Staley, USC players mourn McCray-Penson
COLUMBIA — South Carolina coach Dawn Staley and many former players took to social media Friday to honor the life and legacy of Nikki McCray-Penson, a Women’s Basketball Hall of Famer and former Gamecocks assistant coach.
McCray-Penson died Friday at age 51. A cause of death has not been released. She was previously diagnosed with breast cancer in 2013 and resigned as head coach at Mississippi State in 2021 after a single season citing “health concerns.”
Staley and McCray-Penson were drafted just two years apart into the WNBA in 1994 and 1996, respectively, and they competed together for Team USA in the 1996 and 2000 Olympic Games. Both played point guard and earned multiple WNBA All-Star selections — three for McCray-Penson, six for Staley.
“It is with the heaviest of heart I have to post this,” Staley wrote on Twitter. “Thank you my little sister, my friend, my foxhole partner, my teammate, my fast food snacker, my basketball junkie, my fellow Olympian, my gold medalist and now my angel. God’s got you now ... suffer no more Nik Nik.”
Staley hired McCray-Penson as an assistant coach on her first staff when she took over at South Carolina in 2008. McCray-Penson worked with the Gamecocks from 2008-2017, helping lead the program to its first NCAA championship in her final season. She went on to serve as the head coach at Old Dominion from 2017-2020, then at Mississippi State in 2020-21. She spent the 2022-23 season as an assistant coach at Rutgers.
“From her days as a brash rookie in USA Basketball to becoming my friend and colleague to the way she mentored young players, Nikki did everything with her whole heart,” Staley said in a statement. “Her presence was something you could feel before you saw her because she had such light, such positive energy inside no matter what was going on.”
Former South Carolina players also mourned the loss of the legendary coach. Two-time WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson, who captained the Gamecocks’ 2017 national championship team, called McCray-Penson a “true gift from God” on Twitter.
“From her days as a brash rookie in USA Basketball to becoming my friend and colleague to the way she mentored young players, Nikki did everything with her whole heart.” Dawn Staley South Carolina coach on Nikki McCray-Penson
“Heart hurts like crazy over this one!” Wilson wrote. “Such a fighter and a warrior with the sweetest gentle soul! Coach McCray, you’ve helped me in many, many ways and ... Truly will be missed! No more suffering, no more pain! God got a good one.”
Connecticut Sun guard Tyasha Harris, who was the starting point guard on the 2017 squad as a freshman, also posted a heartfelt message of thanks to McCray-Penson.
“Wow a legend, a mother, a wife, a sister, a hooper, my coach ... you fought for so long and hard!” Harris wrote on Twitter. “I thank you for recruiting and believing in me since day one. You are a big reason for where I am today! Your legacy will forever live on. I love you Coach McCray, rest easy.”
Khadijah Sessions, who played at South Carolina from 2012-2016, simply posted a photo of herself high-fiving McCray-Penson on the court captioned, “Fly High.” Sessions was hired Thursday as a new assistant coach for the Gamecocks.