From one all-time great to another. Except you may have never heard of this one particular basketball legend. Our man Shaquille O’Neal is making the case to get more notice – and some well-deserved credit – for one of the first female stars of the game. Never heard of Lusia Harris? Hopefully, you will soon.
O’Neal says he was truly surprised that he had not heard Harris’ story. In fact, hers is one of the real untold gems of basketball history. Did you know that a woman was actually drafted by the NBA? Yup, it happened. And yes, it was Lusia Harris.
Harris is arguably one of the greatest women players, and her impact on the WNBA has been tremendous. She has the credit of scoring the first-ever basket in the Olympics and winning three straight national titles. Likewise, she was inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame for her outstanding achievements in the game of basketball.
Lusia Harris was a star player at Delta State University in Mississippi back in the 1970s. During college days, she won multiple championships and broke multiple records. Then she was a member of the first-ever US Women’s basketball team to play in the Olympics. She and teammates won the silver medal in 1976.
But the really interesting part of the story (well, one super-cool part, anyway) was that in 1977, she was drafted 137th overall by the New Orleans Jazz. She was given an offer to play, but she turned it down as she was pregnant at that time. How interesting would that have been, to have a woman playing as a regular member of an NBA squad?
Only now is Harris being recognized for her contribution to the game. After hearing about Harris’ story, Shaq knew he had to be part of making sure she was not lost to basketball history.
When plans were announced to produce a documentary about Harris, O’Neal signed on as one of the Executive Producers of the project. He told reporters why he was interested in the project: “I want to honor Miss Harris, you know, by helping her story get out to the world. I had no idea who she was and I like to consider myself a basketball aficionado.”
Shaq says he believes Lucy Harris made it possible for today’s generation of players to make their impact on the game and on fans of the game. “She made it possible for women to be able to do what they have done today. All the greats before me have made it possible for us to do everything we want to do.“
Be on the lookout for the documentary called “Queen of Basketball.” Shaq and the team who have put the film together are hoping the project will finally make Harrisa household name and finally get her the recognition she deserves.