February 20, 2025
How George Mason’s Nalani Kaysia has found success in basketball, volleyball, motherhood and the classroom
Kaysia: ‘I've lived about three different lives in my college career’
After George Mason’s win over UMBC on Dec. 20, 2024, head coach Vanessa Blair-Lewis was joined by senior guard Paula Suárez as well as graduate student forward Nalani Kaysia and her now nearly 10-month-old daughter Xéla at the post-game press conference.
Continue reading with a subscription to The Next
Get unlimited access to women’s basketball coverage and help support our hardworking staff of writers, editors, and photographers by subscribing today.
Already a member?
Login
Xéla started the press conference with her small hand on Kaysia’s chest before soon taking over the spotlight. She took an interest in the box score her mother was analyzing, taking it for herself and shaking it back and forth. Kaysia diligently balanced regaining possession of the box score, adjusting the microphone and answering the opening question while holding a curious Xéla in her arms.
Order ‘Rare Gems’ and save 30%
Howard Megdal, founder and editor of The Next and The IX, released his latest book on May 7, 2024. This deeply reported story follows four connected generations of women’s basketball pioneers, from Elvera “Peps” Neuman to Cheryl Reeve and from Lindsay Whalen to Sylvia Fowles and Paige Bueckers.
If you enjoy his coverage of women’s basketball every Wednesday at The IX, you will love “Rare Gems: How Four Generations of Women Paved the Way for the WNBA.” Click the link below to order and enter MEGDAL30 at checkout.
The road to George Mason
When Kaysia was 12 or 13, she joined an AAU team where she was, in her own words, “by far, by far, by far, the worst player.” Her mom would ask her every day if she wanted to stay on the team. Kaysia insisted she did, telling her mom she liked being on a team where she could see what she needed to do to get better and measure her improvement.
For Kaysia, very little came easy on the court. “A lot of people think I was just this natural athlete off rip, but when I tell you I could not run and chew bubble gum at the same time, I really could not,” she told The Next. “So running alone, getting up and down the court, was difficult for me when I first started.”
As time went on, running and jumping became more natural to her, adding to her skills of rebounding and using her non-dominant left hand. The latter was such a key part of her game that some people thought she was left-handed.
When Kaysia started at Sidwell Friends School her mom, Janée Hayes, suggested she wear the number 42 like she did playing basketball at the school and at Duke. Kaysia averaged a double-double in points and rebounds in three consecutive seasons and recorded 1,035 points and 1,335 rebounds in her career.
At Sidwell Friends, Kaysia also played volleyball, ran the 400-meter dash, and participated in high jump, shot put and discus.
During her initial recruiting process in high school, Kaysia wanted to play both volleyball and basketball in college. When that wasn’t an available opportunity, she chose volleyball because it was her first love. In three seasons at Charlotte (2019-2021), she amassed 169 total blocks, 258 digs and 520 kills in 73 matches.
Looking for a change, she expected to be a mid-year transfer in volleyball, but as she weighed her options she realized she missed basketball.
“The most basketball I did while I was at Charlotte was go to the recreation center and play with some of the football players once every blue moon,” she said. “And every time I was just so happy and excited to do it. So when I was in the transfer portal, I was like, maybe I should try to pick this back up again.”
After working out for a few months, she reached out to some of the coaches who recruited her out of high school, including Andre Bolton. Bolton recruited Kaysia when he was an assistant coach at Georgetown and had moved to George Mason by the time Kaysia entered the portal.
“We were instantly drawn to her size, her strength, her ability … [to] — as volleyball players [do] — get off the ground quickly,” Blair-Lewis told The Next. “… And then I knew her mom. Her mom and I played against each other in the DMV [Washington D.C., Maryland, Virginia area] back in the day. … [W]e knew what we were getting, like we knew — we didn’t know the depth of how great she could be, but we knew at least the things that a coach can know from the beginning.”
Want even more women’s sports in your inbox?
Subscribe now to our sister publication The IX and receive our independent women’s sports newsletter six days a week. Learn more about your favorite athletes and teams around the world competing in soccer, tennis, basketball, golf, hockey and gymnastics from our incredible team of writers.
Readers of The Next now save 50% on their subscription to The IX.
Succeeding as a Patriot
It took less than a week in the summer of 2022 for Blair-Lewis to realize that Kaysia would make an impact on the team. She didn’t think that Kaysia had lost much of her feel for the game after three seasons of collegiate volleyball — retaining her stamina, physicality and rebounding skills.
While Kaysia’s early practices and games at George Mason were filled with excitement, they were also filled with nervousness and imposter syndrome. “How am I here? I’m a volleyball player,” she recalled thinking. “How am I actually playing basketball right now? How am I actually getting on the floor? … It was a lot going through my mind.”
Her teammates and coaches helped her work through her imposter syndrome, believing in her when she struggled to believe in herself. “There were certain things in my game that I was confident that I could do, and there were other things that I wasn’t quite sure that I could do, but there was never any question from them on whether or not I could do it,” Kaysia said. “They were super excited for me anytime I did anything, and they just made it feel like I deserved to be there and that I was needed there.”
In her first year at George Mason, Kaysia played in all 31 games, starting 28, and averaged 8.8 points, 8.5 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 26.5 minutes per game. She was named to the 2022-23 Atlantic 10 All-Rookie team as the Patriots went 16-15.
Welcoming Xéla
In September 2023, Kaysia received unexpected news: She was pregnant.
She talked to her mother, who had her when she was in college. “She said she’ll support me through it all,” Kaysia said. “And she said it’s not gonna be easy. There are gonna be some days that are hard, there are gonna be some days that are long, but she’ll support me through it all.”
With the start of her second season at George Mason just weeks away, Kaysia had to decide what the 2023-24 basketball season would look like for her. She knew she wouldn’t be able to play for long, but she wanted to try.
Kaysia continued practicing throughout her first trimester, pushing through the difficult days and doubts. Her season ended after starting the team’s first five games and averaging 6.2 points and 6.0 rebounds in 20.8 minutes per game.
“It was difficult, just because, as an athlete, you’re used to your body feeling a certain type of way, you moving a certain type of way,” Kaysia said. “And when you’re pregnant, at least for my pregnancy, I did not feel like myself.
“… I [couldn’t] just spring up in the air like I normally do. So things — balls that I might be used to getting, rebounds that I might used to get, they weren’t coming as easily, which was extremely frustrating for me. But I had to take a step back and realize, like my body is doing something amazing right now, I’m growing a whole ‘nother person.”
After she finished playing for the season, Kaysia still showed up to every lift and did some basketball workouts. While she missed some away trips towards the end of her pregnancy, she remained engaged with the program throughout the season. During the spring 2024 semester, Kaysia had classes that would sometimes overlap with the team’s games, so while paying attention in class, she’d have ESPN+ pulled up on her laptop.
Despite her limited time on the court, sophomore forward Faith Okorie didn’t see a change in Kaysia’s role. Okorie called Kaysia the team’s ‘blindside watch,’ noting she fills in any gaps she sees and — depending on what her teammates need — is a sounding board and listening ear on and off the court. “If we need extra reps, if we need extra explanation, figuring out a play, figuring out where we’re supposed to be for our position, what we are supposed to look like on the guarding end and everything else, [she is there],” Okorie told The Next.
Balancing being a student-athlete and a mom hasn’t been easy and Kaysia credits her village, including her mom, grandparents, teammates and coaches, with making it easier. She’s built on the time management skills she’s honed over years as a student-athlete, knowing she has to do things like wake up earlier before lifts to get Xéla ready and expect the unexpected as she does.
Kaysia has been pleasantly surprised by how well Xéla sits through parts of her classes and plays while she does homework. However, road trips, especially ones that are back-to-back, have been more difficult this season than Kaysia expected.
“It’s very difficult, just for the few days that we are away from each other, just because the way that sometimes our away trips line up, we might get back and then leave the very next day,” Kaysia said. “So, I can’t really go and get her, because we leave that next day. So, I might go four or five days without seeing her, which is difficult.”
Order ‘Becoming Caitlin Clark’ and save 30%
Howard Megdal, founder and editor of The Next and The IX, just announced his latest book. It captures both the historic nature of Caitlin Clark’s rise and the critical context over the previous century that helped make it possible. Interviews with Clark, Lisa Bluder, C. Vivian Stringer, Jan Jensen, Molly Kazmer and so many others were vital to the process.
If you enjoy his coverage of women’s basketball every Wednesday at The IX, you will love “Becoming Caitlin Clark: The Unknown Origin Story of a Modern Basketball Superstar.” Click the link below to preorder and enter MEGDAL30 at checkout.
Finding success this season
Kaysia never wondered whether or not she would come back for the 2024-25 season, but she wasn’t sure what she would look like on the court. “There was some doubt for me of, ‘would I be the same player, like, would I be able to contribute the same?’” she said. “‘Would I be able to finish things the way I want to finish things and finish my college career the way I wanted to?’ … I wasn’t quite sure, honestly.”
Blair-Lewis didn’t doubt Kaysia’s return, either. “When Lani says something, you better believe her,” Blair-Lewis said. “So when she said, ‘Coach, yeah, I’ll be back.’ … I was like, ‘Okay, take your time.’ And she had the baby, and by the summertime, she was back working out with the players. And I was like, ‘Are you sure? Wait til August. We can wait til school starts back.’ And she was right back in stride.”
Kaysia returned to practice less than two months after giving birth and, as she spent more time on the court, became more confident. “I’ve been putting in the work. I’m gonna come back and I’m gonna be able to hopefully help Mason win [an A-10] championship,” she recalled thinking.
In George Mason’s season opener against Johnson C. Smith University (Division II), Kaysia recorded 10 points, five rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocks in 16 minutes.
“It’s an amazing feeling [to be back],” she told reporters after the win on Nov. 4, 2024. “… Being back in [EagleBank Arena] with the fans, with my teammates, it’s just an amazing feeling. … We’re gonna be amazing this year, so I’m blessed to be a part of this program.”
While helping George Mason to the fastest 20-win season in program history and a 23-3 record — including 13-2 in the A-10 — she is averaging 7.5 points, 9.2 rebounds, 1.0 steals and 1.2 blocks in 25.1 minutes per game.
Kaysia is fueled by her competitiveness. “I will do anything possible to win,” she said. “It might not always be the right thing, but you can guarantee that I am going to try my hardest.”
Though she’s struggled to score at times this season, Kaysia has recorded less than five rebounds just three times and at least 10 rebounds 13 times this season. She’s also fourth in the A-10 in rebounds per game (9.2).
“It’s a mindset like, she wants to go and get it, and she’s quick off the floor,” Blair-Lewis told reporters after George Mason’s win over Loyola Chicago on Jan. 15. “I mean, she might miss the first one, [but] she’s right back getting the second one. She’s very quick off the floor. But it’s a mindset — you gotta want to rebound. She’s a Dennis Rodman, she’s gonna go get it. She might foul you, but she’s gonna get it.”
‘A relentless spirit’
Blair-Lewis sees how relentless Kaysia is in everything that she does, whether she’s in the classroom, on the court or being a mom. “When practice is over, and she grabs Xéla up, and she puts her in her arms, that focus changes,” Blair-Lewis said. “And it’s like, you know what I’m Mom now. And she’s able to turn that on and turn that off when it needs to be done. And she’s a great student, so her grades reflect that. But I think she has a relentless spirit. I’m really, really proud that I’ve had a chance to coach her.
“And I’m proud that the young ladies who … maybe one day they want to be a mother, that they see that one, it is hard work, but that it can be done, and it is really, really rewarding.”
Blair-Lewis is a mom of two but had her sons when she was a head coach and didn’t have to manage being a student on top of her other responsibilities. She knew she would have to ensure that being a mom could be the top priority for Kaysia followed by being a student and then an athlete.
“If there’s anything that I was concerned about, it was just her being able to balance a new role when the other two roles are already in and of themselves, very heavy,” Blair-Lewis said. “But I just learned by watching her, moms are resilient. Like, we get it done. No matter what it takes, you’re gonna find a way. And there were times that I would say to her, ‘Don’t worry about what’s going to come, because it’s going to come and you’re gonna find a way to get through it.’”
As she watches Xéla discover the world a little more every day, Kaysia is grateful that it’s in the George Mason community where she is welcomed with open arms. Her teammates even argue over who gets to hold Xéla, including during film and rehab.
“She really brightens people’s day, and she brightens my day,” Kaysia said. “Even after a tough practice, even after a long day, I might be tired, but it’s just a great feeling just looking at her big brown eyes and seeing that she looks at me like, I’m obviously her mom, but she’s learning this life thing through me right now.”
Blair-Lewis is enjoying having Xéla around the team. When she or her players have a moment to spare at practice, seeing and spending time with Xéla improves their day.
“It’s what all babies do,” Blair-Lewis said. “… [T]hey give you hope. They give you — they make you smile, they make you laugh. … She’s the future. … This is what it’s about, making sure that the next generation is better than the generation before. And the hopes that this young girl has — that we as young women that surround her, that we’re the best versions of ourselves for her.”
Motherhood has changed how Kaysia approaches life. She’s shifted from chasing perfection to acknowledging that showing up every day and giving 100% is just as powerful as traditional measures of success and failure.
When Xéla gets older, Kaysia wants to tell her she gave everything she participated in everything she had and left a positive impression. “I just want her to see that everyone around me can say ‘your mom was not only this great athlete, but this great person, and we loved having her around,’” she said. “And I hope that Xéla, as she gets older … sets her own path, and knows that I’m supporting her and backing her 110%.”
Okorie sees how important playing for and in front of Xéla is to Kaysia.
“She just wants a positive outlook for her, just to know that her mom was a role model, and her mom was playing for her and everything like that,” Okorie said. “I feel like it might just be her number one priority as an athlete, just to know that Xéla’s watching her. And that’s the reason why she has to go hard at this rep or in this game, or as a leader, as a person in general.”
It’s special for Blair-Lewis to see Kaysia’s daughter on the sideline. “[I’m] not sure how much she is gonna retain from this moment, this experience, but to know that she was here to be in the pictures with the team, that she can look back and say, ‘Wow, I was a part of [it] … [Kaysia is] proud of me. She took me everywhere that she was, and the team embraced her.’”
When deciding how open to be about motherhood this season, Kaysia thought about everyone who is or has been in her position.
“Depending on the situation, they might not be able to be as open, or might not have the opportunity to bring as much light to their child as they would want to, for one reason or another. … I just wanted to do it for all the moms.”
Kaysia’s resilience has stood out to Okorie, who is impressed by and proud of how Kaysia balances being a captain and leader of the post players with being a mother and a student. She’s enjoyed seeing Kaysia grow as a mom and knew it was something Kaysia would excel at, having seen Kaysia be a nurturing and supportive teammate.
Whether it’s life chats or basketball ones, Kaysia makes her teammates feel comfortable as she listens or gives advice. Okorie and her teammates sometimes refer to Kaysia as “Google” because she knows the answer to every question they have.
Add Locked On Women’s Basketball to your daily routine
Here at The Next, in addition to the 24/7/365 written content our staff provides, we also host the daily Locked On Women’s Basketball podcast. Join us Monday through Saturday each week as we discuss all things WNBA, collegiate basketball, basketball history and much more. Listen wherever you find podcasts or watch on YouTube.
Kaysia has passed on that knowledge to Okorie and others, teaching them patience and to trust the process.
“It might be scary in the beginning of it, but as you can see, she’s back on the court, she’s making a really, really big impact, after being out for so long and everything like that,” Okorie said. “So, it just gives me, as a young athlete, hope [that] even if something happens or you’re not able to produce, it’s not over and it’s not the end of it.
“You can still figure out ways to contribute to your team, help your coaching staff, help your teammates, just figure out something else. And then when your opportunity does return back and you’re healthy and you can perform again, everything like that, you let that transfer back onto the court and you just full go at it.”
During her tenure at George Mason, Kaysia has provided stability in the post — defending players her size or bigger. She’s also demonstrated her athleticism and ability to run the floor with her physicality, rebounding and scoring. In addition, Kaysia has started to expand her range and embraced being a student of the game.
In Kaysia’s first year at George Mason, the coaching staff would have to kick her out of the gym and remind her that she wouldn’t return to her previous basketball playing levels all at once, she’d absorb it in pieces.
Blair-Lewis has seen Kaysia’s confidence grow over the years as she’s learned the system and what the coaches want. “She knows the locker room and what it should look like and feel like. … [S]he’s known winning,” Blair-Lewis said. “We were a program just getting off the ground when she got here. And so she’s been one of those pioneers like Paula [Suárez] to help turn this thing around — and really just being intoxicated with knowing how to win.”
Now as a leader on the team, she’s passing on what she knows to the younger players.
“She is teaching our post players what it takes to grind every single day, to come to practice, to be in tough games, to have setbacks [and] how to forge forward through them,” Blair-Lewis said. “She’s teaching them resiliency. And she’s teaching them a standard. … The standard is that we win, and we win not just on the court, but we win in the lives of each other … and we win in the classroom.”
As the end of the regular season looms, Kaysia wants to continue to become more efficient in and vary how she scores while maintaining her defensive presence. She wants the team to head to the conference tournament with 25 wins, a goal the team is close to meeting, with 23 wins and three games left to play. Kaysia has her eyes set on winning the A-10 Tournament and advancing to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history.
After this season finishes, Kaysia hopes she leaves a legacy of winning and being one of the players who helped propel George Mason to a recurring spot at the top of the conference.
Overall, Kaysia is grateful for getting to live out her dream. Though she hasn’t taken much time to sit back and reflect on her college career in both sports, in the few moments she has, she’s realized what a blessing it is. She knows that very few people have been able to play, and contribute, in two sports they love at the Division I level.
“I’ve lived about three different lives in my college career. … I thank God that I’ve had every opportunity to do so,” she said.
Her next dream
After she graduates in May, Kaysia wants to try to play professional basketball and eventually become a sports agent. She would also like to start a nonprofit to help formerly incarcerated people re-entering society in hopes of lowering the recidivism rate.
“In college, I learned a fair amount about it,” she said. “And I remember sitting back and thinking, like a lot of this is not fair, a lot of this is set up so that people continue to fail. And then I witnessed it firsthand with some family friends. And just after sitting and reflecting on that, I wanted to do something about it. And I don’t know what that looks like for me. … but I want to try to tackle this issue.”
Blair-Lewis knows that whatever Kaysia sets her mind to, she’ll accomplish. “I just never doubt her … because that’s just who she is, and if she says it, she’s gonna find a way to get it done.”
In addition to getting an early start at press conferences, Xéla is already showing an interest in basketball. She will pat a basketball like she’s dribbling and quickly turn her head if she hears one bouncing.
Xéla exited her first press conference without saying a word, in the arms of her mom who is already showing her daughter that she gave it her all.
The Next’s Jenn Hatfield contributed reporting for this story.
Written by Natalie Heavren
Natalie Heavren has been a contributor to The Next since February 2019 and currently writes about the Atlantic 10 conference, the WNBA and the WBL.
