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 16 gold medals in the 19 tournaments they have participated in during the past 87 years, while the women have won 9 gold medals in the 11 tournaments in which they have competed during the past 47 years. While we have to wait 1 more year until the 2024 Olympics in Paris, HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel will fill the void by interviewing as many prior Olympic players/coaches as possible. We continue our coverage by chatting with Juliene Brazinski Simpson about winning a silver medal and being inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame. Today is Juliene’s birthday so let us be the 1st to wish her a happy 1!
You were a 4-time AAU All-American PG at John F. Kennedy College and also won a national softball title as a 3rd baseman: which sport were you best at, and which sport did you enjoy the most? Basketball was my 1st love starting when I was very young. My older brother gets all the credit for my love of the game because he would drag me everywhere to play. However, I also enjoyed playing baseball so my brother encouraged me to try out for the softball team and plan third base. In college, I showed up a week early to try out for the softball team and made the roster. Our college won three World Series in a row: I was proud to be on the team for one of those College World Series titles. I had played baseball before but never softball so it was a learning experience. Thank god I had good reaction time after figuring out where I should stand!
After graduating in 1974 you and your husband became the 1st people in New Mexico to teach co-ed physical education: how did people feel about a woman coaching a high school boys’ basketball team? Mike and I were the first teachers to lead a co-ed physical education class in the state of New Mexico. We trained together and the staff and parents at Cathedral High School saw how hard we trained. They took the time to get to know us as people so we had their support. However, opposing coaches would often not shake my hand and our players would get heckled on the court for having a female coach. I always praised them for their strength and for hanging in there. We made it to the playoffs during my very 1st year. As time went on, I became more accepted as a woman coaching boys and eventually other schools began to follow suit. We had an amazing time in Gallup: I still keep in touch with a lot of my former players.
In 1975 you won a gold medal with team USA at the Pan Am Games: how big a deal was it to win the country’s 1st gold medal in 12 years? I played on 11 teams in my career that represented the USA: the 1976 Olympics, World University Games, Pan American Games, international tours, etc. I never went into a game thinking about winning a medal…but any time you win a medal it is a big deal. The camaraderie we had on the Pan American team is what I believe led us to win the gold medal. I felt a responsibility to give my best and show other women what was possible.
Take me through the 1976 Olympics as a player for team USA:
You were a co-captain along with Pat Summitt: could you tell at the time that she would end up becoming 1 of the greatest coaches in the history of the sport? She played with such passion and determination so it was no surprise to me that these qualities helped her become an extraordinary coach. However, I am unsure if I knew that at the time.
What did it mean to you to represent your country, and what did it mean to you to win a silver medal? First, it was an honor to make the Olympic team and be selected as a co-captain. Every time that I put on the USA uniform to represent my country it was a wonderful feeling. To this day, I still wear a lot of USA clothing and gear because I am proud to have been selected to represent our country. It was not easy to make the final roster: there were about 10-12 people on the selection committee. Tryouts were held throughout the US and there was a lot of competition so you never felt secure. When I finally saw my name on the list I felt so proud and humble: it was a dream come true. If I close my eyes I can still remember that feeling. Even 4 years prior to the 1976 Olympics the IOC was still in discussions about including women’s basketball. Once the team was selected the players had to select 2 teammates as co-captains: they chose me and Pat. I pinch myself because even though I knew I was a good leader I was just thrilled to make the team, let alone be selected as a captain. Pat and I both took our roles very seriously and worked very well together. For example, when difficult things needed to be said, being from New Jersey, I was very direct and the kids from the Midwest would just stare at me! Pat would use her sweet Southern accent to say the same thing in a different way than I did. My hometown newspaper did not even think that we would make it out of the pre-Olympic tournament so standing on the podium I just said a little prayer thanking everyone who believed in me from the bottom of my heart. After we won, there was a small room full of media who was finally interested in our team. A reporter asked what we thought would happen after winning the silver medal: Coach Billie Moore said that we would impact women’s athletics for the next 25 years.
You set an Olympic record by making all 16 of your FT attempts: what is the secret to being a great FT shooter? Practice, practice, practice! NBA Hall of Famer Rick Barry lived four houses away from me and held the highest percentage for free throw shooting at the time. I would shoot 100 FTs and say to myself that Rick would have made 96, so if I missed 4 before making 96 then I would start over and try to make 97. At JFK, we played Wayland Baptist in the Women’s NIT 1 year: after getting fouled I missed a couple of FTs and we lost by 1 PT. I was devastated and vowed that it would never happen again. I did not set out to be perfect in the Olympics but I developed a lot of confidence under pressure. Another statistic you see published is that Lusia Harris scored the very 1st bucket in Olympic women’s history: I passed her the ball! I was at a basketball camp last year and reminded everyone that I am at the top of the FT list with Diana Taurasi right below me.
You spent more than 2 decades as head coach at Cincinnati/ASU/Bucknell/Marshall: what is the key to being a good coach? One of many things that Billie Moore taught us was to have high standards both on and off the court. When I got into coaching I would call her to ask advice: I modeled myself after her. You need to have the total package…or else find an assistant who possesses the strengths that you do not have. The key to being successful is setting standards for yourself and working to achieve your goals by utilizing the people who came before you. As a young coach, sometimes I would get frustrated with players who would not buy into my system: Billie said that I could not change everyone but that if I kept working hard then someday they might buy in.
In 2000 you were inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame: where does that rank among the highlights of your career? It was a great honor. When I received the call I was elated because being inducted was something that I never dreamed of.
You later spent more than a decade as athletic director at Saint Elizabeth University: how did you like being an administrator compared to being a coach? You have to be a creative problem solver. If I had to decide an ending to my career I could not have come up with a better situation. When I arrived at CSE, an all-women’s college, they only had 4-5 sports. During my time there the college went co-ed and I led the transition to having both men’s and women’s sports. I am proud to say that the very 1st year for men’s athletics our department enrolled 100 men to compete in 3 sports. Now there are 6 men’s sports and the athletic program is booming. It was a great end to my career in athletics to make such a significant impact on the college and the student-athletes.
You retired in 2020: what have you been up to since then? I have focused on my family. For over 30 years, I worked hard to shape the lives of other people’s children and now I am completely on my own. We have a daughter here in New Jersey and another daughter in Texas. When you are a coach you often miss a birthday or other special event so now I am enjoying life, having fun, and never missing a birthday or special event. I still remain active in athletics by speaking throughout the U.S. and by volunteering locally at basketball camps. I remember Billie telling me that I would enjoy retirement and will never forget that she called me the day after I retired and said, “Welcome to the Saturday Club!” because in retirement everyday you wake up is Saturday and you can do whatever you want.
