High School

Does LSU have a real chance to sign No. 1 recruit Aaliyah Chavez?

Mulkey's Tigers among finalists for nation's top player

Levi Payton

Monterey's Aaliyah Chavez blocks a shot by Coronado's Kamryn Hill in a District 3-5A girls basketball game Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025, at Monterey High School.
Monterey's Aaliyah Chavez blocks a shot by Coronado's Kamryn Hill in a District 3-5A girls basketball game Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025, at Monterey High School. / Stephen Garcia/Avalanche-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Mulkey’s Tigers are among finalists for nation’s top girls player

Wherever she chooses to go to college next season, Aaliyah Chavez is going to have a lot of reasons to go there.

The nation's No. 1 girls recruit for the Class of 2025, Chavez is the hottest name on the recruiting market this season and is believed to be seeking a Name, Image, Likeness (NIL) deal for around $1 million.

And the ESPN and 247Sports consensus 5-star recruit will likely be worth every penny. The 5-foot-11 senior at Lubbock's Monterey High School is coming off a 50-point game against Coronado (Texas) on Jan. 7. That performance would move her into seventh all-time on the National Federation of High School Associations (NFHS) all-time scoring list with 4,389 career points.

Through 29 games this season, Chavez is averaging a staggering 36 points, 9.3 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 3.6 steals and 1 block.

She’s had multiple 50-point games this season – including 53 on Dec. 27 in the first game of Lubbock’s Caprock Classic.

Kim Mulkey knows what good guard play should look like. She sits in history among some of the best women’s basketball players to ever grace the position. In fact, she’s currently 11th on that same all-time scoring list – and will slot in at 12th, behind Chavez, once her numbers become official.

Before she made her name as the flashy championship coach, the diminutive Mulkey (5-foot-4) was a star high school player at Louisiana's Hammond High from 1977-1980. There, she scored 4,075 points, per the National Federation of High School Associations (NFHS) record database.

Chavez, meanwhile, surpassed 4,000 career points by scoring 48 against Lubbock on Dec. 10, and surpassed Mulkey's mark on Dec. 13, with 16 points in a 61-60 loss at Amarillo Tascosa.

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With 50 points against Coronado, Chavez now has 4,389 career points – passing Kentucky’s Geri Gregory, who scored 4,385 for McDowell from 1975-1977.

She essentially moved three spots on the all-time list in her last two games after going from 10th to eighth all-time with a 36-point performance against Palo Duro on Jan. 3.

She scored a whopping 124 points in Lubbock’s Caprock Classic Dec. 27-29.

While records seemingly fall with each game she plays, High School on SI decided to dive into each of her finalists – South Carolina, Texas, Texas Tech, UCLA, Oklahoma and LSU – examining what could earn each program the final nod.

With that in mind, here is a look at what could sway Chavez with the Tigers.

Mulkey Effect

As we explained earlier, Mulkey – who has been spotted watching Chavez at Monterey games – knows good guard play and she thinks she found another in Chavez. And adding the nation’s No. 1 guard would be an example of Mulkey doing just that – finding another.

That’s because Chavez, listed as a point guard, would be the third guard in the top 13 and fourth in the top 30 of this year’s 2025 draft class to commit to the Tigers. They’ve already secured commitments from 2025 5-star guards Divine Bourrage (5-10, guard, Davenport North (Iowa), No. 12 overall) and ZaKiyah Johnson (6-0, guard, Sacred Heart Academy (Ken.), No. 13), as well as No. 30 overall player Isabella Hines (5-9, guard, Eldorado (N.M.).

They also have secured a commitment from 6-2 wing Grace Knox from Etwinda (Calif.) High School – who is the nation’s No. 6 overall player and No. 2 wing in the class, per ESPN.

NIL

If one thing is certain, Aaliyah Chavez will bring a spotlight wherever she goes. She’s a high school athlete with a huge head start on building a brand, but that brand – and its value – could be affected by where she chooses to go.

The Tigers know a thing or two about handling the spotlight, so on the surface this seems like a good fit. LSU has a proven track record of finding substantive NIL deals and casting its stars in the spotlight. See: Reese, Angel. LSU’s visibility could be a huge carrot for the budding star.

Of course, NIL will probably play the biggest factor in any decision she makes. Players of Chavez’s caliber are rare, and the social media presence she’s built will help play a key role in any future earnings.

Geauxing away?

The biggest question, of course, is can anyone lure Chavez to leave Lubbock? Right in her backyard, Texas Tech appears willing to pay to keep her home. That leaves other programs working overtime trying to woo her away, including in-state Texas.

If anyone has proven they can do that, it’s Mulkey and her proven staff. Perhaps their bond in the record books and on the floor has spilled over enough off the floor to sway the 17-year-old and her family?

To this point, she’s proven loyal to Lubbock. While she’s had plenty of opportunities to transfer schools and play more advanced competition, Chavez chose to stay in Lubbock at Monterey and try helping the Lady Plainsmen win a state championship.

So far, they’re off to a 25-4 record this season. She’s bet on herself and won at seemingly every turn thus far. Will she do it again? Or will Mulkey and staff get the job done – again?

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Levi Payton
LEVI PAYTON

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