Dawn Staley is undisputed on the Mt. Rushmore of coaches in the history of women’s college basketball. With three national championships and four coach of the year awards, her legacy as a college great is cemented. But there has always been a curiosity if she would ever try her hand at the professional level.
Kylie Kelce on her podcast “Not Gonna Lie with Kylie Kelce” was wondering the same and presented Staley with a hypothetical. If the WNBA ever had an expansion team in Philadelphia (Staley’s hometown), would she consider coaching them and finally being a pro coach? Staley’s simple answer? No. But there is more to it than a flat-out denial.
Dawn Staley is Thinking Beyond Coaching
When Staley was if she would ever coach a Philadelphia expansion team by Kelce, she started with a refusal but then elaborated:
“No. You know why? Because I’d rather be an owner. I think there’s much more in it to ownership.”
Staley went on to say that she feels that her impact will be more profound as an owner, where she can “touch more people”. Staley’s desire for ownership is indicative of a new wave of former athletes who have seen ownership equity as a viable path in their post-playing (and in this case, coaching) careers.
Kevin Durant (Paris Saint-Germain), LeBron James (Liverpool FC), Giannis Antetokounmpo (Nashville SC), Steve Nash (Vancouver Whitecaps FC), and others have all made pivots into team ownership as their succession plans to playing. The reason behind this is both financial and impact-related.
As a team owner, an athlete cements themselves as a pillar of a community and can potentially influence the direction of the team as a brand in their image. Staley, a proud Philly native, would see ownership in the city as a way to elevate her hometown.
The financial impacts are also well documented. If the recent sale of the Los Angeles Lakers for $10B is any indication, team values are only increasing. Buying into a minority stake as an owner is a great financial move that will pay dividends year over year. And, it can be argued, that increased revenue flow can help Dawn Staley to impact Philadelphia even more.
The WNBA has gone through a lot of expansion recently, so the idea of a Staley-owned Philadelphia franchise is a ways out, but it’s not out of the question. Her answer to Kylie Kelce’s question shows us that she has ambitions beyond the bench at South Carolina.
