McCray, a former star at nearby Tennessee who was an Olympic teammate of Staley's, is also being enshrined.
"At first, we didn't know we were both going in," McCray said. "I happened to mention it one day, and she said, 'Hey, I'm going in also.'
"I'm just so grateful to be going in with her," McCray said. "We have so much history together. Obviously, this is a special moment for us and the University of South Carolina. But it is a tribute to how hard that we worked and the lives that we touched."
Incidentally, McCray's Hall of Fame college coach, Pat Summitt, who in April gave up her longtime coaching duties to become coach emeritus, stole a little thunder from the weekend events Friday by making a hole-in-one on the 17th green at Sevierville Golf Club.
Summitt has been battling early onset dementia, Alzheimer's type.
The other four inductees Saturday night are former Old Dominion star Inge Nissen, a teammate of Nancy Lieberman's; Pam Magee, the former Southern California star who was on the same team as her twin sister, Paula, and Cheryl Miller; Nancy Fahey, coach at Division III Washington in St. Louis; and, as a contributor, Good Morning America host Robin Roberts. Roberts announced women's games in the early years of the working relationship between ESPN and the NCAA.
Staley will become the 14th notable inductee with Philadelphia-area connections in a group that includes former Immaculata coach Cathy Rush and Mighty Macs stars Marianne Stanley and Theresa Grentz, Rutgers coach C. Vivian Stringer, and Connecticut coach Geno Auriemma.
Staley's former Olympic teammates Ruthie Bolton, Katrina McClain, and Teresa Edwards are previous inductees.
Former longtime Virgina coach Debbie Ryan, who guided a Staley-led bunch of Cavaliers to three straight women's Final Fours in the early 1990s, will be Staley's presenter in her video introduction Saturday night. Her mother, Estelle, will escort her to the podium.
Staley's coaching era at Temple (2000-2008) will subtly be part of the ceremonies.
"Natalia Isaac wrote my induction speech," said Staley, referring to one of her first players on the Owls. "I told her if you can chronicle my career and put it in a way I can say it, go for it, and she's been right on."
Staley, who turned 42 last month, had a slew of honors playing for the Dobbins Tech Public League champions; at Virginia; in the WNBA and former ABL; and in the Olympics, with three gold medals.
Her highlight moment, she said, will always be carrying the American flag at the opening ceremonies in 2004 at the Athens Games.
On the court, winning the 1996 gold medal in Atlanta is her favorite experience.
"No question. My first one. Just the whole culmination of the 14 months, how we trained, that bond. It all came together, and we played our best basketball when we were supposed to play it," Staley said. "It was perfectly scripted."
