Basketball coach Dawn Staley will tell the story of her life and career in a new memoir, People magazine reports.
Atria/Black Privilege will publish Staley’s Uncommon Favor: Basketball, North Philly, My Mother, and the Life Lessons I Learned from All Three in the spring. The press describes the book as “fearless and authentic” and says it “shares the rewards of leading with conviction and the courage to redefine the limits of what is possible.”
Born and raised in Philadelphia, Staley was a standout player at Murrell Dobbins Career and Technical Education High School before playing college basketball for the University of Virginia; she and her fellow Cavaliers went to the Final Four three times.
Staley played six seasons for the WNBA’s Charlotte Sting, and was a six-time WNBA all-star. She was the head women’s basketball coach for Temple University for eight years before leaving for the University of South Carolina, where she still coaches, in 2008.
In her book, Atria/Black Privilege says, Staley “reveals the journey that led to [her] success, including the challenges she faced. From dealing with sexism on the court to feeling isolated in new environments, Staley honed her skills and learned valuable life lessons about mental fortitude and maturity that have grounded her throughout her career.”
Staley shared news of the book on Instagram, writing, “I’ve been asked so many times about writing a book and it is about time I listened. I finally wrote a BOOK. My life. My career. My failures. My successes. My title is representative of it all!”
Uncommon Favor is scheduled for publication on May 20.
Michael Schaub is a contributing writer.
