The WNBA has long had an issue with having a much lower salary than their counterparts in the NBA and this is true for both the players and the coaches. However, it appears that the women’s professional basketball league is taking steps in the right direction in terms of salary amount.
One head coach for the league has finally broken through the one-million-dollar barrier in annual salaries. This head coach is none other than the Las Vegas Aces’ Becky Hammon who is currently in her second season as a head coach.
Hammon was hired as the head coach for the Las Vegas Aces prior to the start of the 2022 WNBA season. During her maiden season at the team’s helm, Hammon led the team to the Western Conference’s and the league’s best record of 26-10.
In the playoffs, Hammon’s team achieved a dominant record of 8-2 on their way to the franchise’s first-ever title.
The exact number of Becky Hammon’s salary is currently unknown but it is definitely above one million which is the most in the WNBA.
Before coaching in the WNBA, Becky Hammon had a fantastic career as a player in the same league. She went undrafted but signed a contract with the New York Liberty in 1999. Her career started off slow as she only played less than seven minutes per game averaging under three points, and under one assist. Despite the slow start, she showed steady improvement.
After eight seasons with the Liberty, she would be traded to the San Antonio Stars in 2007 where her career would really take off. In her first year with the team, she led the league in assists and contributed with 18.8 ppg and 5.0 apg. Her points per game average would also soar to 19.5 per game in the 2009 season which is the highest of her career.
She would play for the Stars until the 2014 season which was also when she retired from playing professionally. Her jersey was retired by the Stars afterward.
In 2014, Becky Hammon was hired as one of the San Antonio Spurs‘ assistants, becoming the second female to hold such a position in the NBA. In 2015, she was given the chance to coach the the Spurs Summer League squad, becoming the first woman to do so. That year, the Spurs won the Summer League title.
She also got the chance to coach in an NBA game after Gregg Popovich was ejected in a game against the LA Lakers. On 12th August 2023, she was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.
Surely, Becky Hammon has transformed all of her playing and coaching experience to become one of the best coaches in the WNBA today.
This content was originally published here.