Photo: Peter G. Aiken/Getty
Kim Mulkeyis threatening to sue theWashington Postabout an upcoming story that she says the newspaper is planning to publish about her and that she claims is “false.”
On Saturday, hours after the Tigers defeated the Rice Owls in the first round of the NCAA tournament, the longtime coach began her press conference with afour-minute-long statementregarding the forthcoming article.
“This was a ridiculous deadline that LSU and I could not possibly meet, and the reporter knew it,” Mulkey said. “It was just an attempt to prevent me from commenting and an attempt to distract us from this tournament.”
Mulkey, thehighest-paid coach in women’s college basketball, claimed that Babb has been working on the piece about her for the last two years, and that she “didn’t appreciate the hit job he wrote on [LSU football head coach] Brian Kelly, and that’s why I wasn’t going to do an interview with him.”
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“This is exactly why people don’t trust journalists and the media anymore,” Mulkey said. “It’s these kinds of sleazy tactics and hatchet jobs that people are just tired of. I’m fed up, and I’m not going to let theWashington Postattack this university, this awesome team of young women I have, or me without a fight.”
Mulkey added that former “disgruntled” players and coaches had been contacted to participate in the article.
“I’ve hired the best defamation law firm in the country, and I will sue theWashington Postif they publish a false story about me,” she said. “Not many people are in a position to hold these kinds of journalists accountable, but I am, and I’ll do it.”
A spokesperson with thePostdeclined PEOPLE’s request for a comment. Babb did confirm to theAssociated Pressthat he is working on a profile of the coach.
In her statement, Mulkey alleged that the reporter is ignoring “40-plus years of positive stories” about her coaching career. Before arriving at LSU in April 2021, Mulkey was the head coach at Baylor for 21 seasons, where she coached the team to three NCAA Championships.
“It ain’t gonna work, buddy,” Mulkey warned.
Mulkey has dealt with criticism in the past. In 2013,ESPN reportedthat she had told her then-player Brittney Griner to hide her sexuality to avoid dissuading potential recruits from joining their Baylor team. Then in 2017, she was criticized for dismissing a sexual misconduct scandal at Baylor (which she laterapologizedfor). And she was scolded for railing against COVID-19 restrictions during the 2021 March Madness tournament, while cases were still high and people had not yet been vaccinated.
The third-seed Tigers went on to win their second-round game against Middle Tennessee on Sunday, 83-56.
source: people.com
