Becky Hammon hired as Las Vegas Aces coach in WNBA
Becky Hammon is a head coach for the first time.
The Colorado State basketball legend was named coach of the Las Vegas Aces of the WNBA on Friday afternoon.
Her deal will be a five-year contract that will make her the highest paid coach in the WNBA, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. She will replace current coach Bill Laimbeer.
“I am so excited to return to the WNBA and grateful for Mark Davis and Nikki Fargas having a vision for me to lead the Aces,” Hammon said in a news release from the Aces. “This is where I come from, and I wouldn’t be me without the W. I’m thrilled to be able to give back and lead this next group of women.”
WNBA free agency begins on Jan. 1.
Hammon's number was retired by the Aces last season. She never played for the team Las Vegas, but it was formerly the San Antonio Stars where Hammon excelled in the WNBA as a player.
“This is an exciting day for the Aces organization,” Las Vegas owner Mark Davis said in a news release. “From the moment I met Becky Hammon, I was hopeful that one day she would rejoin the family. I just never imagined it would happen this soon.”
She became the first woman to serve as an acting head coach in a regular season NBA game last year when she took over the San Antonio Spurs for Gregg Popovich after he was ejected from a game.
Hammon, who played for the Stars in the WNBA, has been part of the San Antonio Spurs' coaching staff since 2014 and was the first female full-time assistant coach in NBA history. She was promoted to a position coach on the front row of the bench alongside Popovich before the 2018-19 season.
She was a three-time All-American on the CSU women’s basketball team from 1995-99, and was also a six-time WNBA all-star. Hammon holds most scoring records in CSU women's program history, including career points, field goals and 3-pointers.
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The 44-year-old Hammon has interviewed for multiple NBA head coaching positions. CSU met with Hammon in 2018 about its vacant men's basketball head coaching position, but she wasn't interested in the college job.
She was inducted in the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame in 2015.
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This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Becky Hammon named the Las Vegas Aces coach in WNBA
