Gary Blair during the Enshrinement Red Carpet and Ceremony at Symphony Hall in Springfield, MA. Photo By Ethan Mito/Texas A&M Athletics
Former South Oak Cliff High School girls’ basketball coach Gary Blair was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on August 12. The HOF honors those with lasting impacts on the sport and preserves basketball’s grand history.
This is the seventh hall of fame that will sport his name, according to Texas Sports Hall of Fame. Among his former accolades are the Dallas ISD Hall of Fame, the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame, and the Texas High School Basketball Hall of Fame.
Presented by fellow hall-of-famers Sheryl Swoopes and Teresa Witherspoon, Blair’s induction was the culmination of more than 50 years and 37 seasons of championing hopes, dreams, and aspirations of female athletes, according to his biography on the HOF website.
Over the past 50 years, Blair has coached high school and collegiate women’s basketball at South Oak Cliff High School, Louisiana Tech University, the University of Arkansas, Stephen F. Austin University, and Texas A&M.
Gary Blair during Enshrinement Tip-Off Celebration and Awards Gala at Mohegan Sun in Uncansville, CT. The inside of his jacket features all of the teams he’s coached. Photo By Ethan Mito/Texas A&M Athletics
Blair was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame alongside other basketball legends like former Dallas Mavericks ace Dirk Nowitzki, San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovick and former Miami Heat player Dwayne Wade.
When Blair started at South Oak Cliff in 1972, Dallas ISD was struggling to find coaches for its girls’ teams following recent Title IX legislation. Blair was hired to teach physical education and architecture, but was asked to coach the women’s basketball team, according to Texas Monthly.
Blair would go on to lead the lady golden bears to three state championships in 1977, 1978 and 1980. According to Wikipedia, Blair’s overall record at South Oak Cliff was 239-18.
After his start in South Oak Cliff, Blair’s career took him to schools in Louisiana and Arkansas before he returned to Texas to coach at Stephen F. Austin University.
Blair cemented himself in Division I coaching history after serving as the Texas A&M women’s basketball head coach for 19 seasons.
According to the Texas Sports Hall of Fame, Blair only experienced one losing season and is a two-time national finalist for the Naismith Coach of The Year award. He is also one of three Divison I coaches to lead two separate women’s basketball teams- Arkansas and A&M- to the national Final Four tournament.
Blair ranked third in career victories among active Division I coaches before his retirement, totaling an 852-348 overall record according to Texas A&M’s website. He led the Aggies to 16 NCAA tournaments and a 2011 national championship.
Blair saw nearly 60 former collegiate players and assistants amount to success in the basketball world as coaches themselves according to Texas A&M’s 12th Man Foundation.
“It thrills me to see so many young women I’ve coached through the decades that have used their basketball experiences as a stepping stone towards great careers,” Blair said in his induction speech. He went on to say that 10 of his former players are current Division I head coaches, including LSU women’s basketball head coach Kim Mulkey who just won the 2023 national championship.
After retiring at the conclusion of the 2021–22 season, Texas A&M named their home basketball court in Blair’s honor.
Blair told Texas Monthly that it was South Oak Cliff that taught him communication skills and to disregard prejudice. He remembers most importantly the way his coaching instilled confidence in his players.
“We need more representation of women in this Hall of Fame, as coaches, players, administrators, and all of the greats that have ever elevated the women’s game,” Blair concluded in his induction speech.
