11-05-2025
Thoughts About Death Made Kim Mulkey Choose Between Family and Basketball
LSU women's basketball head coach Kim Mulkey is entering her fifth season with the Tigers, but she's been a fixture of the sport since 2000, her first season as the Baylor Bears head coach.
The three-time AP College Basketball Coach of the Year and four-time national champion as a coach spoke on an episode of "Get Gordon Presents" about her family, faith and true priorities in life.
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"I told the Baylor president at the time, if a decision has to be made between my family and my job, that decision was made a long time ago. I always keep my priorities in line. And I always think, 'When I die and those kids stand at that casket, are they going to look at their mom and go, 'She put her career in front of us"? Or are they going to say, 'She had a great career but she never lost her priorities and her priority was us.'
LSU coach Kim Snook-Imagn Images
"That's why I always make decisions including Makenzie, including Kramer, now Clay, my son-in-law. ... Everything I do, I make sure it revolves around them."
Mulkey coached at Baylor from 2001 to 2021, winning three titles with the Big 12 program. Notably, her Lady Bears team in the 2011-12 season finished 40-0 and won a national championship. By going 40-0, they matched the 2014 UConn team to tie the all-time best record.
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After 21 seasons at Baylor, she left the school to become the head coach at LSU. In her second year in the SEC, she led the Tigers to a national title.
LSU is projected to be a top team again next season, ranking No. 5 in ESPN's most recent way-too-early Top 25. They finished last season 31-6 and exited the women's NCAA Tournament during the Elite 8, losing to the eventual tournament runner-ups, the UCLA Bruins. The Tigers will be led in 2025 by Flau'jae Johnson, Mikaylah Williams and transfer portal addition MiLaysia Fulwiley.
Related: Kim Mulkey Makes First Comments After MiLaysia Fulwiley's LSU Transfer
Related: 4x WNBA Champion Names Hardest Part About Playing Under Geno Auriemma
