Across the Grounds with Steve Brindle: Minor Sport? Minor Athlete? Ask Dawn Staley

Minor Sport? Minor Athletes?

My mother picked me up at the jr high and we headed over to the high school to watch my sister play bball. It was 1963-65 and the game was almost unrecognizable. With a dozen parents and a few students in the crowd, lots of fans came dressed as empty seats. Each team put 6 players on the floor, 2 at the defensive side of half court, 2 on the offensive side, and 2 “rovers” who could go the distance. None of the 6 could hold the ball for more than 3 seconds nor could they dribble the ball more than 3 times before passing or shooting. Sound like a fun game? Can anyone remember that?

I was reminded of how far the women’s game has come when I read this morning about Dawn Staley’s comp package at South Carolina. $25.25 million through the 2029-2030 season! She deposited last year’s entire $5.4 million in a Trust to aid young girls in North Philly where she grew up. (When I think how my sister’s game never progressed, I recall how Dawn grew up playing serious hoops regularly against the boys. Not a fair comparison!)

This is the same Dawn Staley who wore a Hoos uni from 1988-92 and was named 3-time Kodak All-American, 2-time National Player of the Year, and 2-time Honda Sports Award winner. (Her UVA coach, Debbie Ryan, finished with a 736-323 record with 3 Final Four appearances by waging a successful battle with pancreatic cancer. Someone named Geno Auriemma was her assistant at UVA from 1981-85.) That was just the start of an amazing journey that included 3-times Olympic gold as a player and once as a coach, and 6-time WNBA all-star. Dawn is the only person to win the Naismith Award as a coach and as a player! I’ve often seen Dawn Staley’s bust on top of UVA Sports Mt. Rushmore along with Kate Douglas, Ralph Sampson, and Tony Bennett.

Dawn’s first coaching assignment was at Temple which she managed to do while still playing in the WNBA. Her record in 8 years there? 172-80, 6 NCAA appearances, and 4 Atlantic 10 tournament titles. The capacity of Dawn Staley’s USC Colonial Life Arena in Columbia is 18,000. Her impressive record there to date? 475-110. Due to her teams’ successes, 13,000 are a total sellout and 5,000 are single game tickets. Three-time Division 1 NCAA champions.

Do you think that Coach Mox would appreciate a rabid crowd of that size? What a lightning rod to build a powerhouse program! Having drawn 11,975 versus the Hokies on March 3, 2024, we can certainly do it more consistently with the experienced backcourt returning and a lot more skill and muscle patrolling the paint.