Nancy Elizabeth Lieberman, nicknamed “Lady Magic”, is a former professional basketball player who played and coached in the WNBA. Lieberman is regarded as one of the greatest figures in women’s basketball.
During the school year, she played for her high school team, but in the summer, played with an AAU team in Harlem, the New York Chuckles. At age 17, Lieberman was named to the USA Basketball team roster. She would play for the team in the 1975 USA Women’s Pan American Team, three years younger than the next youngest teammates.
In 2000, she was inducted into the Nassau County Sports Hall of Fame. Lieberman is a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame, the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame and the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame.
Lieberman set a school record for career assists (961) that still stands today. She led the team in assists each of the four years she was on the team—in her sophomore year she averaged 8.9 per game. Lieberman amassed 2,430 points along with 1,167 rebounds in her collegiate career, producing an average of 18.1 points per game. Lieberman achieved a triple double (40 points, 15 rebounds, 11 assists) against Norfolk State in her sophomore year. Lieberman stole the ball 562 times and assisted a basket 961 times in her college career, believed to be modern records. She is the holder of several single-game and single-season records, including best free-throw shooting percentage in her freshman and sophomore years.