Hailey Van Lith's Transfer Portal Entry Includes Important Distinction As Louisville's Leading-Scorer Decides On Next School

Hailey Van Lith has played a significant role in the success of Louisville women's basketball over the last three seasons. The 5-foot-7 guard led the Cardinals in scoring during the 2021/22 season and really burst onto the scene with a team-high 19.7 points per game in 2022/23.

Despite reaching the Elite Eight during the most recent NCAA Tournament, Van Lith surprised most everybody by announcing her decision to transfer on Saturday. She will receive her degree from Louisville and enter the portal as a graduate transfer.

Van Lith will have two years of eligibility remaining, should she choose to take advantage of the blanket waiver granted to all spring athletes that were effected by COVID-19 during the 2020 season. She will play at least one season at a new program, and then make a decision on whether to go pro.

Based on recent trends, Van Lith may opt to stay in college instead of enter the WNBA Draft after her fourth season. The NIL era is lucrative, and college amenities are hard to beat.

However, that is a bridge that Van Lith will have to cross at this time next year.

In the meantime, she must pick her next school. It is unclear as to where Van Lith will end up at this time, but she entered the portal with an important distinction.

Hailey Van Lith is doing it her way.

Van Lith is listed as "do not contact," which means that she is asking suitors not to reach out. That allows her to get in touch with her programs of interest without hearing from countless programs for which she is not interested.

It could also mean that Van Lith already knows where she is going to end up. Perhaps she is listed as "do not contact" because arrangements have already been made behind the scenes. That is often the case for players that enter the portal under the "no contact" tag.

Van Lith's future is entirely unknown. Her transfer destination has not been leaked, and there is no indication as to where the Washington-native may be looking.

With that said, Van Lith was very close to committing to play for Kim Mulkey at Baylor out of high school. There are a lot of murmurs about a potential move to LSU, but there is no basis for that thought other than the prior ties between Van Lith and Mulkey.

If Van Lith already knows where she is going, a decision may come sooner than later. She may also choose to wait it out for a bit so not to give off the impression that she has been tampered with.

Stay tuned!