Hammon intervened with 3:56 remaining in the second quarter in the Spurs game against the Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers continued to win the game 121-107.
“Obviously, it’s a big deal. It’s a substantial moment,” Hammon told reporters. “I was part of this organization. I was traded here in 2007 (when I was in the WNBA), so I was in San Antonio and I’m part of the Spurs and Stars sports organization and everything for 13 years. So I invested a lot of time and they invested a lot of time in me to build and improve me.
“Honestly, at the moment, I was just trying to win the game. I say that a lot, but I try not to think about the huge image and its huge appearance, because it can get overwhelming. It’s my job to get in there to be focused for those guys and make sure I help them do the things that will help us win.
“I really didn’t have time to think. I didn’t look at the phone, so I have no idea what’s going on outside the AT&T Center tonight.”
Hammon said she did not enter the arena, thinking she would be put in the role of head coach, “but that’s how things go and you go with her,” she said. “I would have liked a different result. Overall, I would have liked to get a victory tonight more than anything.”
Popovich will be credited as head coach in official statistics, but it was a historic moment. As for how Hammon found out he would take Popovich’s place? “He officially pointed at me,” she said. “That was. He said, “You took them.”
Hammon, a six-time WNBA All-Star in his 16-year playing career, was the first full-time assistant coach in NBA history when he was hired by Spurs in 2014. He previously coached Spurs during the summer. . League, which takes place during the off-season.
Hammon is again nominated for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame for the class of 2021. Before Wednesday’s game, Popovich was asked about it, as well as his thoughts on Hammon’s playing days and coaching career.
“Obviously, I think her skills hired her. It all started when I saw her play,” Popovich said.
“She was a leader, everyone on the team reacted to her, she was very confident, very competitive and she led the whole show. And when we met her and she was at our coaches’ meetings before she was hired, while she was she was hurt for a season, I learned about her skill for the game, her innate understanding of what she wins, what she loses, what she needs to be there to make a program.
“So he has all the tools to be a coach in our league.”
Dejounte Murray, the Spurs goalkeeper, said after the match: “The future is bright for her. I hope she clings to him and doesn’t give up. One day it may happen, it may not happen, who knows, but with safety is on the right track. I think everyone here appreciates it … She sets an example for every woman there. “