the Texas Legends, an affiliate of the NBA Development League.

James continued to endorse the idea of women working in sports. Based on what the same ESPN report transcribes, the NBA veteran cited a noteworthy sideline reporter to further advance his argument.

“Listen, we have so many female reporters now that know the game and they cover the game,” James continued.

“I mean, you look at Doris Burke [Wednesday] night, she’s one of the greatest that we have in our game. She knows the game, so it doesn’t matter.”

Gleeson’s report communicated that Burke will be inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame later this year.

James did not stop there when it came to advocating the idea of women in sports. As reported by Sports Illustrated’s Jenna West, LeBron also noted that he considers it “cool” that the NFL employs female coaches.

While names like Hammon are not head coaches yet, their presence in sports is extremely important. What is just as critical is that guys like James entirely approve of being coached by a female one day.