KJ Conklin enters his second year as a graduate assistant for the Bulldog Basketball program.

Conklin came to Louisiana Tech from Illinois State where he was a student manager for four years under head coach Dan Muller and received his bachelor's degree in Social Science Education.

Prior to his arrival in Ruston, Conklin served as a varsity assistant basketball coach at Sterling High School for the 2017-18 season under coach Ryan Vasquez.  In that season, Sterling went 23-10, won a Northern Illinois Big 12 conference championship and made a State 3A Sweet 16 appearance while also amassing a 15-game winning streak.

Conklin has also been a Pure Sweat intern under NBA Skills trainer Drew Hanlen during the summers of 2018 and 2019.  In his time as an intern, he has helped with the development of several premier NBA and college players in the pre-draft process.

He has previously worked in college camps at Iowa, Marquette, Kentucky and Illinois State.  

He is currently pursuing his master's degree in Business Administration.

He is the son of Keith Conklin and Krista Lightner and has one brother, Kobe.