WNBA Champion, Colorado State Ram Becky Hammon recognized as legendary figure in basketball
Las Vegas Aces head coach Becky Hammon has won her second professional title as a head coach, leaving people on the campus of Colorado State University continuously in awe of her accomplishments. Hammon, an alumni of CSU in the 1990s, has seen success at every level of basketball she has participated in.
That once again was evident when then her WNBA team won a back-to-back championship title Wednesday night.
"It is really cool that she won her second NBA title," said Ryun Williams, head coach of the CSU women's basketball team.
Williams said Hammon's ability to succeed on and off the court has proven she is a legendary CSU Ram.
"She is a stalwart ram. She is an epitome of what a ram is," Williams said. "You can be a all American here at Colorado State. You can be an Olympian. You can be an NBA assistant. She can run a fortune 500 company, that is how special she is."
Hammon served as an assistant coach on the NBA's San Antonio Spurs, the only female assistant coach at the time. She then was promoted to head coach of the Las Vegas Aces.
Williams said he uses her retired number and banner in the rafters of Moby Arena when he recruits.
"Every single recruit we bring on campus and walk into Moby arena, we have them look at that. This is where this place can take you," Williams said.
Hammon has been named as a finalist for previous NBA head coaching positions in recent years. Many, including Williams, have said they believe she will become the first woman to serve as an NBA head coach if she wants to.
"She is someone who has grinded for everything she earned. She had failures, she had successes. But she stayed the course and showed grit throughout all of it. For anybody, young girl or young boy, that is what a leader is," Williams said. "She is a winner at winning. Whatever she sets her mind to she is going to win at it. We are proud of Becky, we are glad she is a Ram, and we hope more people follow in her footsteps."
