Flau'jae Johnson is playing in her final season for the LSU Tigers as she prepares to leave head coach Kim Mulkey and her teammates to head to the WNBA.
The rapper-cum-basketball star became quite the sensation in the four years in Louisiana, garnering fame not just for her creativity in music, but also for her skills shooting the ball.
The Savannah, Georgia, native's skills as a freshman came in handy, helping Angel Reese and the rest of the team win the program's first-ever NCAA championship back in 2023.
Since then, her relationship with the now Chicago Sky star may have soured, but Johnson's dedication to the Tigers was evident when she decided against moving to another program in last year's offseason.
Now, as she winds down her career wearing the purple and yellow, the 22-year-old is hoping to lead the Tigers deep into the latter stages of the NCAA's March Madness.
They just won their second-round game easily against Texas Tech to clinch a Sweet Sixteen showdown against powerhouse Duke. Before leaving Pete Maravich Assembly Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, reporters had to ask about her experience developing into a star under her head coach.
It's an honor. She's been coaching like 100 years…. I'm just kidding, I'm just kidding, I'm just playing… Not that long.
Flau'jae Johnson saidHearing this, Kim Mulkey replied that Flau'jae Johnson had just lost her starting job. This humorous exchange proved to the reporters in the media room that this was a testament to the chemistry between the fiery head coach and her star player.
The LSU Tigers will continue to play in this year's March Madness, at least until their Sweet Sixteen showdown with Duke, either at TCU or California State University later this week.
That marks the end of Flau'jae Johnson's time at Pete Maravich Assembly Center. To mark the occasion, with more than seven minutes left on the clock, Kim Mulkey called for a substitution to allow Johnson to have her moment.
She hugged her teammates on the court, as the 11,095 fans inside the arena stood and gave her a loud round of applause. They know what the two-way guard's dedication meant, giving four years to Baton Rouge when she could have moved to any other program.
Then, she went on to the sidelines and embraced her head coach tightly, with tears shedding from her eyes, knowing how much the 63-year-old has helped in developing Flau'jae Johnson into a top-10 pick come April.
As the standing ovation continued, Johnson continued to dap her teammates and then gestured her No. 4 to the crowd, who reciprocated with even louder cheers from the fans who had stood by through everything.
Knowing how emotional that send-off was, ABC's Alyssa Lang caught up with Flau'jae Johnson after the game to ask her about the emotions while walking off the court at Pete Maravich Assembly Center for the last time.
It was that roar that did it for me… Tiger nation, I love y'all. I would have never been 4 without y'all. So I want to say thank you so much, I love y'all so much… I gave it everything. And I want to thank y'all for giving me everything.
Flau'jae Johnson repliedThe guard acknowledged the Louisiana faithful for helping her become the star that she is. Wherever she goes next, the sensational rapper will continue to be known as an LSU Tiger.
In less than a month, Johnson will be on a WNBA team practicing with her new teammates after the league and its players agreed to the new CBA. Therefore, Flau'jae will also earn a pretty penny, but it might not be as good as what she earned in Louisiana.
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