Popovich: Hammon earned coaching shot, wasn't hired to make history

San Antonio Spurs bench boss Gregg Popovich wasn't shocked to see assistant Becky Hammon become the first woman to serve as an NBA head coach Wednesday.

Popovich, whose second-quarter ejection cleared the way for Hammon to take over coaching duties against the Los Angeles Lakers, said the WNBA legend merited the opportunity thanks to her work.

"It's been business as usual from the beginning. We didn't hire Becky to make history," Popovich said Friday, according to Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times. "She earned it. She is qualified. She's wonderful at what she does.

"I wanted her on my staff because of the work she does. And she happens to be a woman, which basically should be irrelevant, but it's not in our world, as we've seen as it's been so difficult for women to obtain certain positions."

Hammon joined the Spurs ahead of the 2014-15 season and has worked as an assistant on Popovich's staff since. She was named the head coach of the franchise's Summer League squad in July 2015, becoming the first woman bench boss in the competition's history, and led the team to the title.

The former All-Star called her head coaching debut a "substantial moment" but lamented that San Antonio ultimately fell short against Los Angeles.

Popovich believes Hammon is ready for a permanent head coaching role, potentially opening up similar opportunities for other women in the league.

"There's no reason why somebody like Becky and other women can't be coaches in the NBA," he said. "On a larger scale, that's why it wasn't a big deal to me - because I know her. And I know her skills, and I know her value, and I know her future is very, very bright.

"I understand the attention it got, but in all honesty, I assumed that most people already knew that she was qualified to be a head coach in the NBA."