Hammon became the first full-time female assistant coach in NBA history, joining the San Antonio Spurs.
On July 13, 2014, the San Antonio Spurs announced that Becky Hammon would join Gregg Popovich's coaching staff, making her the first full-time female assistant coach in NBA history. This was also considered the first full-time female coaching position in any of the four major North American men's professional sports leagues — NBA, NFL, MLB, and NHL.
Hammon's hiring came directly after her retirement from a decorated 16-year WNBA playing career, during which she was a six-time All-Star. Popovich, one of the most respected coaches in NBA history, had mentored Hammon informally during her recovery from a torn ACL, and her basketball IQ impressed him enough to offer her a full-time position on his staff.
The hire was a watershed moment for gender barriers in men's professional sports coaching. It opened the door for serious consideration of women in high-level coaching roles previously considered the exclusive province of men, and it set a precedent that other NBA teams and other leagues would eventually follow. Hammon's success in this role — she quickly became a trusted lead assistant — helped dismantle stereotypes about women's capacity to coach at the highest levels of men's professional sports and paved the way for further milestones in her own career and for other women entering the coaching pipeline.