The 46-year-old former guard, who spent 11 seasons in the Women’s NBA, has coached the University of South Carolina women’s team since 2008 after eight seasons guiding Temple.
“Being named head coach of the USA national team is a tremendous honor,” Staley said. “As a player, I was humbled each time I wore the uniform and this feels no different. I will do my very best to uphold the standards and winning tradition of the national team.”
US women have won the past six Olympic crowns without a loss, their 49-game Olympic win streak dating to the bronze medal contest in 1992 after losing in the Barcelona semi-finals to the Commonwealth of Independent States.
In all, US women have won eight Olympic basketball crowns and nine World Championship titles, including six of the past eight and the past two in a row. They will defend the crown at what is now called the Basketball World Cup next year in Spain.
Geno Auriemma, who guided the US women to Rio gold, called Staley “an obvious choice with all of the experience that she has had as part of the Olympic program” and added, “She’s going to be really, really good, because she understands the way the whole system works. It’s a great choice.”
Staley vows no change in US trademarks of fast-paced attack and pressuring defense.
“Historically, the USA national team has the best talent in the world,” she said. “I know we’ll run and will be defensive oriented, but the actual system will be based on the players selected.”
While still a WNBA player, she started coaching the Temple University Owls women’s basketball team in 2000. In six years at Temple, she led the program to six NCAA tournaments, three regular season conference championships, and four conference tournament titles.
On May 7, 2008, she was named the University of South Carolina women’s head basketball coach. Over the following six seasons, she improved her program’s record every year, up to winning the SEC in 2013-2014. In late 2014 her team achieved the program’s first #1 ranking, making her only the second individual to both play on and coach a #1 ranked team.
Staley was named the national high school player of the year during her final season at Murrell Dobbins Tech High School in Philadelphia.
Staley attended the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia. During her four seasons in college, she led her team to four NCAA Tournaments, three Final Fours and one National Championship game. She was named the ACC female athlete of the year and the national player of the year in 1991 and 1992. Staley finished her college career with 2,135 points and holds the NCAA record for career steals with 454. She finished her career at Virginia as the school’s all-time scoring leader and as the ACC’s all-time leader in assists at 729, but those records have since been broken by former UVA stars Monica Wright and Sharnee Zoll, respectively. Her number 24 is retired at UVA.
In 1994-1995, after graduation, Staley played professional basketball in France in Tarbes, Italy, Brazil, and Spain before joining the ABL and then the WNBA.
In 1996, she joined the Richmond Rage of the American Basketball League (ABL) and led the team to the ABL finals in 1997. The following season, the team moved to Staley’s hometown of Philadelphia.
In the 1999 WNBA Draft, Staley was selected with the ninth overall pick by the Charlotte Sting. In 2001, she led the Sting to the Championship game of the WNBA playoffs.
On August 1, 2005, Staley was traded to the Houston Comets. Staley announced before the start of the WNBA season that she would be retiring after the Comets season was over. The Comets made the playoffs and faced the Sacramento Monarchs in the first round. The Monarchs swept the Comets and won the series 2–0, ending Staley’s career. In 2011, she was voted in by fans as one of the Top 15 players in the fifteen-year history of the WNBA.
Staley was named to the team representing the USA at the World University Games held during July 1991 in Sheffield, England. While the USA team had won gold in 1983, they finished with the silver in 1985, in fifth place in 1987, and did not field a team in 1989. The team was coached by Tara VanDerveer of Stanford. After winning opening games easily, the USA faced China in the medal round. The USA shot only 36% from the field, but limited the team from China to 35%, and won 79–76 to advance to the gold medal game. There they faced 7–0 Spain, but won 88–62 to claim the gold medal. Staley averaged 4.9 points per game.
Staley competed with USA Basketball as a member of the 1992 Jones Cup Team that won the Gold in Taipei.
Staley played for Team USA throughout her career. In 1994 she competed in the World Championships and was named the USA basketball Female Athlete of the Year. She led the 1996 team to an undefeated record of 60–0 and the gold medal at the Olympic games in Atlanta. She was also a member of the 2000 Olympic team that defended the gold medal.
Staley was selected to represent the USA at the 1995 USA Women’s Pan American Games, however, only four teams committed to participate, so the event was cancelled.
In 2002, Staley was named to the national team which competed in the World Championships in Zhangjiagang, Changzhou and Nanjing, China. The team was coached by Van Chancellor. Staley scored 4.9 points per game, and recorded a team-high 24 assists. The USA team won all nine games, including a close title game against Russia, which was a one-point game late in the game.
She won a third gold medal with Team USA at the 2004 Games in Athens. Her Olympic performance lead to her being named 2004 USA Basketball Female Athlete Of The Year at the end of the year. Before the Games, she was selected to carry the flag of the United States during the parade of nations at the opening ceremony.
