Interview: Lexi Donarski chose basketball over business—for now

Lexi Donarski is beginning her professional basketball career in Hungary with TFSE-MTK after completing a five-year college career split between Iowa State (three seasons, 2020-23) and North Carolina (two seasons, 2023-25). Despite having earned her MBA, she has chosen to pursue basketball over a business career, at least for the immediate future.

In interview highlights, Donarski explained her initial choice to play for Iowa State, citing her family's long-time fandom, the program's known players, and the exceptional game atmosphere, noting Iowa State's consistent top-three national attendance for women's basketball. She had attended games her whole life, participated in their elite camps since seventh grade, played in front of their coaches for years, and ultimately wanted to be part of the program and play for their fan base.

Her reasons for transferring to North Carolina for her final two seasons were multifaceted: she graduated from Iowa State in three years and wanted to pursue her MBA, an opportunity not available to her there; she desired to move out of the Midwest and experience something new; and the chance to attend a great business school like UNC's was a major factor.