Dawn Staley was what A’Ja Wilson needed to be South Carolina Star

On February 3, 2025By Littum

Columbia – Earlier this week, Dawn Staley revealed that A’Ja Wilson once cried to her about a boy.

Wilson, the most decorated player in South Carolina Basketball History, gets her jersey retired on Sunday (dinner, SEC Network), before No. 2 Gamecocks (20-1, 8-0 sec) facing Auburn.

Staley touched the personal side of who Wilson is and their relationship and the story of relationship drama-rescued tears. The three-time WNBA MVP has shared about her life from the field from dyslexia to personal moments in her book, “Dear black girls: How to be true to you.”

On the threshold of celebrating his career both in Columbia and in Wnba with Las Vegas Aces, Wilson acknowledged how important it is to show the human side of a master.

“I feel like it gives my fans, but also myself, people like an understanding of who I am as a person, basketball would never define me,” Wilson said on Saturday. “It’s a vehicle that can lead me to a lot of different platforms that I love to be myself, but being true to yourself and inside going so much longer because you can get in touch with people on a completely different level that you would never have imagined …

“I’m still human. I can still have a conversation with you. We could just just chat. And I think that’s the pretty thing about just my career and that’s why I’m so grateful that I have amazing fans , that don i just look at me as just a hooper but more like a human being.

Wilson played for Staley in South Carolina from 2014-18. In 2017, she led Gamecocks to their first NCAA championship. She was the first player in the history of the conference to won the Sec Player of the Year three times and the first college player to go undefeated in four years of play in the SEC tournament

She is the school’s leader in career points with 2,389 and has 22 program registers. Wilson was No. 1 selection in the WNBA draft in 2018 and has won two WNBA championships with ACES.

Since Wilson’s departure, Staley has won two more titles, including the 2024 season. Staley was asked what Wilson has taught her.

“I can be the best version of me when you’re the best version of you, which means it’s ok to bring your problems to me,” Staley said. “Many young people won’t bring their problems to me because they are afraid of being vulnerable, which is cool, everyone is like that. But I’m here to take everything from your plate … you can bring it right bring it To me.

Together, the two realized that it was important to protect one’s “peace” according to Staley, both on and off the field.

“She was also the kind of player that she needed clarity,” Staley said. “She couldn’t play with things hanging over her head. It just weighed her too much and she acknowledged it.”

Lulu Kesin covers South Carolina Athletics for Greenville News and USA Today Network. E -Mail her on [email protected] And follow her on x, formerly known as Twitter, @lulukesin