Former Spurs Assistant Becky Hammon Wins WNBA Coach of the Year
Former San Antonio Spurs assistant and current Las Vegas Aces coach Becky Hammon has the 2022 WNBA Coach of the Year award in the her first year with the team, the league announced Friday.
Hammon - who led the Aces to a league-best 26-10 record this season and the No. 1 seed in the playoffs - becomes the first former WNBA player to win the award in her first season and the third former player to receive the honor.
Hammon set multiple milestones during her eight-year assistant coaching career with the Spurs. The first full-time female assistant coach in any of the four major North American sports, Hammon used her decorated basketball background to pave an inspirational pathway.
Now, after making a quiet exit from the Spurs prior to the team's Western Conference Play-In loss to the New Orleans Pelicans on April 13, Hammon, 45, is adding to her resume once again.
Hammon has deep roots with the Aces, as the franchise used to be the WNBA’s San Antonio Stars before relocating in 2018.
After going undrafted in 1999, Hammon played for the New York Liberty and in Spain before arriving in San Antonio in 2007. She played seven seasons in San Antonio, where she earned three of her six All-Star selections, two All-WNBA First Team selections, and the WNBA’s assist title in 2007, as she led the league with five assists per game.
Now in Vegas, Hammon will look to add even more accolades to her already storied career. The Aces swept their two-game series with the Phoenix Mercury in the first round on Saturday in a dominant 117-80 series-clinching win.
With the WNBA title in their sites, the team will take on the Seattle Storm in Game 1 of the second round on Sunday for a chance to be one step closer to glory.
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