The LSU Tigers continued with their winning ways after defeating the Duke Blue Devils on Thursday. Though the Tigers couldn’t continue with their impressive 100-point game streak, they still secured a decent 93-77 victory to improve their record to 9-0 in the season.
One of the stars was Flau’jae Johnson, who finished the game with 18 points on 7-of-11, including 3-of-4 from the deep. She also added five rebounds and four assists. While Johnson was stellar with her contributions, another moment that caught the attention of fans was her interaction with Duke head coach Kara Lawson.
Well, there are some deep seethed reasons behind Johnson chirping at Lawson. Kara Lawson was Team USA’s head coach when Johnson was part of the 2025 FIBA Women’s AmeriCup in July. Johnson did not receive much playing time and came off the bench in favor of Mikayla Blakes, Hannah Hidalgo and Olivia Miles.
Sure enough, the grudge from this experience was simply something Johnson had to take out in this game. While she did so with her performance, there was some heated exchange of words too. LSU HC Kim Mulkey clarified on this interaction and said:
“I was happy for Flau’jae. I was happy. You know, she didn’t have a good experience at USA Basketball with Kara this summer. And so she’s had this date circled around [the calendar], and you get nervous, right? You get nervous because you think she’s gonna try to come in here and do too much. And I was proud of how she handled herself.”
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Mulkey also added how Johnson had lost much of her confidence after returning from her national team duties this summer. As a coach, she did her best to bring the senior guard’s confidence back, which is very well evident from her performance this season.
In her conversation with Johnson, Mulkey told her:
“Just be you. Do what you do for LSU. Don’t make it personal. Don’t try to be somebody you’re not. Just you and that purple uniform with those three letters speaks volumes.”
Flau’jae Johnson wants to become Paige Bueckers’ teammate in the WNBA
Over the years, Flau’jae Johnson has emerged as arguably one of the best players in college basketball and a standout entity. She has grown significantly both on and off the court. As a leader of the LSU Tigers, Johnson has also earned the confidence of head coach Kim Mulkey and has expressed her wishes to be the first pick in the upcoming 2026 WNBA draft.
The Dallas Wings once again have the top pick. Currently, Johnson stands fifth in mock drafts and might most likely be selected by the Chicago Sky. However, if she shows great potential this season, we may even see her as Paige Bueckers’ teammate next season.
The draft can be quite unpredictable and the coming months should determine where Johnson stands as a lottery pick.
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