America begins one other campaign cycle. That means primaries, an ungodly amount of polls, speeches and ads that might have an impact Source Awards in 1995 they’re like a Bible study. At any given moment, everyone is in search of a talking point and candidates are in search of a vote.

Well, apart from Judea Skies Watkins USC’s freshman guard, higher often known as JuJu. The votes were forged and Watkins was chosen as the following big star of American basketball.

Watkins’ impressive on-court exploits are an enormous reason why the Los Angeles native has exploded onto the sports scene. In this season All-American recipient he was the ESPN National Freshman of the Year and runner-up for National Player of the Year. She was also named Pac-12 Freshman of the Year by Athletic. She has a set of lucrative NIL deals. USC’s third-place rating is its highest in 38 years, and Watkins led the Trojans in scoring in 27 of 31 games this season, including a 51-point masterpiece on the road against Stanford (a season-high for each men and girls). USC’s scoring records were once held Cheryl Miller AND LisaLeslie They belong to Watkins. In short, she is a walking bucket and is exciting to observe.

“JuJu has a probability to do something we have needed in women’s basketball for an extended time. And meaning going beyond sports and really being on the intersection of girls’s basketball and culture,” she added. LaChina RobinsonWNBA analyst and ESPN host, he said.

“At Lakers games, the first thing you think about is who are all the stars that are on the court and want to watch LeBron or Kobe when he plays or even going back to Magic (Johnson). “It’s a staple in Los Angeles because of everything the city stands for, music, art, entertainment, etc.” Robinson continued. “(JuJu) could create this unique space where women’s basketball can be appreciated by greater than just sports fans. It could take the sport into popular culture and easily right into a larger space than up to now.

If it seems a number of pressure for an 18-year-old from the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles, it’s true.

These words can only place additional, unrealistic expectations on her. But like her classmate and friend Bronny James, only Watkins’ expectations of herself matter. Still, there’s nothing flawed with finding excitement in her game and being enthusiastic about what someone along with her talent could mean for much broader social conversations. She is not a savior because women’s basketball does not need saving.

However, where Watkins might take the sport has yet to be properly mapped out. She is a basketball specialist whose goal goes far beyond scoring points. Watkins is young, talented and Black-like R&B singer Donny Hathaway he once preached and Tupac Shakur he rapped.

Her time is not coming. It’s already here.

There’s a moment that symbolizes Watkins’ freshman campaign and its historical consequences. In a Feb. 23 game against Colorado’s conference foe, USC, boosted by Watkins’ 42 points, won 87-81. But midway through the second quarter, she cut the fast break short by pulling up just a few feet behind the three-point line and draining it. The crowd erupted and nobody was prouder than Miller, who leaned forward in her seat and commenced clapping. Miller has been a daily at USC games this season, and his return was an emotional reunion a long time within the making.

“For everything you have done for the former players, it has been a very long time since we were embraced and were part of the younger generation growing up, so thank you from the bottom of my heart.” Miller said in a robust locker room speech after the sport following USC’s victory over cross-town rival UCLA. “You have changed the culture… You have shown in this country that you are bad MFs.”

In a sport like basketball, where eras often clash, an important thing is the mutual respect and love of many generations of Trojans. Still, it’s unimaginable to quantify USC’s resurgence of place in basketball lore. Reviving a dormant program is one thing. Another thing is to resurrect this system as proud as USC is of its history national championships, Final Four appearances and a number of the best talent the sport has ever seen. But being a daughter of the sphere, like Watkins, and helping to take this system to heights not seen in generations is a wholly different responsibility.

“Having (all of USC’s legends come to light) and being celebrated gives us the opportunity to bask in the rich history of USC’s achievements and what dominance has meant to women’s basketball, not just college basketball,” Robinson said. “We can still rejoice these players with the resurgence of USC. For me, this is really essential for the history and development of this sport.

While Watkins stands on the shoulders of the ladies before her, she is also a gateway to the longer term. He is from Watts, a town about 10 miles from the USC campus. Her family is rooted within the basketball scene in Los Angeles and the community at large.

“My great-grandfather founded a foundation in consequence, many resources and a spotlight were directed into the community to profit those in need. I actually look as much as my great-grandfather and grandfather, Ted Watkins.” Watkins said in a 2022 interview. “When I’m on the court, I’m at all times playing for something greater. I performed for my city.

The one thing Los Angeles at all times has is star power. A star, for higher or worse, is an ecosystem. But in a city of megastars, Watkins is greater than only a candle within the sun. Her star power is as vibrant as anyone’s, with stars including rappers 2 Chainz, YG and Saweetie, Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James, comedian Kevin Hart and former NBA star Marques Johnson sitting on the sphere at their matches. Flea from Red Hot Chili Pepperslong Watkins superfan She was wearing a T-shirt with a magazine cover on it for a Lakers game earlier this month.

“I would say this is the hottest ticket in Los Angeles right now, even with Shohei Ohtanis and LeBron James in the world.” Los Angeles sports reporter Lauren Jones he said about USC women’s basketball games. “He has that caliber of energy. People who shall be at these matches.

Beyond the USC Women’s Games on the Galen Center, there is one other essential truth as the brand new hot spot. What makes Watkins a cultural magnet is that he is an offensive machine. Last month, LisaLeslie joined Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green’s podcast in February and discussed Watkins’ play.

“A lot of people come to Los Angeles, but a lot of people aren’t from Los Angeles,” the three-time WNBA MVP he said. “But these guys in Los Angeles have a little bit of a dog in them. She’s from Los Angeles.

Basically, Watkins’ game is good in any environment – identical to that of one other basketball legend.

“I would compare JuJu to the way people talk Diana Taurasi– said Robinson. “Diana was respected on every playground, no matter what. Now she’s much more demonstrative on the court than JuJu, but the way JuJu plays to her abilities – three-level scoring, crossover, pull-up – is certified on every basketball court in the world. That’s why we see it attracting so much attention and support from people who don’t typically visit the women’s basketball space but love basketball. She plays like that.”

Watching Watkins, who has lower than a 12 months left to graduate from highschool, looks like watching a possible generational talent perform. Watkins seems shy, almost embarrassed by the highlight, but not in a way that does not look cute. She doesn’t “play the game the right way,” whatever meaning. She plays to win. And there is no more respected love language in sports.

Watkins’ laid-back attitude and her signature bun are a part of who she is and what could make her one in all the largest basketball stars of her generation – male or female. She excels at being herself in a world where successes and failures are sometimes reduced to 60-second clips. She’s an 18-year-old young black woman trying to seek out her place on the earth. The only difference is that Watkins is doing it in the general public eye. There are actually mistakes on the horizon. No man, even one as incredibly talented as Watkins, is proof against them. But let’s hope that lessons will come from these mistakes. Lessons that might be applied on the court and in life, because the most effective often do.

What this implies for ladies’s basketball and beyond is anyone’s guess. But it’s Watkins who chooses the trail he chooses to follow.

After Watkins dropped 51 points last month through the road game against Stanford, you needed to think there was no way they might let that occur again within the Pac-12 title game on March 10. They took an “everyone but JuJu” approach and ended up on the flawed side of the fiddle and checking out. Watkins scored a season-low nine points as Stanford threw her towards an limitless supply of double and triple teams, but her teammates helped her to a 67-58 victory at Maples Pavilion in Las Vegas.

“When you have a player like JuJu who goes to practices like this every day, all of a sudden you feel empowered as a player around her,” Robinson said. “You come out and perform, especially out of respect for everything JuJu has done to get the team to this point. It’s a beautiful thing.”

If Watkins and USC advance to the Final Four in Cleveland to make their first trip since 1986, they are going to need more of a team effort like this. However, her future is vibrant no matter how the season ends.

“JuJu has the opportunity to create a strong presence in women’s sports on the West Coast,” Jones said. “It sets the groundwork for (USC) to be part of a larger, more national conversation about some of the best programs at the collegiate level.”

Watkins’ dominance throughout the season is one in all the largest stories in college basketball. However, due to the tournament, her matches shall be broadcast when many of the country will finally give you the chance to observe her play live. For those that have yet to experience the tenacity and fantastic thing about her game, March Madness ought to be a nice surprise.

“When I first saw her play, I told myself she can go to the WNBA now,” Robinson said. “In almost twenty years in this sport, I don’t think I’ve ever said those words about anyone.”

Women’s basketball, like many points of American life, was created by Black energy and creativity that gave the sport its style and image. Watkins builds on this story and is able to create her own. The stages will get greater and greater, and the mythical statistics will result in conversations that can happen in sports bars, airports and barbershops across America. The lights will turn out to be brighter and more intense.

Not all moments require scoring, but every moment requires presence. The excellent news is that Watkins is built for each.