Dawn Staley shares how she helped A’ja Wilson with her dyslexia: “You gonna read”

Las Vegas Aces center A'ja Wilson started off her career as one of the greatest products from her college program. Wilson led the South Carolina Gamecocks to the 2017 national championship, the first in program history, along with winning the MOP.

In an interview with "The Breakfast Club Power 105.1 FM" on Thursday, however, Wilson's coach from her alma mater, Dawn Staley, shared how the 28-year-old needed polishing when she arrived in college.

"A’ja was hell to deal with, right? 'Cause she's young like she went to private school for like 12 years. All of her schooling was in private school, and so, she needed to be roughened up a little bit to get her ready for what she faces. Like she faces the critics right now but I know she can handle them because we took her through all of that," Staley explained (18:28).

Staley detailed how the South Carolina program helped the two-time WNBA champion in her challenges with dyslexia, a disorder that makes it hard for individuals to read.

"She's had dyslexia right throughout her college career, and I'm like, okay, you going to read in front of the team every time we have a game because we have a scripture reading and an inspirational reading before every pregame meal, and there's somebody that has to read it. So I was like, 'You gonna read,'" she shared. (19:00)

"It took her, her senior year, couldn't do it the first, second or third. Her senior year, she read out loud and she had fun with it. She was like, 'Y'all this is a long one. Y'all going to have to bear with me.' Like it was that kind of liberation," Staley added.

Wilson has since become one of the faces of the WNBA, now entering her eighth year in the league with the Aces as a three-time regular season MVP and a two-time Defensive Player of the Year.

A'ja Wilson fully trusts Dawn Staley because the latter says she keeps an open mind

Later in the interview, Dawn Staley detailed the deep relationship she has with A'ja Wilson. The 54-year-old explained how that relationship is built on trust, similarly to her players of past and present, and the fact that she keeps an open mind to everything.

"So when she gave her entire self to me, the good, the bad, the ugly, entire, and you know, that's why I just have a really strong relationship with her like she could tell me anything. I'm non-judgmental, like young people won't want to tell you everything because they think you're gonna judge them," Staley explained. (19:38)

I don't judge like there's nothing that any one of my current, former, or future players can tell me that's going to rock me that I haven't seen. Everybody's been through like there's no new problems. It's the same old recycling problems. So, just give it here so you're not dealing with it longer than you need to," she concluded.

In the 2024-25 season, Staley and the Gamecocks finished with an overall record of 35-4, winning the regular season title and the conference tournament championship.