Dawn Staley is ready to take her basketball expertise to the men’s game. Whether the men’s game is up for it remains to be seen.
Staley, who has won three national championships as the head coach of the University of South Carolina women’s basketball team, interviewed with the New York Knicks when the team was hiring a new head coach in 2025.
“I went through the process, like every candidate on their list,” she told Craig Melvin on the April 14 episode of his “Glass Half Full” podcast.
Staley was not offered the position. The Knicks announced in July 2025 that they hired former Sacramento Kings coach Mike Brown.
“I’ll say this, Craig, that they’re not ready,” she said. “No NBA team is ready for a female coach right now. Not one.”
She said the team would have to “prepare” for hiring a female coach.
“Culturally, you have to prepare for it,” she said, while explaining she made sure to inquire about how bringing her on would affect the entire organization.
“I did ask questions, like, ‘How would you hiring me impact your job on a daily basis?’ Because it would,” she said. “It would impact the media. It would impact the owner. ‘Why would you do such a thing?’ They have to take on more than the norm if they hire a male, and you have to prepare your franchise for that, not just your players.
“Of course they have to be in agreement that this is the best thing for the franchise. You have to get the GM is going to be asked questions that they’ve never been asked before, the president, the owner, all of the staff members. I think it would be a great thing though. I think, I think having a woman’s touch around any franchise is going to help culturally.”
Earlier in the conversation, Staley said she wasn’t open to coaching in the WNBA. She confirmed to Craig she’s more excited at the prospect of coaching in the NBA because she likes a challenge and enjoys having to “break down these barriers.”
“I did get excited about the Knicks job, more so than I ever have,” she said, adding that she previously interviewed for the Portland Trail Blazers head coaching job during the pandemic.
Staley said she wants to lay the groundwork for the day when a woman actually does get to coach an NBA team.
“I’m putting it out there so NBA franchises can get ready for a female coach. I might not be the one, but I’m letting people know that you have to prepare if you’re going to hire a female coach,” she said.
“You have to prepare. You can’t just hire the coach and then prepare, because it’ll be a rocky road for everybody … because they’re going to be they have to deal with things that they don’t normally have to deal with, because it’s a female head coach.”