South Carolina women’s basketball: Dawn Staley, A’ja Wilson among sports’ most admired figures

South Carolina women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley and former Gamecock A’ja Wilson are among the most popular women in sports. In fact, many consider Staley to be the best women’s basketball coach in the world and Wilson to be the best female player in the world.

It is easy to see then why a recent story from The Athletic labeled them as two of the most admired people in sports. According to the work from Lindsay Schnell, Richard Deitsch, Michael Russo, Craig Custance, C.J. Moore, and Jason Quick, Staley is second and Wilson is ninth among all people active in sports as a player, coach, or executive. They were also 1st and 3rd, respectively, among those in women’s basketball.

The Athletic staff polled many individuals involved in North American sports (including former champions, Hall of Famers, and those with active careers), asking for the top five active players, coaches, or executives that they admired. Then, they compiled the results.

The two Gamecock legends were clear choices for the top 10.

NEW! Message board for South Carolina Women’s Basketball!

Staley’s leadership and basketball excellence have been evident for over 30 years. She won two National Player of the Year honors as a point guard at Virginia. Then, she became a WNBA Hall of Famer and an Olympic gold medalist. As she transitioned to coaching, she became one of the best ever at that, too. Since taking over the Gamecocks, she has won three national titles and nine of the last 12 SEC Championships. She is also (correctly) viewed as an individual whose impact reaches beyond the court. Arguably her greatest off-court works have come in support of children, especially those with pediatric medical needs.

For Wilson, “being the best” has been the expectation since high school. She quickly became the No. 1 recruit in the nation before winning National Player of the Year awards and a national title with her hometown South Carolina squad. She was then the No. 1 pick in the WNBA Draft and has won a record four MVPs and three rings in the WNBA. Like her former coach, she is bigger than sports. Among other things, Wilson is a major voice in the fight for equality in sports.