There are many situations in which "almost" means nothing.
You can't "almost" cross a deep, rocky canyon in a '66 Thunderbird. You can't "almost" fully cook a chicken breast. You can't "almost" quit smoking. If you almost did any of those things, you'd end up dead (ask Thelma and Louise), sick with food poisoning, and still smoking like a chimney.
The same thing can be said about professional sports teams hiring women as coaches: "almost" doesn't count.
We found that out when the Portland Trail Blazers, after days of reports touting their serious interest in hiring San Antonio Spurs assistant coach Becky Hammon to be their new head coach, hired the far less experienced Chauncey Billups instead.