Kings to hire Nancy Lieberman as second female NBA assistant coach

Sam Amick | USA TODAY Sports

The Sacramento Kings have agreed to hire Nancy Lieberman as an assistant coach, a person with knowledge of the deal confirmed to USA TODAY Sports. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because the agreement had not yet been announced.

In a late-night text message to USA TODAY Sports, Lieberman called Thursday, "a crazy, wonderful day." For at least the past year, Lieberman had been interested in joining an NBA team as a coach and has worked at high-profile camps last summer instructing NBA players.

Lieberman announced her partnership with the Kings on Twitter, and she now will become the second full-time female assistant coach in the history of the NBA. San Antonio Spurs assistant Becky Hammon became the first woman to carry that torch last summer, when head coach Gregg Popovich made the choice to add her to his staff. This summer, Hammon became the first woman to coach an NBA summer league team, guiding the Spurs to the Las Vegas league title.

But the 57-year-old Lieberman has been doing her part to blaze this trail for years. She was the head coach of the Dallas Mavericks' D-League team, the Texas Legends, from 2009-11 and later served as assistant general manager for a year. That hire marked the first time a woman had coached a men's team in the NBA.

At 39, Lieberman played for the Phoenix Mercury during the WNBA's inaugural season in 1997. She was the oldest player in WNBA history. The next year, she was named head coach and general manager of the then-Detroit Shock. After three seasons with the Shock, she left to work at ESPN.

In July 2008, at 50 years old, Lieberman signed a seven-day contract with the Shock and played in one game, surpassing her own previous mark as the oldest player in league history.

Lieberman was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1996. She will join Kings head coach and longtime friend George Karl in Sacramento.

(Contributing: Jeff Zillgitt, USA TODAY Sports)

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