by Daniel Johnson
January 19, 2025
Staley’s base salary sits at $4 million per year.
Louis Vuitton Dawn got a brand new bag on Jan. 17 when the University of South Carolina pulled the trigger on giving the best basketball coach in the country a contract extension that will keep her in Columbia through the 2029-2030 season.
According to The Athletic, Staley’s base salary sits at $4 million per year and after allowing for her signing bonus and annual increases and other performance bonuses, the total contract value is over $25 million.
Per a report from WISTV, Staley was given a $500,000 signing bonus and an annual performance escalator of $250,000.
This payment structure sweetens the pot for her, while the NCAA’s recent approval of payments to women’s programs that reach the Women’s Final Four will be a boon to the university. Barring an upset, this South Carolina team should reach the Final Four and be a number one seed in the tournament.
While this is a lucrative contract by women’s basketball standards, Staley’s new deal lags far behind the salaries of men’s basketball coaches and even the head football coach at her university, Shane Beamer, who made $6.4 million during the 2024 season.
This contract extension went much smoother than her last negotiation, in part because the university’s new athletic director, Jeremiah Donatti, values what Staley and the Gamecocks have contributed to the university’s portfolio.
In a statement responding to her extension, Staley, the three-time national champion, was grateful to the university for recognizing her value this time around.
“I’m proud to represent the University of South Carolina and of its investment in women’s basketball,” Staley told The Athletic. “What we’ve been able to accomplish on the court is a testament to what can happen when you bring together the right people from a team perspective but also have the right commitment from the university, the athletics department and the community to providing that team with everything it needs to be successful.”
Staley continued, “I appreciate every person who has been part of our journey – player, staff member, University President and leadership, Board of Trustee member, athletics director, athletics department employee and fan. I look forward to continuing to be an example of how an investment in women’s basketball is one that will pay off for everyone.”
In a statement, Donatti made it clear why he was giving Staley a market resetting extension.
“Dawn Staley is a once-in-a-generation coach who has made a tremendous impact on the University of South Carolina,” Donati told The Athletic. “She has elevated the sport of women’s basketball on the national level and here on campus and I am excited that she will be representing our University for many years to come.”
Staley’s last contract negotiation during the 2020-2021 season, under the school’s previous AD, Ray Tanner, was marked by contention, including Staley halting her agent’s negotiations and hiring a lawyer to argue for equal pay with the university’s then-head men’s basketball coach, Frank Martin.
Staley was vocal about her displeasure with the way that negotiation was handled, essentially telling The Athletic in 2022 that she believed she should have set the tone for the market during those negotiations.
“These three words always come up: fair market value,” Staley explained. “So, where’s the market for the type of coach I am? Where is it? How can it be fair market value? I’m a Black coach, I’m a woman, I’m pretty successful. We built our program. We’re entrenched in the community. We’ve got something special here. Like, who are you comparing me to? Who’s my comp? So, I’m just like, I don’t settle. I’m not going to settle. You’re not going to use those three words.”
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