The Minnesota Lynx great sat down with Mitchell Hansen on the Hitting the Hardwood podcast to talk about her 2024 Hall of Fame induction and her basketball career.
Throughout her entire basketball career — starting at the high school level at Capitol High School in Louisiana, to collegiately at LSU and later in the WNBA with the Minnesota Lynx and Los Angeles Sparks — Seimone Augustus dominated the game.
And not only did she just dominate the game, but she helped change the game for future generations of players.
When you think of Augustus on the court, you think of that jump shot, that signature crossover, that fire, energy and tenacity, that passion, and ultimately her dominance. Off the court, she was just as impressive, giving back to her home town of Baton Rouge, Louisiana as well as the Twin Cities community — something she continues to do to this day.
Augustus helped change the game over the years, both on and off the court, something that made her an absolute no brainer to one day be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
Though she thought it might happen one day, Augustus was somewhat surprised when that became a reality on April 6 when she was announced as one of the inductees who will be included in the Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2024. She is now one of two Lynx players, joining fellow teammate Lindsay Whalen, to be elected into the Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility.
“I was there last year when Whalen go inducted, just sitting there as a proud teammate. Seeing her get inshrined was amazing, not knowing that mine would be right around the corner,” Augustus said on the Hitting the Hardwood Podcast with Mitchell Hansen. “Now here I am. I am truly thankful for the career that I had and that people loved it and respected it enough to put me into the Hall of Fame.”
The Call to the Hall
Augustus found out of her induction the morning everyone else did on April 6, a moment that she won’t forget — mainly because she actually missed the phone call alerting her of her induction.
“They called and I actually missed the call,” Augustus said with a laugh. “I checked the voicemail and it was the President of the Board, and I was like ‘hell no.’ Right after that, they sent an email that confirmed it. I was just like ‘oh my god, I missed the most important call of my basketball career’.”
After that confirmation and following the official announcement of her being part of Hall of Fame’s Class of 2024, Augustus received an overwhelming amount of support and congratulatory messages from family, friends, former teammates and others in the sports world.
“It actually hit me the day it was announced. Once it came out, everybody just flooded me with text messages and emails and all this love,” Augustus said. “I just kind of sat there and at that moment was when I had my moment of like ‘oh my god.’ Just what I’ve done and what I’ve meant to people. … You never know what you’ve done for people or what you mean to people until something like this happens. The floodgates opened for me at that moment.”
Along with receiving well-wishes from those closest to her, Augustus was also showered with support from the Lynx community, something that has been consistent since she was drafted first overall in the 2006 WNBA Draft.
“The Lynx community is always amazing. It felt like every season ticket holder, every person that had been a part of my career for the 14 years that I was there, they just reached out,” Augustus said. “Even the staff, everybody from the Wolves side, you name it. I had so many people reach out and say they were thankful for the experience they had with me and was so proud of me and just sending me so much love.”
“Then there was the basketball community. I think it never hits you because you’re competitors, and when you’re competing, you don’t think about the admiration that some of your peers have for you. I think that took me back a little,” Augustus added. “So many people were just like, the way that you carried yourself, who you were when you when you were competing, it was just the utmost respect. I’m glad I was able to experience that.”
Leaving Her Mark
Augustus never viewed herself as someone who left a big impact on the game, that was until her career concluded and since people have begun reaching out to her to share stories about how she changed the game for them.
“When I look at players like a Diana (Taurasi) and Candace (Parker), I didn’t have as big of an impact as they did. But I had an impact that I didn’t even know. It could be as simple as someone like Layshia Clarendon who at the ESPN Summit said ‘I didn’t see someone like myself until I saw Seimone’,” Augustus said. “I never really thought I had that big of an impact until people started to tell me how it impact the game.
“You never really know how your game is going to translate or if people really are really gonna appreciate it. They were like ‘we loved it to the T. We loved everything about your game.’ That made me feel good.”
Augustus’ impact didn’t just occur while on the court, but she has always been dedicated to giving back in any way she can off the court, both in the communities she lived and played in, and beyond.
“I have to take my hat off to Coach Reeve. She was the one that used her voice a lot and she was pushing us out there. She knew what we possessed and she wanted us to be able to use it,” Augustus said. “The first few times that I got out there, whether it was with the underprivileged kids at different high schools around Minneapolis, or the LGBTQ community, just being out and being vocal with them. There were so many amazing moments where now I understand why I was put in the position I was put in, why I’m surrounded be the people I’m surrounded by, and what I’m supposed to be doing.
“It’s not just putting the ball through the basket, but it’s to inspire and move people in ways that in their career path they can continued to elevate the next human being. I always took pride in (being involved in the community). Once it stated, I couldn’t stop. And I don’t plan on stopping, I plan to continue to give back in ways that I can whether that’s vocally, financially or time-wise and just being there.”
Augustus has received endless amounts of awards and honors at every level for what she did on the court as a player. A list of accomplishments that she hadn’t really had time to sit back and reflect upon until her former LSU and Lynx teammate Sylvia Fowles called her to wish her congratulations for the Hall of Fame induction.
“When I thought about it, I was like ‘Syl, everywhere we stopped, we’ve had an impact.’ LSU, your jersey is retired. Minnesota, your jersey is retired. You got a statue, you got this and that. Everywhere I went, I left a mark or I made a mark in some way,” Augustus said. “I don’t know if that was my intent. While I was in it, I was just happy to be playing basketball and doing something I was extremely passionate about.”
Augustus’ latest — and perhaps biggest — honor, being inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, is certainly well deserved. She left her impact on the game in more ways that she knows, and helped change the game for the better for years to come.
“Now when I look back, it’s like, you did what you were supposed to have done, in many ways. Now you’ve left a mark,” Augustus said. “Hopefully that inspires (other players) to want to be hanging in the rafters or doing as much or more than I did during my time.”
Listen to the Full Podcast
Hear the entire Hitting the Hardwood podcast with Seimone Augustus, including her full comments about being inducted into the 2024 Hall of Fame, as well as what she thinks about the state of women’s basketball after the NCAA Tournament, what she believes the Lynx will do in 2024, and more!