Report: NBA Team Could Interview Woke Women's College Coach for Head Coaching Job
One NBA executive thinks the Dallas Mavericks could interview a successful women’s basketball coach for their vacant head coaching position.
According to KDFW-TV, University of South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Dawn Staley’s name has surfaced in rumors regarding the Mavericks’ job.
But Staley once said that men should play in women’s sports.
“I’m of the opinion that if you’re a woman, you should play,” Staley said in a 2024 news conference. “If you consider yourself a woman and you want to play sports, or vice versa, you should be able to play.”
The Gamecocks coach made that comment on the eve of the 2024 women’s national championship game against the Iowa Hawkeyes. South Carolina went on to defeat Iowa and star guard Caitlin Clark 87-75.
During a championship celebration a few days later, Gamecocks star center Kamilla Cardoso refused to address her coach’s comments.
Neither Staley nor Cardsso had to compete against men during their championship run.
Staley, in fact, has coached the Gamecocks to three national championships in her 18 seasons at South Carolina. At no point did her players compete against men.
Now, however, she might end up coaching them.
Of course, it is important to note that the Staley-to-Dallas rumor started with a rival executive. That executive, however, had good reasons to speculate.
For instance, Staley would not be the first female to interview for an NBA head coaching job. In fact, as general manager of the Toronto Raptors in 2023, new Mavericks President Masai Ujiri interviewed head coach Becky Hammon of the WNBA’s Las Vegas Aces, per KDFW.
Moreover, Staley herself once interviewed for the New York Knicks head coaching job.
No female has ever served as head coach of an NBA franchise.
Based on their recent on-court performance, the Mavericks do need a jolt of some kind.
In 2023-24, a talent-laden Dallas squad lost the NBA Finals to the Boston Celtics, led by Finals MVP Jaylen Brown and devout Roman Catholic head coach Joe Mazzulla.
The following season, however, the Mavericks shocked the sports world by trading superstar guard Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for center Anthony Davis, widely regarded as an elite defensive player.
“I believe that defense wins championships,” then-Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison said at the time, per ESPN. “I believe that getting an All-Defensive center and an All-NBA player with a defensive mindset gives us a better chance. We’re built to win now and in the future.”
The 2025-26 Mavericks finished 26-56 and in 12th place in the Western Conference.
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