The Return of JuJu Watkins: Resetting the Trajectory for USC
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After 588 days away from the court, the senior guard returns to a program seeking to bridge the gap between national prominence and a championship.
For the University of Southern California women's basketball program, the return of Judea "JuJu" Watkins is more than a roster addition; it is the restoration of a ceiling. As CBS Sports first reported, the 21-year-old senior guard is expected to make her first official appearance in 588 days on Monday, Nov. 2, when USC faces UNLV to open the 2026-27 season.
Watkins' absence was the result of a grueling recovery from ACL surgery, a period she described to CBS Sports as a "roller coaster." While she has reached a point of being healthy, Watkins admitted the final hurdle was the psychological struggle of being physically capable but not yet fully cleared to play at her maximum capacity. Now, as she prepares for the 4 p.m. tip-off broadcast on CBS Sports Network, the focus shifts from rehabilitation to the overarching vision she shares with head coach Lindsay Gottlieb.
Since her arrival, Watkins has operated as the catalyst for a program attempting to reclaim its historical identity. In an exclusive interview with CBS Sports, Watkins noted that she and Coach Gottlieb were aligned from the start on a desire to bring a "winning culture" back to USC. This ambition was evident early in Watkins' tenure. In her regular-season debut on Nov. 6, 2023, she scored 32 points against Ohio State, surpassing the 30-point debut mark set by Lisa Leslie in November 1990. To Watkins, that milestone was not just a personal achievement but a signal to the basketball world that USC is "on the rise."
That upward trajectory was further cemented on Feb. 2, 2024, when Watkins scored a program-record 51 points to lead the Trojans to a 67-58 upset over No. 4 Stanford. At the time, USC held a 15-4 record and a No. 15 national ranking. Watkins told CBS Sports that the victory served as a rejection of a previous identity defined by losing.
Under the Gottlieb-Watkins partnership, the program has already reached heights not seen in years. Watkins helped lead the team to the 2024 PAC 12 Championship—only the second in the program's history, following the 2014 title. The Trojans finished that season 29-6 and secured the first of two consecutive No. 1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament, though their 2024 run ended with a loss to UConn in the Elite Eight.
As Watkins returns to the court, she does so carrying the weight of a legacy that extends beyond the gym. Born and raised in Watts, California, Watkins was inspired by her great-grandfather, Ted Watkins, who founded the Watts Labor Community Action Committee (WLCAC) and championed the motto "Don't move, improve." By choosing USC over other finalists like Stanford and South Carolina, Watkins viewed her collegiate career as a "full circle moment" of applying that family philosophy to her own life.
Now, the goal is to translate that individual excellence and program momentum into a championship. With the "winning culture" already established and the record books rewritten, the return of the program's most explosive talent provides the necessary bridge to move from national prominence to the pinnacle of the sport.