WNBA: how a Hongkonger made highlights reel at basketball’s Seattle Storm
- Winson Tam is the first from Hong Kong to make inroads in a coaching set-up in the Women’s National Basketball Association in the United States
- Having left Hong Kong short of options to further his education, he enrolled at a US college and soon found himself on an unexpected career path
It is not a working environment in which Asians, let alone Hongkongers, are often spotted, but 26-year-old Winson Tam Kai-chung is becoming something of a trailblazer in American basketball coaching.
Tam is the first from the city, and one of only a handful of Asians, to make inroads into the staff of a Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) team. He is pursuing his hoops dream at Seattle Storm, as a video assistant – one of the pathways taken by leading coaches.
Two-time NBA champion head coach Erik Spoelstra, for example, began his career at Miami Heat as a video coordinator. The role gives aspiring coaches an overview of the scope of the top job.
“Currently, we are in the off-season, so I have to watch free agency, and help to scout college prospect players by editing video highlights per [head coach] Noelle Quinn’s requests,” Tam said. “It gets a lot busier when the season begins in May.
“I have to make sure clips are ready for the coach at half-time. One has to know basketball inside-out – you need to understand and recognise all play calls.