COLUMBIA — The day before Olivia Thompson was set to drive up to Lenoir-Rhyne University, her mom got a phone call.
Thompson had committed to the Bears and was ready to sign paperwork when South Carolina women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley called and offered Thompson a preferred walk-on spot.
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The Lexington, South Carolina, native took one day to decide and then became part of the Gamecocks’ 2023 signing class.
“I had to adjust my perspective,” Thompson told The Greenville News. “I had to disconnect myself from the basketball side of it a little bit. It was still something I really loved, but I was going to South Carolina for the impact, the experiences and for the people I would meet. I just wanted to pour myself into and learn as much as I could.”
Thompson earned a scholarship prior to the 2020-21 season, and graduated with three SEC tournament titles, three Final Four appearances and a 2022 national championship ring but only played 312 minutes across four seasons.
Now, she’s found a new career based entirely around what she always made sure to do when part of Staley’s program: appreciate everyone involved.
How Olivia Thompson started a podcast about South Carolina
After graduation, Thompson approached the Garnet Trust, South Carolina’s official NIL collective, about doing a podcast that highlighted people within the women’s basketball program that play major roles, but aren’t often talked about.
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People like sports performance coach Molly Binetti and athletic trainer Craig Oates.
At the time, the Garnet Trust didn’t have the facilities for a podcast, and Thompson didn’t know much about editing or producing. Before she could teach herself, the NIL collective partnered with 1801 Media last fall, which is an “athlete-driven media network designed to drive new NIL revenue for Garnet Trust,” and one of the first ideas was for Thompson to start the podcast.
“I wanted to create a space for these people to be highlighted,” Thompson said. “To hear about their lives and journeys.”
On Oct. 9, 2024, the first episode of her podcast “The Coop” dropped and Binetti was her first guest. She’s since had guests ranging from former players like Kaela Davis, Zia Cooke, Markeshia Grant and Laeticia Amihere to assistant coaches like Khadijah Sessions.
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She had Te-Hina Paopao and Sania Feagin on the podcast before they moved onto the WNBA, and rising senior forward Chloe Kitts as well. Her most recent episode was a sit down roundtable talk with Feagin’s mom, Joyce Edwards’ mom and Kitts and Tessa Johnson’s parents, recorded during the Final Four run in April.
The podcast has expanded to other women’s sports teams on campus, and Thompson wants the proceeds to go back to whatever program the person being interviewed is from.
Why South Carolina basketball alum Olivia Thompson got into podcasting
Though Thompson had a concrete understanding that her role in the iconic “Freshies” class was different then one of Aliyah Boston or Cooke, she was still dedicated to the basketball side of the program. Limited playing time didn’t mean she had a lack of care or motivation.
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Her brain just had a little bit more time to soak in the intricacies of the program as a whole.
“I wanted to immerse myself in the experience,” Thompson said. “I was so grateful for the times that I did get playing time. That was amazing but the people is what really drew me to South Carolina. When I graduated, I had so much love and appreciation for (people in the program). I just wanted to create something that would lift them up, give back to them, and pour into them, for all that they poured into me.”
A podcast felt like a natural fit, especially since she had brief experience doing color commentary in 2024. Growing up, she was always the one sparking up conversations with adults, and time spent with her friends’ parents wasn’t anxiety inducing like it was for some of her peers.
Unlike her teammates, playing in the WNBA was never the goal. After graduating, she took the entire summer to travel instead.
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When on a 36-foot white water raft in the middle of the Grand Canyon with her family, she soon realized she knew nothing about everyone else around her.
“You just slowly start to befriend these people that you’re on the raft with,” Thompson said. “The community aspect is really important. And I think that’s the parallel between traveling and podcasting is just meeting people. Being curious about their lives and who they are.”
DAWN STALEY: Dawn Staley’s home is with South Carolina women’s basketball but she’s forever Philadelphia
She aims to have that same conversational tone with guests on her show. She acknowledges that her former teammates or coaches, there’s a comfortability factor with her as the host, but now that she’s expanded beyond basketball, her goals remain the same.
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“Everyone’s journey is different, but just getting to know people is really important to me, and hearing them talk about themselves and their life is really cool,” Thompson said. “Express themselves, and show listeners and viewers their personalities and sides that people wouldn’t ordinarily see on any other given day.”
Lulu Kesin covers South Carolina athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email her at lkesin@gannett.com and follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @Lulukesin
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Olivia Thompson’s journey from South Carolina basketball to podcast host
