LSU's Hailey Van Lith makes brutally honest admission about Louisville transfer

01/04/2024 21:25

Hailey Van Lith, the guard who made headlines last year with her transfer from Louisville to LSU women’s basketball, openly discussed the challenges she faced during her transition, particularly noting a drop in scoring and minutes on the court. Despite these obstacles, Van Lith has maintained a resilient attitude during her first season with the Tigers.

"What I'm most proud of is, I feel like it's been a fight for me all year, but I've been willing to get back in the battle every time," Van Lith said, as reported by Nicole Auerbach of The Athletic. "In my head, I'll have a couple of bad games and be like, I just can't figure this out. But I won't give up.'

"I'm getting back in the ring. I'm getting back in there to fight."

The transition to LSU was not smooth sailing for Van Lith, as she quickly discovered. After her announcement to enter the transfer portal and subsequently join LSU, Van Lith faced a wave of criticism from individuals she previously considered friends.

"It really tore me down," Van Lith said. "I was really starting to second-guess the decision … As athletes, we're out there in the public … People judge what we do. It's part of the profession. And so I needed to learn. I needed to be able to handle that."

The backlash led to moments of self-doubt regarding her decision to transfer. However, Van Lith credits her faith and thoughtful decision-making process with helping her navigate through turbulent times, ultimately reinforcing her conviction that the move to LSU was the right one.

“It was a decision I had prayed on. It was a very thought-out decision. It was something I needed to do,” Van Lith said. “But I was second-guessing that because of what other people were saying. I was like, 'Hailey, why isn't what you feel ever enough for yourself? This is too much.' I'm 22 now. I've got to figure this out."

Hailey Van Lith’s LSU journey is about more than basketball

Van Lith’s journey at LSU involved more than just adapting to a new team’s playing style; it also included significant personal growth, much of which she attributes to her work with Derick Grant, a life coach and former Harlem Globetrotter. Grant, who Van Lith met through their shared sports agency, helped her shift her focus from scoring and individual achievements to making meaningful contributions on the court that benefit the team as a whole.

"The big thing with Hailey was realizing the power you have in your perspective," Grant said. "We get told what a good or a bad game is. Oh, you didn't score 20? You didn't get 10 assists? You didn't do this. That shapes our perspective of ourselves.

"Obviously, this year has not been exactly the way she had expected on the court. But the beauty of it is, you still have the ability to re-shift your perspective. Instead of, 'How many shots did I get?' it's, 'Am I getting my teammates involved? Am I knocking down the shots that I do get?' It's a shift in the way she sees herself."

LSU head coach Kim Mulkey has been vocal about Van Lith’s value to the team, highlighting her contributions beyond scoring. In recent games, Van Lith’s performance as a point guard—facilitating plays, securing turnovers and bolstering the team’s defense—has been pivotal, according to Mulkey. These contributions, while not always reflected in scoring statistics, are essential for controlling the game’s tempo and contributing to the team’s wins.

Heading into Monday’s Elite Eight matchup against top-seeded Iowa, Van Lith is focused on her impact on the game, even if it’s not through scoring as much as before. She’d "rather be known as a winner than a scorer" anyway, she said.

This season has marked by personal growth for Hailey Van Lith

Van Lith’s first season at LSU has been marked by personal and athletic growth, as she’s adapted to a new team dynamic and faced the pressures associated with playing for a top-ranked program. Despite the lower scoring and minutes, Van Lith’s focus has been on making winning plays and contributing to the team’s success in any way possible.

"I had to get better, and this was what was going to make me better," Van Lith said. "I might not see the fruit of it this year, but I'm going to see the fruit of it at some point in my life. I have faith in that and do not need instant gratification from (the decision). That's why I believe in God. It's why I believe in something bigger than myself.

"My truth is that this was a step outside of my comfort zone, and I proved that I could do it. I proved that I could be a point guard and play defense and be on a team with other great players. I proved everything to myself that I needed to prove."

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