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South Carolina women's basketball: Dawn Staley inducted into FIBA Hall of Fame

On3 imageby: Chris Wellbaum05/19/25ChrisWellbaum
Dawn Staley speaks at the FIBA Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony (Courtesy of FIBA)
Dawn Staley speaks at the FIBA Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony (Courtesy of FIBA)

On May 17, Dawn Staley was inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame Class of 2025 in a ceremony in Bahrain. 

The ceremony was held in Manama, Bahrain. Eight people – seven players and one coach – were part of the class. 

Staley was inducted as a player, and she was joined by Alphonse Bilé (Côte d’Ivoire), Andrew Bogut (Australia), Leonor Borrell (Cuba), Pau Gasol (Spain), Ticha Penicheiro (Portugal), and Ratko Radovanovic (Serbia). Coach Mike Krzyzewski (USA) was also inducted.

“I want to thank the entire FIBA organization, the nominating committee, my fellow honorees, and all of my coaches, trainers, teammates, and loved ones,” Staley said at the ceremony. “My family by blood, and my basketball (family) who poured into me throughout this amazing journey. To be recognized by your home country is special, but to be honored on a global stage like this is truly humbling beyond words.”

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Staley’s first FIBA experience was at the 1989 U19 (Junior) World Cup in Spain. She said didn’t even know what FIBA was before that.

As a player, Staley was a member of three gold medal-winning USA Olympic teams, including the legendary 1996 team that is credited with launching the American dynasty. 

Staley was also selected by her fellow Olympians to carry the American flag at the 2004 Olympics in Athens. 

In addition to her Olympic success, Staley won a bronze medal at the 1994 World Cup and gold medals at the 1998 and 2002 World Cups. 

“We built a global sisterhood. We were competitors on the court but compassionate off it,” Staley said. “I had the incredible fortune of sharing many of those years with two of the greatest to ever do it, inductee Lisa Leslie and Sheryl Swoopes, my sisters in sports, and in life, and in gold.”

Following her playing career, Staley turned to coaching. She was an assistant coach on the gold medal teams in 2008 and 2016. Staley also coached the USA to gold at the 2018 World Cup and 2019 and 2021 AmeriCups.

Staley took over as head coach for the 2020 Olympics and again coached the Americans to gold. 

With the honor, Staley is now a member of three different Halls of Fame. She is also a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame (2013) and the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame (2012).

All three institutions inducted Staley for her playing career.

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