One of the more intriguing subplots of the Portland Trail Blazers’ recent head coaching search was the potential candidacy of San Antonio Spurs assistant Becky Hammon.
Many thought that this opening might finally be the one that’d usher in a historical hire – the first female head coach in NBA history.
Of course, that didn’t end up happening. The job wound up going to Chauncey Billups – leading to a series of controversial tweets from Damian Lillard that may or may not have serious ramifications down the line.
Shortly after Billups got the job, reports began to surface that the Spurs had been the ones that ultimately cost Hammon her opportunity with the Blazers. Apparently, they weren’t very complimentary of her abilities.
This week, Hammon addressed everything that had transpired over the past month and change.
“I’m not mad,” Hammon told Jabari Parker of CNBC in regards to losing the Blazers job.
Confirms what everyone already knew. https://t.co/7gCpCMD7I1
— Game 7 (@game7__) July 6, 2021
“This is the business, and it’s a very competitive business. But, at the end of the day, throw everything out the window — if you want to hire me, you’ll find a reason to hire me. And if you don’t want to hire me, you’ll find that reason, too. And that’s just that.”
The Blazers took a big PR hit by hiring Billups. It will be interesting to see if it ultimately pays dividends down the line. If it doesn’t, then there are currently four teams circling the waters – praying for the opportunity to pry Lillard away in some sort of trade.
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Jennifer Withers Hoey is a former Business Development Manager who transitioned to writing about sports. With valuable connections all over the West Coast, she has used those contacts to break some of the most interesting stories pertaining to the Portland Trail Blazers, Oregon Ducks, LA Lakers, LA Clippers, Seattle Supersonics (RIP), and more.
