South Carolina Gamecocks star Chloe Kitts’ parents, Jason and Krystle Kitts, have always been her biggest supporters, with her father’s guidance playing a key role in her success. However, during games, Chloe admitted she sometimes avoids looking at her dad because it makes her nervous. In a postgame press conference following the Gamecocks’ victory over Duke, Chloe explained that while she deeply values her dad’s support, she can’t always look at him during her free throws because it causes anxiety. She shared with reporters, “I do avoid him a lot during the game, but I’ve started looking at him more lately because he knows exactly what to say at the right moment. I didn’t look at him before free throws because I was scared.”
Jason Kitts, a 1996 graduate of Rogers of Puyallup, played an instrumental role in teaching Chloe the game of basketball. He now runs a youth basketball development non-profit in Florida called Community Home Balance. The Kitts family relocated from Washington to Florida in August 2014 after Jason faced a serious health scare, and Krystle took a job in Florida to support the family. Despite the move, Chloe has always felt connected to Washington.
By 2022, Chloe had developed into a five-star prospect ranked No. 17 in the 2023 class. She committed to South Carolina in November 2022 and enrolled early in December. In an interview with the Women Hoops Network, Jason explained that the family chose South Carolina due to Head Coach Dawn Staley’s coaching approach. He said, “When Dawn showed up, it wasn’t just about basketball, it was about human connection. The way she treats the athletes and serves as a role model is what stood out.” Chloe’s mom also observed a transformation in her daughter’s play after Staley’s involvement, noting, “When Dawn showed up, there was a fire in her that I’ve never even seen… it was something different.”
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