Dawn Staley gets real about female NBA coaches 

The New York Knicks were looking for a new head coach over the summer. One of the leading candidates for the job was Dawn Staley.

Staley is three-time NCAA Division I tournament champion head coach. As well as a four-time Naismith Coach of the Year winner.

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Despite being in the running for the Knicks’ head coaching position, she lost out to Mike Brown. According to Staley, she doesn’t believe the NBA will see a female head coach for a long time.

“If I’m the Knicks coach and you have a five-game losing streak, it’s not going to be about the losing streak, it’s going to be about being a female coach,” Staley explained.

“So you, as an organization and a franchise, have to be prepared for that and strong enough to endure those types of instances when you’re going to hire a female coach.

“If there are NBA franchises that are interested in hiring a female… you’ve got to be ready to take on that and all the things that it comes with,” she added.

Staley also said that she doesn’t believe she’ll see a female NBA head coach in her lifetime. Hopefully, she is wrong.

About the Author Published Oct 16, 2025

TITAN FREY

Titan Frey is a dedicated father to three wonderful children, whom he takes immense pride in. His passions include reading, writing, basketball, both playing and watching, and playing chess. Titan spent five years working as a journalist for the basketball website fadeawayworld.net, where he served as editor-in-chief for four and a half years. One of his most notable achievements was interviewing Chuck Cooper III, the son of Chuck Cooper, the first African American ever drafted by an NBA team, and writing a biography that has been praised as the most definitive article about Cooper’s legacy. Titan is the author of more than ten novels and the screenwriter of three produced short films. His newest young adult novel, Echoes of the Hardwood: Braxton Foxworthy’s Time‑Travelling Book Report, blends basketball history with heartfelt storytelling and is now available. Order here: https://a.co/d/bo7BYz1