2023-12-24 09:20:49
With the creation of the WNBA In 1996, women began to gain ground in the American basketball. An emergence of the women’s league that allowed players of the stature of Diana Taurasi, Cynthia Cooper or Tamika Catchings to write her name in the history of the sport. But what regarding before?
Despite the inclusion of women’s basketball in the 1976 Montreal Olympics, the United States’ top talents had nowhere to play. Precisely in those years, the legendary figure of Lucy Harris; the first, only and last woman to be selected in an NBA Draft. A superlative talent that was born in the wrong time.
From Olympic medalist to NBA star
According to the records of the NBA, the legend of Harris began in the small town of Minter City in Mississippi, where he was born (in 1955) and grew up in a humble family dedicated to the field of cotton picking. Despite his modest resources, his house was one of the few that had a television, which he used to watch stars like Wilt Chamberlain, Oscar Robertson y Kareem Abdul-Jabbarhis main childhood idols.
The love for basketball awoke early in Lusia, who practiced day and night – with what she had at her disposal and with one of her ten brothers – to lead the Amanda Elzy High School, his institute, to the national finals. From a young age you might see her talent, something that exploded years later in college.
In his four years of university, his average did not drop below 26 points and 14 rebounds per match. An extraordinary performance that led her to be nominated by the USA for Montreal 1976, where he led the American team to the silver medalfollowing losing in the final once morest the Soviet Union.
The university was too small for Harris and, without a national women’s league, she was the cast of the NBA, New Orleans Jazz -currently Utah Jazz-, who said: ‘And why not?’.
Lucy Harris
This is how, in the 1977 Draft, the team led by the legendary Pete Maravich selected Harris in the seventh round, ahead of Jack Sikma, Norm Nixon and Rickey Green, who were All-Star years later. An election that was destined to mark a before and following in the league.
Marriage, pregnancy and a “no” to the NBA
However, Harris’s move to the NBA did not materialize. The physical differences between both genders, her mental health and her decision to start a family were the main reasons for the Olympic medalist said “no” to the main men’s basketball league. A response that ended up stopping his career.-
In the short documentary film titled ‘The Queen of Basketball’told how he rejected the NBA.
“I wanted to continue playing, but I had nowhere to go. In my time, I mightn’t play in the WNBA because it didn’t exist. My high school boyfriend, George, asked me to marry him and I accepted. Then the phone rang and someone from the New Orleans Jazz asked for me. ‘We want you to come and try out with the team,’ they told me.”Harris said.
Sign honoring Harris in Winter City
Along the same lines and despite the selection of the New Orleans cast being finalized, the former basketball player explained the reasons why she decided to decline this offer.
“There are various forms of mental illness. Mine is bipolar disorder… I had already decided to start a family, I thought it was a publicity stunt and I felt like I wasn’t prepared enough. Compete once morest women, yes. But competing once morest men is another story. I said no. “I said no to the NBA.”he stressed.
In the same year, Harris announced her professional retirement at the age of 22. And the WNBA was created 20 years later, so she only had to remain linked to basketball following returning to the institute as a teacher and coach. However, her legacy continued to grow in college and university sports and she never showed any regrets regarding her decision.
“I have good memories of when I played basketball. But I don’t regret not going to the NBA one bit. You know why? Christopher is a lawyer. Eddie has a master’s degree. Christina has a Ph.D. Crystal too, precisely at my university, Delta State. They are all good athletes. Recently they, my children, told me: ‘Mom, we didn’t know you were a star.’ And I answered: ‘Yes, I had my good days.’”he said.
The first black woman to enter the Basketball Hall of Fame
Years passed and a case similar to that of Lusia Harris was never seen; a talent that broke gender barriers and began to chart the path of women’s basketball in the United States.
Gail MarquisHarris’ rival and former teammate in the university league, recalled in ESPN What it meant for her to face this extraordinary talent: “We all learned from her… We thought we were good, then we saw the next level of basketball in her, and we weren’t there. She affected so many players. Whether we had the opportunity to see her or play once morest her, you had to raise your game.”.
In 1992, made history once more. This time, she became the first black woman to be inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame, and she was also inducted into the WNBA Hall of Fame in 1999.
“If I had been a man, there would have been options for me, I might have continued playing. Surely, I would have earned more money, I would have been able to do many things… Yes, the players of my time were already millionaires and famous, but all I wanted was to play more”Harris acknowledged in an interview with the newspaper Chicago Sun Times.
It should be noted that in 1976, another woman, Denise Long, was selected in the NBA Draft, although her selection was annulled by league agents. For her part, Ann Meyers managed to sign a contract with the Indiana Pacers in 1979 and managed to train with the first team, however, she was never selected, so the case of Harris remains the exception… A story that made it to the Oscars .
Lucy Harris
The Queen of Basketball
And the legacy of Lusia Harris was not only recognized by the world of women’s basketball, but also by stars of the caliber of Stephen Curry y Shaquille O’Nealwho not only had good words for the former basketball player, but went further and became executive producers of the short documentary film regarding the life of the only woman drafted in the NBA; ‘The Queen of Basketball’.
‘The Queen of Basketball’ Poster
A 22-minute work directed by Ben Proudfoot that shows the feat achieved by Harris and how she managed to break stereotypes in the 70’s, also emphasizing the free choice of female athletes on how to continue their careers.
After its premiere, the film began to make its way on the big screen with countless positive reviews, which led it to be presented at the 2022 Oscars. where it won the statuette for ‘best short documentary’.
“If there is anyone out there who still doubts whether there is an audience for female athletes and whether their stories are valuable, entertaining or important… let this Academy Award be the answer.”said the director following receiving the award.
One year following the premiere of the short documentary film, on January 19, 2022, American basketball was saddened by the death of Lusia Harris at the age of 66. The death of an icon who left an indelible legacy in women’s sports and who achieved the giant recognition that she might not have in life.
“I wish Lucy might have been here for this victory, but I’m sure she will be celebrating in heaven.”‘Shaq’ wrote on his social networks to celebrate the award.
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