Going from star basketball player to pro coach isn't unusual. The latest athlete making that leap is noteworthy, however. Becky Hammon of the San Antonio Stars, a 16-year WNBA veteran, next month starts a historic regular-season job as an assistant coach for the San Antonio Spurs. The 5-foot-6 point guard is the first woman to break through a "glass ceiling" that kept women out of the National Basketball Association’s full-time paid coaching ranks.

Just one other woman came close since the league began in 1946. Lisa Boyer served for less than a year as an unpaid assistant coach for the Cleveland Cavaliers. So Hammond's selection is a big deal. "The NBA is a risk-averse place. . . . Nobody was hiring a female coach because nobody had ever hired a female coach," writes ESPN columnist Kate Fagan, a former semi-pro player.

The 37-year-old Hammon says it's "silly" for anyone to think a woman can't coach NBA players. "When it comes to things of the mind -- things like coaching, game-planning, coming up with offensive and defensive schemes -- there's no reason why a woman couldn't be in the mix and shouldn't be in the mix."

Head coach says: "I'm confident her basketball IQ, work ethic and interpersonal skills will be a great benefit to the Spurs." – Gregg Popovich

NBA executive says: "I'm sure he [Coach Popovich] didn't hire her because she was a woman. I'm sure he hired her because she was the best person for the job." -- Nancy Lieberman, general manager of the Texas Legends minor league team and an ex-WNBA star

Teen player says: "I was surprised and happy at the same time, because she's a girl and she gets to help coach the boys. It's good." – Glorien Escalera of the Spurs Youth Basketball League in San Antonio