South Carolina Gamecocks coach Dawn Staley is head over heels right now over three of her former players being named 2025 WNBA All-Star starters. On Monday, June 30, the WNBA announced its 10 surefire All-Star starters for this year’s AT&T All-Star game, to be held on July 19 in the Indiana Fever’s home arena, Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
Among the 10, three are former South Carolina Gamecocks, namely, A’ja Wilson, Aliyah Boston, and Allisha Gray. This prompted Staley, their former college basketball coach, to gloat over the players’ achievement, as she reposted the WNBA’s graphic on her own Instagram account with a celebratory caption.
“How many @gamecockwbb can you count?!! Congrats @aliyah.boston @graytness_15 @aja22wilson on being @WNBA All-Star AND legit @WNBA MVP candidates. No debating just stating FACTS! 🤙🏽 ❤️,” Staley wrote with a couple of emojis.
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Ever since Wilson, Gray, and Boston have made it to the league, they have blossomed into three of the best WNBA players, and Staley has been actively cheering them on. Their ascension serves as a testament to the kind of collegiate hoops program Staley imposes, as it reflects on their games today, with Wilson being a two-time WNBA champ and three-time league MVP, while Gray and Boston are multi-time All-Stars already.
Staley is coming off a successful 2024-25 season where she and the Gamecocks finished with an overall record of 35-4 (15-1, SEC) and won this year’s SEC regular season championship and conference tournament title. However, their 2024 national championship defense was thwarted by the UConn Huskies, who beat them in the 2025 NCAA title game by 23 points, 82-59.
A’ja Wilson, Allisha Gray, And Aliyah Boston Were All NCAA Champions Under Dawn Staley
Under the tutelage of Dawn Staley, all three of A’ja Wilson, Allisha Gray, and Aliyah Boston were NCAA champions during their college basketball stints. In 2017, Wilson and Gray led the South Carolina Gamecocks to the program’s first-ever national title after defeating the Mississippi State Bulldogs by 12 points, 67-55. Wilson went on to be named the MOP for that year’s national tournament.
For Boston, she played a key role in the Gamecocks’ 2022 national championship run against the UConn Huskies, where they defeated them by 15 points, 64-49, en route to the program’s second national title. Gray, Wilson, and Boston went on to become lottery picks in the 2017, 2018, and 2023 drafts, respectively, with Wilson and Boston being first overall selections while Gray was picked at No. 4 in the first round.
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