NBA Rumors: G League's Lindsey Harding Permitted to Interview for Hornets HC Opening

The Charlotte Hornets received permission to interview 2023-24 G League Coach of the Year Lindsey Harding regarding the team's head coaching opening, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

Harding guided the Stockton Kings to a record of 24-10 during the regular season, the best mark in the league. She also helped Stockton advance to the Western Conference Finals in the G League playoffs before falling to the Oklahoma City Blue.

Current Hornets head coach Steve Clifford is expected to step down at the end of the 2023-24 season and move into a front office role.

Harding was selected by the Phoenix Mercury with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2007 WNBA draft, although she was immediately traded to the Minnesota Lynx. She spent time with six organizations throughout her career, suiting up for Phoenix as well as the New York Liberty during her final WNBA season in 2016.

She owns career averages of 9.8 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 4.0 assists per game.

Harding started as an assistant on the Toronto Raptors' summer league coaching staff in 2014 before she was hired and subsequently promoted to the role of player development coach by the Philadelphia 76ers in 2019.

She revealed that current Las Vegas Aces head coach and former San Antonio Spurs assistant coach Becky Hammon helped her make the transition to NBA coaching.

"I played against Becky for years," Harding said in 2018, per ESPN's Ramona Shelburne. "During this last season, especially working in the front office [program] and going to games, I spent some time talking to her. She was always telling me, 'You need to come. You need to come. We need more women here.'"

If she's hired by Charlotte, she'll look to turn around a team that has struggled to become a consistent postseason contender. With the Hornets sitting at 19-59 in 2024, they've now owned a losing record in eight of the past 10 years and haven't made the playoffs since the 2015-16 season.