Although former Louisiana State University coach Sue Gunter1 passed away on August 4, 2005, she will be present in Beijing in spirit for Minnesota Lynx forward Seimone Augustus.2
“Coach Gunter is responsible for me being on the USA team,” says Augustus, 24. “I got down and depressed after I got cut twice. I didn’t want to play USA Basketball no more. She came and talked to me.” Gunter talked Augustus into trying out for the 2003 FIBA World Championship for Young Women (under 21).
“At the time, I knew I had been cut before and I didn’t want to go through that feeling again,” she adds. “She made sure all my paperwork was turned in and made sure I got on that flight to Colorado Springs to make that team. She is a very big part of me being in USA Basketball experiences.”3
Augustus will bring her parents with her to Beijing, even though her father is already complaining about the long flight. It seems only fitting that he be there, as she credits him with a lot of her on-court success.
“The day I found out I made the Olympic team was an emotional day for me,” Augustus says. “I actually broke down and cried and called my dad and talked to him. He was the one that worked with me. I thanked him for putting in those extra hours to help me be the player that I am today. It was like a dream come true. It was a weight lifted up off my shoulders to know I can actually be considered one of the elite players to go and represent our country.”
Extremely shy off the court, Augustus is happy to have former college teammate Sylvia Fowles on the team. She is undaunted by the fact that the Olympic team has two Lady Tigers versus three Lady Vols. “LSU and Tennessee have their rivalry, but I don’t think we’re going to bring that over to USA Basketball,” she says.—Lois Elfman #40
Bonus Points
1. In 1980, Gunter was selected as head coach for the U.S. women’s Olympic team and led it to the title in the Olympic Qualifying Tournament. Unfortunately, the US boycotted the 1980 Olympic Games.
2. Augustus was named WNBA Rookie of the Year in 2006 and made the All-WNBA Second Team in 2007.
3. Among Augustus’s teammates in the summer of 2003 were fellow future WNBA players Lindsay Whalen, Kristen Mann, Nicole Ohlde, Cappie Pondexter, Temeka Johnson and Alana Beard. Augustus was named tournament MVP.
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