Dawn Staley reiterates that she’d want an ownership stake in a potential WNBA team in Philly

Kylie Kelce added another big name to the list of guests on her podcast, Not Gonna Lie.

North Philly native Dawn Staley, whose resumé includes three Olympic gold medals, five WNBA All-Star nods and three national titles as a coach at South Carolina, sat down with Kelce to talk all things Philadelphia sports, women’s basketball, and coaching … or owning.

The two agreed with Kelce’s sentiment that “Philly is the best sports town in the world.” And Kelce would know — the Narbeth native and Lower Merion grad played field hockey at now-closed Cabrini University from 2013 to 2016 before she met her husband, former Eagles center Jason Kelce.

“I work here [in South Carolina]. I’m not from here. Like, I’m from Philly,” said Staley, with a nod to her penchant for wearing Eagles merch while coaching the Gamecocks. “When we’re going as far as we’re going, when we win Super Bowls, you’re going to see me in some Eagles gear.”

“If there was a WNBA team in Philly, would you ever consider coaching it?” asked Kelce.

“No,” Staley said. “No. You know why? Because I’d rather be an owner. I think there’s much more in it to ownership. I know a lot of people think that coaching is my best attribute. And I do think I’m a pretty good coach. But when I’m an owner, I could probably touch more people.”

“Let’s do it,” Kelce said.

Staley said timing is key for introducing a WNBA team to Philadelphia. She said the 76ers “have got to get it going on” before the momentum is right for an expansion franchise to take hold.

“When the time is right, it will be around for a long time,” Staley said. “If it’s forced on Philadelphians, you give us room to criticize it. If it doesn’t start off right, you give Philly room to boo Santa Claus.”

» READ MORE: Santa is now a Philly sports fan. Meet the ‘brave man’ behind the costume.

Staley said her favorite Eagles player is Jalen Hurts. He’s “the coolest cat that [she] knows,” and they met through former Eagles running back Duce Staley — no relation, although Dawn and Duce joke about being distant relatives.

She said it can be lonely being a star player, like a quarterback, especially in Philadelphia, and she likes to check on him and give her support.

“Not everyone is cut out to handle Philly,” Kelce said. “Our media is tough. They’re honest. But so are the fans. And my husband always says they are some of the most-educated football fans [and] it makes it difficult to argue with their opinions, which I think is a testament to how passionate our city is.”

Added Staley: “That’s the part that most people don’t get. Like, our fans are so educated. … It’s a lifestyle. It’s a lifestyle to cheer for the Eagles, the Sixers, the [Flyers], anything Philly. It’s a lifestyle. It’s a part of our very existence for our teams to do well … It’s a play on the heart, but it’s also knowing what you’re talking about. Philly fans speak from emotions and facts.”

» READ MORE: Jalen Hurts shouts out Dawn Staley during national championship game | from 2024

Staley’s Gamecocks faced Iowa twice in Caitlin Clark’s tenure as a Hawkeye and went 1-1. Each time, Clark had at least 30 points (she dropped 41 points when Iowa beat South Carolina in the Final Four in 2023).

“I think she’s quite incredible,” Staley said. “Quite an anomaly when it comes to how many eyeballs that she’s bringing on the game, and new eyeballs.”

» READ MORE: Philadelphia is a ‘clear front-runner’ for WNBA expansion

Staley, who coached at Temple, said it’s interesting to see the new viewers of the women’s game who are watching because of Clark. They don’t want her to be critiqued, said Staley, and it can be hard when critiquing players is “the fabric of sports.” She gives Clark credit for getting a record-breaking 24 million viewers for the 2023 championship game.

“When they tuned in, they saw a South Carolina team that was full of incredible talent,” she said. “She brought more eyeballs to our game, but they found out that there’s more really great players in our game that are worthy of being talked about and worthy of giving credit.”