LOS ANGELES – USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb and her star player Juju Watkins were invited to the annual Los Angeles Dodger Foundation Blue Diamond Dinner in May. In a world of la glitterati, Gottlieb was flocked by many people. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts and boss Mark Walter want to see her. Magic Johnson and his wife Cookie came over. Part of the Los Angeles Lakers is also interested.
Gottlieb said: “I was spinning everywhere, these fans and these guys went, ‘juju! juju!”’ “She was like any Dodgers (her) bread (hair style) that was recognizable and was the biggest star. I’m back and I’m telling my staff and the government that it’s a next level. In Los Angeles, she is the star of the stars. ”
Watkins entered a historic first season, which was her freshman setting an NCAA record and led the Trojans to their first conference title in a decade and featured eight elite titles for the first time in 30 years. Her bread is famous in itself, and it was tried last season’s national AT&T ad with NBA superstar Joel Embiid and others.
Watkins has brought USC basketball back from relatively obscure moves. When the Trojan started the NCAA Championship with the No. 1 seed, she could be what she might be and what that means for the program and the city, and what that means, it is in real time.
The feeling of sophomore year and the people around me have been preparing for this possibility before starting college. Watkins signed with Klutch Sports Group in high school and has been building its own brand portfolio ever since. As a Los Angeles native, it has been part of a plan to use her influence to enhance the community – a previous partnership with the Lid allows her to design a hat that highlights her Watts neighborhood and the choice to attend USC allows her to keep the same spotlight.
“Los Angeles is just a great place in terms of opportunity and relationships,” Watkins said. “I feel like Los Angeles plays a big role in my legacy and what I do on and off the court.”
The city was attracted to Watkins. According to the NCAA, the Trojan averaged 1,037 fans in home games in 2022-23. During the Watkins freshman season, that number soared to 4,279, further increasing to 5,932 during the regular season 2024-25. In addition to former USC players, Watkins brought many celebrities to the Gallen Center. Actors, musicians and other influential stars, including Sanaa Lathan, Leslie Jones, Vanessa Bryant, Flea, Snoop Dogg and Michael B. Jordan, all cheered from the USC Courtside seats.
While expecting additional attention, the program reaches out to see what’s coming, connecting with Big Ten and Iowa State, including former Hawkeye head coach Lisa Bluder, before the season begins.
Caitlin Clark has been a talisman for women’s basketball fans during his senior season in Iowa, attracting historic crowds and TV ratings on his way to breaking multiple scoring records. The Hawkeye’s back-to-back national championship game peaked in the highest-paid national championship game of all time, surpassing the men’s final the next day.
As Clark fought alongside former LSU star Angel Reese, Watkins became the heir to nature as UConn star Paige Bueckers entered her final college season, apparently filling superstar Vacuum, both in the Big Ten and nationally.
As a result, USC updated its security protocols, adding wristband strategies to control specific groups of people who are allowed to stay in the arena after the game. The Top 10 helps deal with pre- and post-match protocols on the road, and Bluder shares details on how to maintain hotel privacy. Watkins’ agent Jade-Li English added that security is a special topic given Watkins’ popularity in her hometown – with or without bread.
Juju Watkins signed one of her many bun dinner fans. (Katelyn Mulcahy / Getty Images)
When the Trojans compete in their inauguration Top 10 sports this season, every school (outside Iowa, every sold-out home game) was in attendance. Juju Bump’s average attendance increased by 75%, and when Rutgers visited, the average population of Rutgers was almost three times that of the average population. Across the country, the mother and dad of Watkins jersey wear their daughter on the bun’s head to play the game.
“It’s hard to predict this until you live in real time,” Gottlieb said. “We all have a vision to help her really grow the program, but I think the gravity of fans supporting change is really amazing.”
Watkins’ arrival at college basketball coincides with the overall prosperity of the sport and only enhances her visibility and opportunities. Her portfolio is extensive, including 16 national marketing deals including Nike, State Farm, Gatorade and Fanatics. Whether it’s a stroll around Los Angeles (she owns three built Nike billboards downtown) or turning on the TV, her image is inevitable.
“We were able to align Juju with the brands of their respective industry leaders and align with brands that have natural synergy with women’s basketball,” said Brittany McCallum, senior vice president of sports strategy at Klutch Sports. “All of these partners have television shows, which are broadcast during the NCAA Championships. So these partnerships leverage the visibility of national television to make Juju a part of a larger cultural moment while also amplifying the presence of the brand in one of the most supervised eras in the women’s sports.”
Watkins said her collaboration with Funko Pop is one of her favorites as she helped the details of its bread and eyelashes approach her similarities as possible. She signed at least 30 of them during the USC selection Sunday party. Her advertising position with Chipotle is another outstanding figure as it includes the entire Trojan lineup.
But the partnership with Nike did open the door for Watkins. McCallum said when her 19-year-old client landed on the moon and was “completely caught off guard” when she learned she would appear in the Super Bowl ad.
“It’s really special for her to see those moments and strengths that Nike is behind the women’s sports right now, which may not be in the cards, but it will definitely fit the position of the women’s games,” McCallum said. “And Juju is very grateful to be a part of the sports.”
Without her corresponding basketball success, Juju Watkins would not have risen. She joined Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo in her freshman campaign to become third and fourth, earning first-team honors for freshman and sophomore. She led USC to her first regular season title in more than three decades.
All the attention that followed was still focused on basketball. She doesn’t participate in the pre-match interview, but rather stay in the area. Gottlieb said Watkins had a hard time with every rep in every exercise, taking on the challenges at both ends of the floor. Watkins will hydrate this season with extra emphasis on denying the issue after dealing with cramps during freshman season.
Snoop Dogg in Da House! He wears Juju Watkins to fit.
Michael B. Jordan also competed in the U.S.C. Notre Dame. pic.twitter.com/fald6ncc4a
— Isabel Gonzalez (@cisabelg) November 23, 2024
Even though her star turn has been choreographed and she is expected to succeed, she has reached unpredictable heights.
Gottlieb joked that her own identity is now defined by Watkins. In the U.S. basketball game, she worked out in a hotel gym with Dawn Staley and the family of an U-17 player. The little boy in the family excitedly told his father that there was Dawn Staley, then turned around and noticed Juju Watkins’ coach! In the semifinals of 2024, a father took a photo with Gottlieb and his daughter because she is a big Watkins fan and is happy to take a photo with someone on the Watkins track. Gottlieb felt compelled to point out that she was the one in the picture, not juju.
Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick competed in the regular season finals between USC and UCLA. Afterwards, he said: “Juju Watkins is one of them and she is incredible. She first saw her drama, but obviously I’ve seen her before. She endured the hype.”
At this point, the hype train is unprecedented and anyone has guessed it.
(Illustration: Kelsea Petersen/ sports; Photos of Angel Reese, Juju Watkins and Caitlin Clark: Harry How/Getty Images, Brian Fluharty/Getty Images, Eakin Howard/Getty Images)
