By KACE KIESCHNICK, Tiger Rag Staff Reporter
When the LSU women’s basketball season tips off on Monday night against Southeastern Louisiana (6 p.m., SEC Network), a new face will be commanding the offense. Iowa State transfer Jada Williams was one of the most prolific true point guards in the nation last season, but she left behind the Cyclones for Baton Rouge because she wanted more.
And she said she chose LSU not just because of a name, image and likeness deal or to play in an offense that averaged more points a game (95) than any other school last season . It was because she wanted to get better, and LSU was the place to do it.
“This is the school that has expected the most out of me, and every single day, whether I’m having a good day, bad day, they still expect the same thing out of me,” Williams said. “But they also love on me at the same time. So I think we found a really good balance, and I’m just super excited to show the world what we’ve been working on.”
The 5-foot-6 senior from Kansas City, Missouri, began her college career at Arizona. She started 58 games over her two seasons as a Wildcat and averaged 11 points, 2.5 assists and 2.6 rebounds a game during her time there. It was not until she went to Iowa State, playing alongside second-team all-American center Audi Crooks, that she became one of college basketball’s top floor generals. She ranked third in the nation with 7.7 assists a game and averaged 15.3 points a game.
Often called an “Energizer Bunny” for her relentless energy and effort both in her playstyle and leadership off the court, Williams is committed to doing whatever she needs to to improve, and she has already seen growth over her career. Her shooting splits and scoring averages have improved each of her three seasons. As a freshman, she shot 35.2% from the floor and 26.3% from three. Her sophomore year, those marks increased to 37.1% and 29.2% while her average shot attempts rose from 8.6 to 11.7. Last year, she averaged 13.2 shots a game and made 41.7% of them while sinking 30.3% of her threes.
Williams said what surprised her most about her visit to LSU when she was in the transfer portal this offseason was how they reviewed her film and told her how she could continue to improve. She said coaches highlighted what percentages they thought she could shoot as a Tiger and how her game would fit into their system.
“That was the most important thing for me was just: what is your vision for me? What do you guys want out of me? And for them as well – what do you want to work on, and what can we help you get better at?” she said.
Williams said she has already seen some of that development in her first few months in Baton Rouge, and that improvement has not just come on the offensive side of the floor.
“Last year was not a really good defensive year for me, and so coming from Arizona, which was a very defensive school, to Iowa State, who wasn’t as defensive, and then coming here and being able to showcase that as well is something that I want to help my draft stock go up,” she said. “I can guard too.”
As the new leader of the Tigers offense, though, Williams’s goal for this season is not just to continue growing as a shooter but to average 10 assists per game.
“That also comes with playing with the best team I’ve ever played with,” Williams said. “These players are amazing. There’s going to be multiple, multiple draft picks on this team.”
But ultimately, like her decision to come to LSU, her development comes back to coaching.
“They tell the truth all the time, even if it is, it’s hard to hear,” Williams said. “I think Coach (Kim) Mulkey is known for just loving on her players, but she pulls out the best in every single player that she’s ever coached. So I think that’s what I expected, and I haven’t got any less than that.”
Mulkey was an All-American point guard herself as a player. She averaged over seven assists a game for multiple seasons during her playing career at Louisiana Tech and helped her team to two national titles (one NCAA, one AIAW).
“Being a point guard for Coach Mulkey is very challenging, and I think we talked about that. And I was ready for that challenge,” Williams said. “That’s something that I wanted out of a head coach.”
Over the Tigers’ two preseason exhibitions, Williams has averaged 10 points, 5.5 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 3.5 steals in 23 minutes a game. She has made 61.5% of her shots (8-of-13) and 66.7% of her threes (4-of-6).
“I think we have a chance to do something that has been a dream of mine forever,” Williams said.
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