South Carolina HC Dawn Staley hilariously jibes at Aces' A'ja Wilson while challenging her to dunk: "You might avoid getting a 5th place MVP vote"

Dawn Staley, the star head coach of the South Carolina Gamecocks, is just as humorous as she is talented and analytical. These days, Staley has been enjoying all the finer things in life, the most recent being receiving an exclusive invite to the Gucci Spring/Summer 2025 Men's Fashion Show in Milan.

Apart from making exclusive and fashionable appearances at events, she has been using social media to connect with fans. While connecting with fans is an essential part of forging relationships for a coach, Dawn Staley did not forget about her former student-athlete, A'ja Wilson, whom she challenged to dunk during a game while also taking a playful shot at.

Staley replied to a fan-edited video and wrote:

"Aaayeeeee [Aj'a Wilson] can you still do this?!! I know you can but let me see you turn that thing over on them….might as well you’re doing everything else. But I mean you might avoid getting a 5th place MVP vote this year if you don’t."

Wilson received a fourth-place vote for MVP last year as she finished behind Alyssa Thomas and Breanna Stewart, who won the award. This is why Staley asked her to slam a powerful dunk, as it may help her get higher votes for MVP this season.

Aja Wilson once wore Dawn Staley's SLAM 250 cover feature merch

Dawn Staley was the cover star for the 250th edition of SLAM magazine. She is the only coach to appear on the cover after getting featured with Aliyah Boston, Zia Cooke, and Destanni Henderson in 2022. It was an exciting feat that she achieved after winning her second national championship title with the Gamecocks squad.

To celebrate the release of the digital cover of the magazine, the former South Carolina star and current Las Vegas Aces player, A'ja Wilson, flaunted SLAM merchandise with Staley's cover on it.

Wilson wore the merchandise before the matchup between the Aces and the Atlanta Dream on June 1. She paired the black t-shirt with a red and black checkered, pleated skirt and added chains to the ensemble.

When Coach Staley saw the outfit, she wrote:

"The black one too! I gotta cop both them!! 🥰🥰🥰"

Hence, this is another such interaction that shows the close relationship shared by Dawn Staley and one of her former players.