Swish Appeal is thrilled to publish the debut of Jayda Curry, the 2021-22 Pac-12 Freshman of the Year at Cal who now is a rising senior guard at Louisville.
Dawn Staley doesn’t need an introduction, especially not to fans of women’s basketball. As head coach of the South Carolina Gamecocks, the three-time gold medal-winning Olympian (and 2004 flag bearer), former WNBA star and former Team USA head coach has also led her team to three NCAA national championships—so far.
Through all that success, Staley has had to overcome challenges she has faced as a minority in her profession, and she is the first person to tell you that the journey she has been on to get to where she is today is a testament to her faith. The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame inductee, whose list of achievements and accolades are endless, attributes the reason for her many successes to a higher power.
It was a blessing and an honor to speak to Coach Staley while training with Tremaine Dalton, Technical Director of the NBA school in Portugal and a Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame candidate for 2025, in France. Coach Staley spoke about her faith, how she maintains perspective instead of letting things get to her head and, of course, her love for the game of basketball.
Her love for the game
“For the longest, I was never big on singling out my race, because as a player I just played,” Staley said at the beginning of our conversation. Staley recalled that her love for the game was what drove her as a young player, and it’s what continues to drive her now as a coach. Simply put, the competitive nature of the sport is what she has loved, and she played because that is all she knew.
Her position as head coach has presented her with opportunities to share this love for the game with her team and university, as well as with individuals and communities around the world. Having had major success as a player, at both the collegiate and pro level, and as a coach, Staley’s love and passion for basketball is seen in all of her successes.
Challenges as a Black woman
Being a successful Black woman in this profession brings its challenges, but Staley is adamant about attacking those challenges head on. “I’m drawn to challenges. It makes me stronger, it makes me better, it makes me more prepared, so I’m cool with it,” she said. “You probably should let me get comfortable, rather than pointing things out that will widen the chip on my shoulder.”
“When you’re a successful Black woman in this space, there are challenges,” Staley continued. “Like there are challenges for all people. There’s a challenge to be successful in any sport, in any profession, but when you’re the double minority it hits a little bit different to people who are outside of your everyday life.”
As a Black woman, her successes can take those on the outside looking in by surprise. “To this day you’re almost forced to say things because people will single that part out, which I’m good with because [being a successful Black female head coach] is not ‘normal.’ It’s not mainstream, it’s something different, it’s something good, it catches people off guard,” she explained. The people in Staley’s circle see the hard work, the sacrifice, the everyday fight. They see it all. So to them, her success isn’t a surprise, it’s simply a testament to her work and God’s will.
Impact: Perspective is everything
Staley isn’t that concerned with the national coverage her team may or may not get; for her, it’s about the impact she and her players have on and off the court. Of course, South Carolina being recognized nationally should be a no-brainer, but, with the politics of basketball and the social media era we live in, that sometimes hasn’t been the case. It’s not always fair and it’s not always right that her team isn’t extensively covered considering their successes, but what fills Staley with joy is the impact she and her players have away from the media coverage.
The amount of people that approach her and her team and recognize them face to face. The people that are close to her acknowledging and celebrating their achievements. Those are more valuable than the national media recognition that South Carolina doesn’t receive enough of. “As you get older in life, you gain so much perspective,” she explained. “When people show love, that fills me with so much joy.”
“When I get a call from Barack Obama, when I get a call from Denzel Washington, when I get flowers from Beyonce—are you kidding me? Those are my people. I’m full. I got everything I need because they’re proud. So, perspective,” Staley emphasized.
“I feel it from all over. I’m over in Mexico recruiting and people are coming up to me congratulating me on a championship and asking to take pictures…that’s truly what it’s all about. That’s what I respect, that’s what I love. They’re looking at our team just for their own pleasure, not for what somebody says,” she added.
Her mindset: Balance is key
Like a lot of greats, Staley’s persona away from competition is different from her persona during competition. Covering all bases and looking out for others is her priority outside of competition. As she put it, “If you come to my house during Christmas and I missed you somehow…I got enough stuff around my house to make it look like I went out and specifically got this for you, because I don’t like for people to feel bad or left out. I try to be mindful. I try to think ahead.”
But when it’s time to compete, Staley said she has a killer mindset. “If I’m outside of competition, I’m cool, I’m chilling,” she laughed. Being able to tap into this balance and regulate this switch makes her who she is. The care and the love in her heart coupled with her competitive spirit makes Staley the amazing person she is.
Staley also spoke on her mindset and approach to life as a whole. “Life is full of tests,” she said, “Either you’re going to pass them, or you’re going to retake them. So, if you feel like you’re being tested, and it’s the same test, then you’re failing it, so you might have to do something that’s a little bit different.” She believes these tests we face throughout our lives are put in place to challenge our faith. “Once you pass your test, another one’s coming,” she said. The idea that you have to go through it to grow through it is one that Staley prioritizes and why she relies so heavily on her faith.
She is unapologetically faithful
Staley unapologetically proclaims her faith to the world on a consistent basis, whether it be via social media or on national television immediately after a national championship win, while also making it clear her relationship with God is personal. “Keep on keeping on. It’s a personal thing with me. It’s my relationship with God, not anyone else’s.” This is why she feels she can glorify God so freely.
For her, the degree of success she’s achieved is a result of God’s choosing. “There’s a reason why I’m successful,” she said. “Because God wants me to be.” To Staley, it really is that simple. “It’s not from my doing because I would win them all… but we lose some, and you’re grateful for when you do win.” Of course there is work, sacrifice and fight put behind the result, but without God, Staley says success does not exist for her. And in her success, she never fails to give glory to where she believes glory is due. “My moments of proclaiming my faith, are just moments of my cup runneth over,” she said. “I am glorifying the fact that He chose me, in that very moment, to be successful.”
When you look back on the 2023-24 season, Staley and the Gamecocks were in the same boat they were in during the 2022-23 season, when they made it all the way to the Final Four, undefeated, yet fell short to the Iowa Hawkeyes. It would have been easy to pout and ask why, Staley said. “I needed an explanation that He really couldn’t give me. And He didn’t give it to me, He just showed me.”
To illustrate what she meant, Staley referred to a 2013 press conference during which Beyoncé sang the national anthem a capella after she was criticized for lip synching at President Obama’s second inauguration. The singer ended the performance by asking, “Any questions?” Staley recalled. “That’s what God said [once He revealed His timing and what He was capable of], ‘Any questions?’”
As women’s college basketball fans know, Staley and the Gamecocks went against expectations and quelled all doubters by completing an undefeated season and winning both the SEC and national championships, something that coach believes was possible in part due to her relationship with God. “I’m just grateful. It’s not downing other people, it’s not showing off. You just have to have your own personal relationship with God to really understand,” she said.