Just as the WNBA finals winds down and women’s basketball prepares to take a permanent backseat to the NFL season, the return of USC hoops phenom JuJu Watkins has kept the party going.
Watkins, the projected No. 1 overall pick in the 2027 WNBA Draft, was sidelined for 580 days after tearing her right ACL on March 24, 2025, during the NCAA tournament, which caused her to miss the entire 2025–26 college basketball season.
In her absence, women’s hoops has continued to explode and names such as Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, Olivia Miles and others have risen to the top of the media food chain. It’s not a stretch to say that prior to her injury, Watkins was considered the best of them all, and the fourth-year redshirt returned to action on Sunday to reclaim her top spot in the college game. Re-positioning herself to be the next generational talent to grace the W, with all the fan fare of those who have preceded her.
Return Of USC Women’s Basketball Star JuJu Watkins
During an exhibition game between USC and California on Sunday afternoon at the Galen Center, Watkins saw 23 minutes of action against the Golden Bears and dropped an easy 18 points, three rebounds, two assists, three steals, and two blocks.
From the field, she was six of 14 and was six-for-six from the charity stripe.
The 6-foot-2, all-world guard immediately brought the house down at the nine-minute mark of the first quarter, Watkins had everyone in the arena coming out of their seats when she blocked Taylor Barnes, who was attempting to make a layup.
Watkins, a Los Angeles native who played high school basketball at Sierra Canyon, suffered a huge setback on her swift road to stardom. She was in the middle of an historic sophomore season where she averaged 23.9 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 3.4 assists while shooting 42.6% from the field. Those numbers earned her AP Player of the Year, John R. Wooden Award, and Naismith College Player of the Year honors.
Female Sports Hub on X posted a highlight clip of Watkins cooking National Champion UCLA in a past game and captioned it:
“JuJu Watkins, the dynamic USC senior guard, returns after an ACL tear that sidelined her entire 2025-26 season. The 2025 National Player of the Year, averaging 25.5 points career, brings elite scoring, defense, and IQ. Named Big Ten Preseason POY, her comeback sparks title hopes and WNBA buzz”
Fans reacted to the USC star’s return to the women’s hoops matrix and most were impressed by her mobility and her seamless transition back to game speed after viewing a clip of Sunday’s game posted by Women’s Hoops Network on X.
“Nah, she lowkey looking faster,” one impressed fan said.
“She gon lead the country in blocks,” another fan expressed, marveling at Watkins’ defensive prowess.
Fans Say JuJu Watkins Will End Caitlin Clark’s WNBA Reign
Most fans expressed an excitement that Watkins is healthy and anticipate her entrance in the WNBA, suggesting that she will immediately take over the league.
“She better than yall favorite player,” one user commented.
“Caitlin Clark fans are already foaming at the mouth,” a netizen joked.
“She going be so good in the W,” another basketball fan said sharing in the energy.
“Quite literally the most dominant college player I’ve seen in a long time, male or female and it’s not even close,” said one fan on X.
“She might be the Jordan of women’s basketball, she got the game and the pretty face,” raved another Watkins supporter.
“She’s going to take the WNBA to another level,” one social media user bluntly stated.
Prior to Watkins’ injury the comparisons to Clark and arguments over how impactful JuJu will be in women’s hoops were rampant. This is when Clark was at the height of her popularity, but some the opinions were still split as some fans expect Watkins to eventually be better and bigger than Clark. While others feel she just doesn’t have the same star power yet.
“Juju is a great player, but she doesn’t draw eyeballs like CC because CC is white America’s great white hope,” reasoned one fan on X.
“It’s already flooded,” said one Caitlin Clark fan. “The WNBA was the underground garage band from your local city. Then Clark camera and they’re touring worldwide and on the radio 24/7…What’s Juju gonna do? It’s already done.
“She’s a good player, but doesn’t have the “it” factor.
JuJu Watkins has surpassed NCAA all-time leading scorer Clark on the list of most points by a women’s college basketball player through their first two seasons. And if not for her injury she would be challenging the all-time mark entering this season.
Is JuJu Watkins Already Better Than Caitlin Clark?
Some fans wondered why JuJu didn’t get the same national media attention Clark did prior to her injury.
“Juju way better than Caitlin Clark. She would beat Clark easily one on one. juju looks like she can actually hold herself with some men’s teams on scrimmage. She’s got an inside and outside game. Can finish in the paint and hit the deep ball. Quick and athletic. But how come national media, Sportscenter, and X not losing their mind over Juju like they did with Clark last year. Strange,” one fan wondered.
The All-American guard, whose name has also gained traction from her mysterious “relationship” with Washington Commanders star quarterback Jayden Daniels, will get the chance to prove that she is the next best thing in the WNBA and a true contender and multi-faceted two-way weapon that can steal some of the WNBA celebrity dominance from Caitlin Clark.
