How Dawn Staley wowed 600 top judges and lawyers from across five states

Recently I had the pleasure of interviewing USC women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley at a meeting of judges and lawyers from South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia and Maryland.

The topic was the value and impact of Title IX on women’s collegiate sports, and Coach Staley was certainly informative on that topic. But her comments and their impact went far beyond that law.

She was witty and funny and disarmingly open as she talked about growing up in the projects in Philadelphia, about struggling academically at the University of Virginia, about being the flag bearer for the U.S. Olympic team in 2004.

She also talked about how she sees herself as a protector of her players, as her coach at the University of Virginia had been to her.

I had not met Coach Staley before the interview, although I have admired her successful, though serious, coaching style. But she is so much more than we see courtside.

She is insightful, thoughtful, intelligent and quite a charming guest. I simply cannot express how much I was impressed by her — and how much I really like her.

She is a fantastic representative of U.S.C. and our state — a tour de force and a person who should be involved in more public presentations like this.

Dozens of people who were in the audience have since told me they were moved (many to tears) and inspired by Coach Staley’s remarks. Many said it was not only the highlight of this meeting but the best program in the history of the Fourth Circuit Judicial Conference.

The experience was a rare moment that transcended the occasion.

This was not about fans lionizing a coach.

More than 600 people arrived admiring Coach Staley as a great basketball player and coach. They left loving Dawn Staley for the extraordinary person she is.

The State publishes a cross section of the letters we receive from South Carolinians in order to provide a forum for our community and also to allow our community to get a good look at itself, for good or bad. The letters represent the views of the letter writers, not necessarily of The State.

This story was originally published July 6, 2018 at 10:56 AM.