If there is one coach who understands how to keep building championship teams, Dawn Staley definitely takes the cake. Architecting a group of basketball players that has become the one to beat in the NCAA, she has often proven her worth. While it took the Hall of Famer head coach to settle into her new role, she has now converted the South Carolina Gamecocks into a powerhouse of the sport. Hence, with all the hard work comes the cost of keeping up. Something that Staley knew thoroughly.

In 2021, Dawn Staley made the biggest headlines as she inked a $22.4 million/ 7-year deal with the University of South Carolina. With this agreement, she became one of the highest-paid head coaches in women’s basketball in the country. Since then, however, things have changed for the good. Dawn Staley led the Gamecocks through a perfect tourney, which ended with them becoming National Champions, again!

Bringing back the same spirit, she recently gave an insider’s peek to Mika Brzezinski of MSNBC. “I think for me, I had to strike one when iron’s hot. And that was three years ago. Now, the iron still is hot. Like we just won a national championship in undefeated season. So, we are back at those negotiating tables and we’re trying to figure out where we are. And you have to be unafraid to go back.”

While we do not know just when this pie will be whipped, her current agreement would have taken her through the 2028-29 season. According to that, she was making $2.9 million in 2021. In the final year, she would be making $3.5 million. These would include a base salary of $1 million per year. Outside compensations started at $1.9 million per annum, with a $100,000 per year increment. However, for the head coach herself, it is not the money that is the aim.

Dawn Staley reveals the aim behind the big-money deals

As one of the most renowned coaches of all time, who has also tested the waters at the Olympics coaching and won a gold, Dawn Staley looks at the bigger picture. She told Brzezinski, “By no means do I do this for money. I would do this just for the straight pride of being the best. That’s what I set out to do. I wouldn’t attach a dollar sign to it. But we live in a world where you need to be paid for your successes, just as anybody else.”

According to her, she has seen the world and learned that as a female in this business, things don’t come easily to them. When she signed the deal, she told USA Today, “I didn’t do this for me. I am an advocate of equal pay and overall, this is a huge statement for women and for Black women — and not just in sports but all over the country — when you think about how much less they’re paid on the dollar compared to men.”

So far, Dawn Staley has brought three National Championships to the U of SC. The Gamecocks now have 8x regular season and SEC tournament titles and 12 NCAA tournament appearances under Staley. Of the 12 participations, they have been to the Final Four round six times; including consecutively from 2021 to 2024. Additionally, they have won three of those six times. As a 4x National Coach of the Year, no doubt this one deserves the best of everything, especially for building the Gamecocks from the ground.

Stay tuned for more such updates and join us for the exciting second episode of the “Dual Threat Show” as our host BG12 sits down with Georgia Bulldogs star and Mountain West All-Freshman Team Selection, Asia Avinger.