The NBA Finals date back to 1947 (when they were known as the Basketball Association of America Finals) and the very 1st NCAA tourney was held in 1939. Olympic basketball competition is even older: it debuted as a demonstration event in 1904 and the men’s version became a medal sport in 1936, with the women finally getting their chance to go for the gold in 1976. The United States has dominated Olympic basketball competition from the start: the men have won 15 gold medals in the 18 tournaments they have participated in during the past 84 years, while the women have won 8 gold medals in the 10 tournaments in which they have competed during the past 44 years. Those of you who were looking forward to the 2020 Olympics opening ceremonies in Tokyo on July 24, 2020 will have to wait an extra 364 days, as the coronavirus caused a postponement until July 23, 2021. Due to the absence of college basketball since mid-March, HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel decided to fill the void by trying to interview as many prior Olympic players/coaches as possible so that you have something to read this summer while not watching the Summer Games. We continue our coverage by chatting with Peggie Gillom-Granderson about having a Hall of Fame sister and winning a gold medal in 2000. Today marks the 20th anniversary of team USA’s 90-61 win over Cuba in Olympic round-robin pool play.
You grew up playing basketball on a dirt court in a cow pasture but did not play on an organized team until 10th grade at Lafayette County High School: how hard was the adjustment from playing in your yard to joining a real team? It was not really a cow pasture but it was a dirt court! There was no real adjustment because I did not start playing until later on because I was tall and people told me that I was pretty good.
After graduating in 1976 you became the 1st African-American woman to be awarded an athletic scholarship to Ole Miss: how big a deal was it at the time? You might think that I am humble but I never thought about it. My brother was there at the time and that was where I wanted to go. I did not realize that accomplishment until much later on.
You remain the all-time leading scorer and rebounder in school history (2486 PTS/1271 REB): did you realize at the time how prolific a player you were, and do you think that anyone will ever break your records? I have no idea. When I played I had the best teammates and had the time of my life. I had fun and when they gave me the ball I would make a turnaround jumper. I just played because I loved the game but I did not realize that I was the leading scorer/rebounder until a long time afterward: I did not look at the stats. My coach did tell me about 1 stat: he told me that I only had about 6 AST in my career (because once the ball went into the black hole it never went out again!). I was told to shoot the ball and that is what I did.
After graduating you played 1 year of pro basketball for the Dallas Diamonds of the Women’s Professional Basketball League: what was it like to play with a legend like Nancy Lieberman and against legends like Carol Blazejowski/Ann Meyers? They were awesome people. Nancy was great to play with and was very funny. She was the stud but our coach never treated her any differently than the rest of us. Annie was not only a great player but 1 of the best people I have ever met. The Blaze could score: she and I were inducted into the Hall of Fame as “Trailblazers of the Game”. It was fun to contact people who I have not seen since my playing days. There were more than 60 players who showed up.
In the 1983 NCAA tourney as an assistant to your former college coach Van Chancellor, you had a 7-PT 3-OT loss to Tennessee: what was it like to face Pat Summitt in March, and where does that rank among the most devastating losses of your career? Tennessee was always great: I think we only beat them once while I was there. I remember playing against Holly Warlick. Pat was a legend back then as well as a great person. We always wanted to beat her but they were always good. I scored 45 PTS against Tennessee and my sister Jennifer scored more than 30 PTS against the Lady Vols.
Jennifer was an amazing scorer whose 2186 PTS ranks #2 on the school’s career scoring list: how did you like coaching her, and who was the better player? We were 2 totally different players. I will give her credit as the better all-around player while I mostly rebounded/scored. She loved the game and played morning/noon/night. I remember her losing a state title game 1 time in Jackson, MS…and she came back that night and was playing ball out on the dirt court. After practice she would ask me why I made her run but we always respected each other on the court. 1 time we played LSU and Coach Van Chancellor was on her case for not doing this and that. I showed him the stat sheet and once he saw that she had 30 PTS/15 REB he felt bad about it.
In 1997 you moved to the WNBA and as an assistant to Chancellor with the Houston Comets you won back-to-back titles in 1997/1998: what is the biggest difference between college basketball and pro basketball, and were do those Comet teams rank among the best that you have ever seen? We had so many great players like Sheryl Swoopes/Cynthia Cooper/Tina Thompson/Kim Perrot: I do not think there will ever be another team like that. They were locked in and played together because they were on a mission. I loved being in the pros because you did not have to worry about recruiting or any other responsibilities. In college you had to worry about ordering the uniforms but in the pros you can just focus on building great relationships. I still stay in touch with the players I coached and we will always have a relationship.
At the 2000 Olympics you and Geno Auriemma were assistants to Coach Nell Fortner on team USA: what was it like to work with Geno, and what did it mean to you to win a gold medal? That was 1 of the best times of my life. You might think there would be a problem with so much talent but Geno was in his place and everyone knew that Nell was the head coach. He gave his input but knew his role and everyone got along and knew what we were there to do. Nell did a great job.
In the spring of 2000 Ole Miss named its soccer/softball/volleyball complex after you and your sister (the Gillom Sports Center), the trophy for the best women’s college basketball player in the state was named in your honor in 2008, and you were inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013: what did it mean to receive such outstanding honors? I cannot believe that: of all the awards the 1 naming the building after us was 1 of the best honors of my life. I am not dead and never donated a ton of money but that shows what the school thought of us! When I got a call that they were naming the Gillom Award after only me I was surprised because Jennifer had more honors than I did. To be named to the Hall of Fame was also shocking: I just played basketball but was not a superstar like Sheryl Swoopes.
After returning to your alma mater as an assistant to your former teammate Carol Ross, you 2 were driving to Memphis on a recruiting trip in 2004 when a patrol car pulled you over for speeding but the cop just gave you a warning and let you go: was that a factor in your decision to marry him the following year?! That was how I met my husband! He pulled us over and told us to slow down: I looked at Carol and said that I could probably go out with him. He called me a few months later, we were married soon after, and are still married 15 years later.