A luxury boutique manager learned a hard lesson about judging a book by its cover when they rudely dismissed legendary basketball coach Dawn Staley, assuming she was just another person who “looked homeless.” What followed next, however, left the entire store – and the world – absolutely stunned.

The incident took place at an upscale boutique in a high-end shopping district, where Staley, a six-time WNBA All-Star and Olympic gold medalist, walked in dressed comfortably in sweats and sneakers. While she may not have been sporting designer brands from head to toe, her presence should have been enough to command respect.

Instead, the boutique manager took one look at her and decided she didn’t “belong.” According to witnesses, the manager approached her with a cold, dismissive attitude before outright kicking her out of the store.

“Excuse me, ma’am, but we have a policy against loitering,” the manager reportedly said. “This is a high-end boutique, and we can’t have people like you in here.”

Dawn Staley, known for her fierce leadership both on and off the court, didn’t cause a scene. Instead, she quietly left—but what she did next would turn the situation upside down.

Instead of simply walking away, Staley made a phone call. Within minutes, the boutique’s corporate headquarters received a furious complaint—not from an ordinary customer, but from one of the most respected figures in the sports world.

Unbeknownst to the store manager, Staley had close ties to the boutique’s top executives—and she wasn’t afraid to use them. Within hours, the boutique’s CEO personally reached out to apologize. But that wasn’t all.

The fallout was swift. The manager who humiliated Staley was immediately fired, and the boutique released a public statement emphasizing its commitment to inclusivity and respect.

When asked about the incident, Staley didn’t call for further backlash, but instead used it as a lesson for others.

“You can’t judge people by what they wear,” she later said in an interview. “Respect should be given freely, not based on appearance or assumptions.”

This event serves as a powerful reminder that true luxury isn’t about expensive clothes or fancy storefronts—it’s about how you treat people. And as the boutique manager learned the hard way, one bad decision can cost you everything.

In the end, Dawn Staley left the store without buying a single item—but she walked away with something far more valuable: respect, dignity, and the last laugh.

Dawn Staley has a strength of schedule question after UCLA tops South Carolina for No. 1 overall seed

COLUMBIA — For the last three years, South Carolina women’s basketball has been the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA tournament but that isn’t the case in 2025.

The Gamecocks (30-3) are the No. 2 overall seed but one of four No. 1 seeds, hosting in the Birmingham 2 Region. UCLA, which beat the defending national champions on Nov. 24, is the top seed in Women’s March Madness.

Coach Dawn Staley and South Carolina will open tournament play with a first-round game against No. 16 Tennessee Tech on Friday in Colonial Life Arena.

When the Bruins (30-2) were announced as the tournament’s best team, a few boos rang through the crowd that showed up to watch the selection show on Sunday live from CLA with the team.

“I am not in the (selection) room but obviously I think we did much more than probably any other No. 1 overall seed,” Staley said to media following the reveal. “We outdid ourselves even from last year with the amount of quality wins that we had but I guess the committee was looking at something else.

In Columbia, the winner of South Carolina vs. Tennessee Tech will play the winner of No. 8 Utah and No. 9 Indiana.

“The draw is the draw,” Staley said. “We’re going to play each game like it’s our last.”

Staley said, when asked, that her gut feeling was that her team would be the No. 1 overall seed because of the work her team put in.

After losing to UConn on Feb. 16, South Carolina dropped to No. 2 in the NET rankings but no team in Division I women’s basketball has more Quad 1 wins than the Gamecocks. They have 16 Quad 1 wins and three Q1 losses. UCLA is No. 4 in the NET and has 13 Q1 wins.

“We’re going to play it, obviously it’s disappointing,” Staley said. “I’d like to get some feedback on how they came to that conclusion because we put together, we manufactured a schedule that if done right, it should produce the overall No. 1 seed. But I will say this, we’re going to make adjustments to our schedule in the future if the standard is the standard. If that’s the standard, we can play any schedule and get the No. 1 seed.”