One of the greatest figures in Women's Basketball will now be coaching in the sport's highest level.
Naismith Hall of Famer and highly decorated hoops star Nancy Lieberman was formally hired by the Sacramento Kings to join George Karl in the bench of the state capital as its new Assistant Coach.
Before Friday's announcement, The Sacramento Bee reported Thursday that Kings Vice President Vlade Divac has high interest in adding Lieberman in their coaching staff.
"Definitely I'm going to offer her a job," Vlade Divac told the Bee. "George (Karl) and I talked about bringing her back after she helped us at Summer League (in Las Vegas). She was terrific. She brings a different dimension. I think is a nice opportunity for her."
Lieberman, nicknamed "Lady Magic," is the second full-time female NBA Assistant Coach, following her fellow Women's NBA (WNBA) legend Becky Hammon who made history last year after being hired by the San Antonio Spurs.
"Becky opened up a lot of doors even for myself, with what the Spurs did and then with her success at the summer league," Lieberman shared in a report by the Associated Press. "What Becky did was very, very important for everybody. With that said, I love this game, I've been around the game for 40 years. I'm qualified."
Fifty-seven-year-old Lieberman was regarded as the first woman to coach a professional men's basketball team, working as coach of the Detroit Legends in 2009 where she also became the assistant general manager two years later. She also previously served as coach and general manager for the WNBA Detroit Shock.
A two-time Olympian, three-time All-American and two-time National Collegiate Champion for Old Dominion, she was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1996 and in the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 1999.
Lieberman was also part of the WNBA 1997 inaugural season where she was drafted by the Phoenix Mercury, becoming the league's oldest player at 39. She then broke her own record in 2008 when she played one game for the Shock at age 50.
A native of Brooklyn, New York, Lieberman will be bringing to Sacramento her basketball experience to help improve the Kings and provide stability to the team that has not only seen three head coaching changes in one year but is also coming from a rugged 29-53 win-loss season.
Along with Lieberman, the Sacramento Kings also added Chad Iske as associate head coach and John Welch and Anthony Carter as assistants, the AP added.
