In a recent interview with ESPN's Ramona Shelburne, newly-appointed Sacramento Kings assistant Lindsey Harding revealed some of the issues women coaches face in today's NBA.
In the past, players might have felt a certain way about having a female coach. Nowadays, though, more and more women are being added to the coaching ranks of NBA teams (San Antonio's Becky Hammon, Dallas' Jenny Boucek, Natalie Nakse of the L.A. Clippers, Washington's Kristi Toliver, Boston's Kara Lawson and Chicago's Karen Stack Umlauf).
Harding, who played at Duke and in the WNBA, says coaching men isn't the issue at all. In fact, she says the guys in the NBA respect the women in leadership roles. The concern, she says, lies in “the unknown:”
“I think if you speak to any other woman that is coaching here, they would say the same thing about the players,” Harding told ESPN. “They've been fantastic. The players have never been the issue. I guess it's just being afraid of the unknown.
“Because you can't say we don't know basketball when you have someone who has played in the WNBA or played professionally [overseas] for years, you can't really say that.”
Harding, who signed with the Kings on Friday, has earned the respect of the players she has mentored. While serving on the Sixers' bench last season, she developed close relationships with T.J. McConnell, Tobias Harris and Jimmy Butler.
“The question is always, ‘Will the guys respect you? Can [women] coach men?' But when you get [to the NBA], the guys aren't the problem at all. That's the most fun part,” Harding said.
“The moment you talk to any guy that plays [in the NBA], you say hi, here's who I am and what I've done, I've played [in the WNBA] or coached [in college], there's an automatic respect,” Harding added. “It was as if I'd been an NBA player.”
Sacramento finished the 2018-19 regular season campaign with a 39-43 overall record, which left the team out of playoff contention. Hopefully, with their offseason changes, the Kings will be in the hunt.
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