LSU Guard Hailey Van Lith Enters NCAA Transfer Portal, Departing Baton Rouge

Van Lith will depart LSU after one season with Kim Mulkey's program, immediately eligible at next program.

LSU guard Hailey Van Lith has entered the NCAA Transfer Portal after one season with Kim Mulkey's program, a source confirmed to LSU Country's Zack Nagy on Thursday.

The Louisville transfer, who has played four years of college ball, wrapped up her lone season in Baton Rouge on Monday after the Tigers dropped their Elite Eight contest to Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes.

Following the loss, all eyes turned to Van Lith with a decision to be made.

Van Lith had three options to choose from 48 hours after LSU's loss:

1. Return to LSU

2. Enter the NCAA Transfer Portal

3. Enter the 2024 WNBA Draft

LSU players had 48 hours following the loss to Iowa to enter their name into the draft. For Van Lith, the window has clearly passed and she has now made her decision to enter the free agent market for her final season of eligibility.

We saw All-American forward Angel Reese make her announcement to enter the WNBA Draft, with Van Lith's camp now revealing their decision.

It's no secret Van Lith's time in Baton Rouge didn't go according to plan from a performance perspective. She began playing a new position as a true point guard and the transition wasn't as smooth as hoped.

Now, with a COVID year of eligibility in her back pocket, she will enter the NCAA Transfer Portal after averaging 11.6 points and 3.6 assists in her lone season with LSU.

Another key component will be her role in the NIL space. Van Lith has become the face of the Adidas women's basketball campaign along with inking several NIL deals during her college career, but like former LSU star Angel Reese, she believes her brand will follow her wherever she goes.

“You have to kind of look at what type of player you are,” Van Lith said. “There’s some people that have to capitalize in college because they’re not a pro-type player. They’re likability is going to stay in college. And I think for me, that’s not the case. I’m a pro-type player. The deals will follow, like Angel said. The one downfall is visibility. And the amount of times we play on ESPN and ABC and all these major television channels, that becomes a lot less when you go to the WNBA where it’s at right now. You’re not going to be in the media as much, but from a brand aspect, as long as you do what you need to do and keep up that part of your life, then brands, they’re going to follow you when you go to the league.”

For Mulkey, she allowed Van Lith to make the decision on her own. Though she would have liked to have had her starting point guard return to her program, it's a decision that she allowed her to make with her camp.

Here's what Mulkey said after the Tigers dropped their Elite Eight matchup to Iowa on Monday:

“I hope it’s not her last game. But if it is, I’m proud to have been her coach for a year,” Mulkey said of Van Lith. “Hailey Van Lith came to LSU after being an abundant shooter. Shot it a lot at Louisville. Had great success. Was on good teams. She graduated in three years with a finance degree. She wanted to experience all the things I guess she saw from afar with our championship last year. For her to take that leap of faith and leave her comfort zone at Louisville, you don’t see many players do that when she was that big a piece to their puzzle. She has embraced learning a new position, taking less shots. Our last game against UCLA, I thought [Van Lith’s] stats were very good, but I’m an old point guard, and I see all that.

“I am forever indebted to Haley and her unselfish play to come to LSU to play with a lot of great players and learn a new position.”