South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley confirmed she interviewed with the New York Knicks this summer when the NBA franchise was still searching for a replacement for Tom Thibodeau.
Though the Knicks eventually decided on Mike Brown as their next head coach, Staley, who felt she did "pretty well" in her interview, said she would've accepted the position.
"If the Knicks would've offered me the job, I would have had to do it," Staley told Candace Parker and Aliyah Boston on an episode of the "Post Moves" podcast Wednesday. "Not just for me. It's for women. Just to break open that (door).
"I would have had to. It's the New York Knicks. And I'm from Philly. But it's the freaking New York Knicks. And I said that in the interview."
Staley said she questioned the organization during her interview on whether it was fully prepared for the possible fallout of hiring a woman for the role. However, she believes those queries may have caused the Knicks to second-guess potentially appointing the Hall of Famer.
"You're going to be asked questions that you don't have to be asked if you hire a male coach," the 55-year-old added. "There's going to be the media, there's going to be all this stuff that you're going to have to deal with that you didn't have to deal with and don't have to deal with when you hire a male. And then that really got them to thinking, 'Shit, maybe she's right.' And then I felt the energy change after that.
"So I shot myself in the foot by being a leader, being inquisitive, and asking all those darn questions."
Staley first joined the Gamecocks in 2008 and has led South Carolina to three national titles since 2017. The two-time Associated Press Coach of the Year has taken the program to five straight Final Fours in March Madness and has also won nine SEC Tournaments at the helm.
Becky Hammon is the only woman to serve as acting head coach during an NBA game. Hammon was elevated from San Antonio Spurs assistant during a Dec. 30, 2020 game in which Gregg Popovich was ejected.
A year later, Hammon left the Spurs to take charge of the Las Vegas Aces - her first full-time head coaching job in any league. She won back-to-back WNBA titles in her first two seasons.
