Pamela McGee has an incredible story as a pioneer professional women's basketball player. She was born and raised in Flint, Michigan.
Pam attended Flint Southwestern Academy before transferring to Flint Northern High School. There, she was an Academic All-American. She also won two back-to-back state championships in women's basketball and women's track. Pam and twin sister Paula were among the first women to receive scholarships when women's basketball became NCAA-sponsored in 1981. Pam was the more physical player of the two.
For the two young Black women, basketball was a ticket to college. Their father died in a boating accident at 35 years old. Their mother was a factory worker who pushed her daughters to continue to develop their expertise in the sport.
Pam would take those skills and dominate at the University of Southern California. She also competed and won gold in the 1986 Olympics before embarking on an international pro career. She went on to be the No. 2 draft pick in the inaugural season of the WNBA at 34 years old. Now she's making history again.
In 2008, Pam's son, JaVale McGee, was drafted by the Washington Wizards and now plays for the Los Angeles Lakers. In 2016, her daughter, Imani McGee-Stafford, was drafted by the Chicago Sky. This made Pam the first WNBA player to ever have children drafted by both the NBA and the WNBA. It is a stunning legacy for someone who paved the way for those who came after her.
Pamela McGee is a trailblazer in women's basketball. She gave her all to the sport before professional aspirations were even a possibility.
Pamela was born and raised in Flint, Michigan. She and twin sister Paula were raised by a single mom, Dianne McGee, who worked at a factory. Dianne came to raise the girls alone after their father died in a boating accident at the age of 35.
Pam attended Flint Southwestern Academy before making her way to Flint Northern High School. There, she flourished as an Academic All-American. She also won two back-to-back state championships in women's basketball and women's track.
As Pam and Paula attended high school, there were rumors that Title IX might allow for women's sports scholarships. Dianne saw a way to get both her daughters to college and pushed them to be the best basketball players they could be.
Pam and Paula were among the first women to receive full scholarships when women's basketball became NCAA-sponsored in 1981. The twins had totally different playing styles, with Pam being the more physical of the two. It's something she joked mirrored her personality as a fierce 6-foot-2 player.
The twins joined the University of Southern California women's basketball team for what would be a historic run. Their teammates included Cynthia Cooper and Cheryl Miller, whom the twins helped recruit.
"There's always a trailblazer, always a first," Pam said of the time, which resulted in 2 NCAA Division One championship titles for their team.
"Someone has to lay a bridge for what comes after. You wouldn't have the WNBA without what we did at USC."
The year of her second championship was 1984. Pam also graduated that year with a BA in economics and social science with an emphasis on finance. She also competed in the US Olympics on Team USA. The team won all six games and a gold medal, with Pam averaging 6.2 points a game.
Pam enjoyed a career in professional basketball that took her to Brazil, France, Italy, and Spain. In 1988, Pam added motherhood to her impressive list of accomplishments. She and fellow basketball player George Montgomery welcomed a son, JaVale. Pam would end up raising JaVale on her own, with her passion for basketball.
In 1994, Pam believed she found love again. She married Kevin Stafford, and that year they welcomed daughter Imani McGee-Stafford. The good times didn't last, however. The two divorced two years later and became entrenched in an ugly, public custody battle for Imani.
That battle only became greater when Pam was drafted to the Sacramento Monarchs as the second overall draft pick in the inaugural WNBA draft in 1997. Kevin was awarded full custody of Imani after Pam's career was deemed too unstable of an environment to raise a child in.
Being drafted at 34 years old wasn't what Pam ever expected. It gave her just two seasons in the WNBA, her second with the Los Angeles Sparks. When all was said and done, Pam moved back to Flint with JaVale. She also served as an assistant coach for the Detroit Shock in 2002. She won a WNBA title in that position in 2003.
By 2008, it was JaVale's turn to shine. He was drafted 18th overall by the Washington Wizards in the NBA draft.
The family's joy was darkened by sorrow in 2009 when matriarch Dianne died. It was a difficult time also because Pam was struggling to reconnect with Imani.
"We would talk for six months, I go see her, we cuss each other out, fight, I go back home and we wouldn't talk for a year," Imani said of the relationship to The Chicago Tribune. "That was basically how it was until I got to college."
Imani's teen years were marred with difficulty for the family. She came to terms with suffering sexual abuse and attempted suicide three times. In the end, being able to throw her all into basketball saved her.
She did just that in her college career at the University of Texas at Austin. During that time, she was able to reconnect and develop a better relationship with Pam. They got on a better footing in 2012, the same year Pam was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame.
"We don't dwell on the past, we just dwell on keeping the light in our future," Pam said of the time. "And [Imani] taught me that. … Sometimes she gives me so much knowledge about understanding, about forgiveness, about resiliency, about being a phenomenal woman."
In 2016, Imani graduated from the University of Texas with an accounting degree. She was also the 10th overall draft pick in the WNBA draft, picked up by the Chicago Sky.
"JaVale's draft day was exciting, but Imani's was a little more exciting because she's a black female," Pam said that day.
"And just the fact that she also graduated from the University of Texas with a degree in accounting in four years."
"She's just a phenomenal woman," she continued. "So I take pride in not only that she's a world-class athlete that sets goals for herself but she's a beautiful woman and a beautiful wife."
The moment wasn't big for just Imani. For Pam, Imani being drafted made her the first and, to date, only former WNBA player to have children drafted to both the NBA and the WNBA. It's a beautiful testament to a legacy that Pam says wouldn't have been possible without Dianne's initial push for her and Paula all those years ago.
"They both (JaVale and Imani) have basketball skills and Plan B's with academic skills," Pam said.
"They can never forget that Dianne McGee cleaned toilets for $1.25 an hour so that I could go to USC and that they must always remember that they set up a legacy that she built.
"I don't care how much money you've got, remember your grandmother was poor. She passed away in 2009, but I told them that they're a product of her legacy."
Pam's own legacy took center stage earlier this year. Pam's role as part of the USC team that changed women's basketball was highlighted in a documentary about the team, HBO's Women of Troy.
"I'm excited to see my mother get the exposure she's deserved her whole career," JaVale told The Orange Country Register at the premiere at USC in March.
"Especially in this day and age, when these things can go viral and people can really see."
It was an eye-opening experience for Imani, who was too young to ever see Pam play for herself.
"I know she's in the (women's basketball) Hall of Fame, that she's an Olympian and all that, but it's way different when you experience it, and hear other people say, 'Your mom's a beast,'" she said.
"And you're watching, and you're like, 'She was a beast.'"
Imani's recent announcement of a two-season hiatus from the WNBA to get her law degree is as much a product of Pam's influence as the WNBA career itself.
Pam is also enjoying the possibilities of what's ahead. JaVale has a 3-year-old daughter, Gigi, who he hopes will follow in the family's footsteps.
"She has an opportunity to follow in those footsteps and be a great basketball player also," JaVale said.
"My mother did so much without knowing what the future would hold."
