The unusual path of new Raptors assistant coach Brittni Donaldson

[Johnny Bball]

Iowa has no NBA team. Lots of Iowans root for the nearby Bulls and Timberwolves. Jeff Donaldson grew up on the 1980s Celtics and raised his daughter a Boston fan. They watched the Celtics together on League Pass, delighting in Tommy Heinsohn's throaty homerism.

That's it. Fire the lady.

[Jadoogar]

Hope she gets a shot to be a head coach. It's cool to see these women starting to really break some barriers here

SHe might someday, but i'm guessing someone like Becky Hammon is first in line. Also wtf, only 26. How many assistant coaches are that young.

[Johnny Fontane]

Good looking gal too. Wouldn't be shocked if Raptor players shoot their shot at her

This is why it's so hard for women to get ahead. No respect for her accomplishments, just care about her appearance

So now complimenting a woman's appearance counts as being sexist?

[Jadoogar]

Good looking gal too. Wouldn't be shocked if Raptor players shoot their shot at her

This is why it's so hard for women to get ahead. No respect for her accomplishments, just care about her appearance

So now complimenting a woman's appearance counts as being sexist?

It's just a dumb unnecessary comment. No one comments on Daryl Morey or Frank Vogel's looks.

[Johnny Fontane]

Good looking gal too. Wouldn't be shocked if Raptor players shoot their shot at her

Lame.

It's a joke post lol. I'm sure teams maintain a clean, professional working environment especially if a woman as young as she is gets hired

[MrDollarBills]

Good looking gal too. Wouldn't be shocked if Raptor players shoot their shot at her

This is why it's so hard for women to get ahead. No respect for her accomplishments, just care about her appearance

So now complimenting a woman's appearance counts as being sexist?

Context matters. Complimenting a woman's appearance on the surface isn't a sexist act.

However, the topic is about her skills as an analytics guru and how she has gone on to become an assistant coach because of it, not about her appearance or if Raptors players want to bang her.

So I would say yes, your comment was pretty damn sexist.

[Johnny Fontane]

This is why it's so hard for women to get ahead. No respect for her accomplishments, just care about her appearance

So now complimenting a woman's appearance counts as being sexist?

It's just a dumb unnecessary comment. No one comments on Daryl Morey or Frank Vogel's looks.

Whatever guy lol

[MrDollarBills]

"Range" has me thinking about all the truly unusual paths we'll see into the NBA. Diverse thinkers and perspectives will be the new edge in the NBA.

Getting ideas and opinions from qualified voices that generally go unheard or are prevented from having access to opportunity due to gender is like raiding a treasure chest. the more teams see others reaping the benefits of it the more it will become commonplace.

All it takes is for forward thinkers that are in a position of authority that can open up doors of opportunity, like Popovich and Ujiri, to get the ball rolling.

[Duffman100]

Good looking gal too. Wouldn't be shocked if Raptor players shoot their shot at her

Lame.

It's a joke post lol. I'm sure teams maintain a clean, professional working environment especially if a woman as young as she is gets hired

But it's not funny. Every time a woman is brought up professionally on this board, their looks are one of the first things mentioned.

Doris Burke, Becky Hammon, etc.

Let's actually talk about the fact that 26 year old has made her way behind the bench.

[LLJ]

This is why it's so hard for women to get ahead. No respect for her accomplishments, just care about her appearance

So now complimenting a woman's appearance counts as being sexist?

It's just a dumb unnecessary comment. No one comments on Daryl Morey or Frank Vogel's looks.

Charming short pudgy guy. The Rockets players should shoot their shot with Morey

[KqWIN]

"Range" has me thinking about all the truly unusual paths we'll see into the NBA. Diverse thinkers and perspectives will be the new edge in the NBA.

Getting ideas and opinions from qualified voices that generally go unheard or are prevented from having access to opportunity due to gender is like raiding a treasure chest. the more teams see others reaping the benefits of it the more it will become commonplace.

All it takes is for forward thinkers that are in a position of authority that can open up doors of opportunity, like Popovich and Ujiri, to get the ball rolling.

Gender is almost low hanging fruit at this point. NBA teams will move quickly to tap into that talent and reap the benefits. It's like when teams figured out the three pointer is good. New, unique perspectives will become the new gold. Group think will be the common enemy teams are playing against.

[Johnny Fontane]

Lame.

It's a joke post lol. I'm sure teams maintain a clean, professional working environment especially if a woman as young as she is gets hired

But it's not funny. Every time a woman is brought up professionally on this board, their looks are one of the first things mentioned.

Doris Burke, Becky Hammon, etc.

Let's actually talk about the fact that 26 year old has made her way behind the bench.

Not responding to this any further too much of a headache

[MrDollarBills]

"Range" has me thinking about all the truly unusual paths we'll see into the NBA. Diverse thinkers and perspectives will be the new edge in the NBA.

Getting ideas and opinions from qualified voices that generally go unheard or are prevented from having access to opportunity due to gender is like raiding a treasure chest. the more teams see others reaping the benefits of it the more it will become commonplace.

All it takes is for forward thinkers that are in a position of authority that can open up doors of opportunity, like Popovich and Ujiri, to get the ball rolling.

Gender is almost low hanging fruit at this point. NBA teams will move quickly to tap into that talent and reap the benefits. It's like when teams figured out the three pointer is good. New, unique perspectives will become the new gold. Group think will be the common enemy teams are playing against.

Would not shock me to see more WNBA players after their playing days are over getting their foot in the door for opportunities in the NBA over the next ten years. A player that comes to mind is Candace Parker, I liked her insight from the times I've seen her on TNT's broadcasts. Pretty sure some team would want to pick her brain on a few things. Won't surprise me if one day we a woman working her way up to GM on a team.

[KqWIN]

Getting ideas and opinions from qualified voices that generally go unheard or are prevented from having access to opportunity due to gender is like raiding a treasure chest. the more teams see others reaping the benefits of it the more it will become commonplace.

All it takes is for forward thinkers that are in a position of authority that can open up doors of opportunity, like Popovich and Ujiri, to get the ball rolling.

Gender is almost low hanging fruit at this point. NBA teams will move quickly to tap into that talent and reap the benefits. It's like when teams figured out the three pointer is good. New, unique perspectives will become the new gold. Group think will be the common enemy teams are playing against.

Would not shock me to see more WNBA players after their playing days are over getting their foot in the door for opportunities in the NBA over the next ten years. A player that comes to mind is Candace Parker, I liked her insight from the times I've seen her on TNT's broadcasts. Pretty sure some team would want to pick her brain on a few things. Won't surprise me if one day we a woman working her way up to GM on a team.

That's a given. I think the next wave will non-basketball people getting positions in the front office. I heard google was hiring random smart people for jobs they had no backgrounds in like puzzle champions, chess masters, artists etc. They make the field experts think differently and challenge them in ways another field expert wouldn't be able to.

[Johnny Fontane]

I will say that it's nice having womens presence around the league & I'm sure they bring new perspective & ideas

[bran muffin]

Let's actually talk about the fact that 26 year old has made her way behind the bench.

A pretty, 26-yr old young woman as a coach is a recipe for potential PR disaster. In an ideal world, every NBA player is a fine upstanding gentleman who doesn't have hangups with female authority figures. But unfortunately, not all players in the NBA are going to see past her gender, youth and looks.

This movement to integrate women into coaching staff is great PR when everything is going well. But if things go sour, it's going to explode big time and become a huge PR disaster. Especially when people start hurling sexual harassment and misoginy accusations around. There's a reason why most female coaches brought into the NBA tend to be older, experienced, or at least very accomplished. Teams are bringing in the kind of women who wouldn't be disrespected by the male players.

But a young, pretty and inexperienced coach like Brittni Donaldson is too risky, IMHO. She's the type who will be easily disrespected. Especially since she has never coached at any level before. At least have her coach a G-League team for a year or two before putting her on the bench of an NBA team. I'm pretty sure most female coaches in the NBA had experience coaching in college, in WNBA or at least in the G-League.

[ATLTimekeeper]

Masai would ship anyone out that messed with her. This isn't the Mavs.

[Duffman100]

It's a joke post lol. I'm sure teams maintain a clean, professional working environment especially if a woman as young as she is gets hired

But it's not funny. Every time a woman is brought up professionally on this board, their looks are one of the first things mentioned.

Doris Burke, Becky Hammon, etc.

Let's actually talk about the fact that 26 year old has made her way behind the bench.

Not responding to this any further too much of a headache

Or maybe because it makes sense?

[BNM]

This is why it's so hard for women to get ahead. No respect for her accomplishments, just care about her appearance

So now complimenting a woman's appearance counts as being sexist?

It's just a dumb unnecessary comment. No one comments on Daryl Morey or Frank Vogel's looks.

Actually, they do, but not in a good way:

During TNT’s studio show following the Houston Rockets’ victory over the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night, Charles Barkley ripped Rockets GM Daryl Morey — and the NBA’s burgeoning advanced stats movement by extension — saying: “I’ve always believed analytics was crap. … I never mention the Rockets as legitimate contenders ’cause they’re not. And, listen, I wouldn’t know Daryl Morey if he walked into this room right now.”

“The NBA is about talent,” Barkley added. “All these guys who run these organizations who talk about analytics, they have one thing in common — they’re a bunch of guys who have never played the game, and they never got the girls in high school, and they just want to get in the game.”

[Hero_Panda]

Let's actually talk about the fact that 26 year old has made her way behind the bench.

A pretty, 26-yr old young woman as a coach is a recipe for potential PR disaster. In an ideal world, every NBA player is a fine upstanding gentleman who doesn't have hangups with female authority figures. But unfortunately, not all players in the NBA are going to see past her gender, youth and looks.

This movement to integrate women into coaching staff is great PR when everything is going well. But if things go sour, it's going to explode big time and become a huge PR disaster. Especially when people start hurling sexual harassment and misoginy accusations around. There's a reason why most female coaches brought into the NBA tend to be older, experienced, or at least very accomplished. Teams are bringing in the kind of women who wouldn't be disrespected by the male players.

But a young, pretty and inexperienced coach like Brittni Donaldson is too risky, IMHO. She's the type who will be easily disrespected. Especially since she has never coached at any level before. At least have her coach a G-League team for a year or two before putting her on the bench of an NBA team. I'm pretty sure most female coaches in the NBA had experience coaching in college, in WNBA or at least in the G-League.

And let's not forget the fact that this is still fairly new in the NBA, to have women as assistant coaches.
I'd be shocked to not see any PR issue involving a female coach go public, whether it's with another male coach or male player within the next 5-10 years.

From all accounts, the Raptor players over the past year are already familiar with BD and have shown respect towards her, so I think the transition for her will be pretty smooth. But I'd feel sorry for the first female coach to be going to an incompetent organization like Dolan and the Knicks.