JuJu Watkins capped off his illustrious high school career with one of the most prestigious awards at the HS sports level. The Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, Calif.) star has been named the Gatorade National Girls Basketball Player of the Year, it was announced Monday.
Watkins had a stellar senior year averaging 27.5 points, 13.7 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 2.5 steals and 1.7 blocks per game while leading Sierra Canyon to a 31-1 record. She had a 45-point, 16-rebound performance on January 26th and then broke her scoring record five nights later with a 60-point, 21-rebound performance on January 31st.
Listed at 6-foot-2, Watkins entered the storied ranks among girls at the high school level. She was the MVP of the FIBA World Cup Championship, a McDonald’s All-American, the 2020 Sports Illustrated Sports Kid of the Year, and named the Los Angeles Times Girls Basketball Player of the Year both her sophomore and junior years ( this season in LA Times Award has not yet been announced). Watkins was too Klutch Sports Group’s first female athlete client.
Gatorade also considers community service and education when selecting awards. Watkins is very involved in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles, working with the Watts Labor Community Action Committee, founded by her great-grandfather Ted Watkins.
She said she wants to help the community gain financial literacy and education opportunities, inspire young girls to persevere through adversity, and bring Fortune 500 companies to the area.
“My vision is to inspire my community and become a frontier for women’s basketball,” Watkins said of the Klutch signing. “We don’t have as many resources as others, so we’re just talking and being a part of this women’s basketball story.”
She has also volunteered locally for Hands of Hope and Shoes for Souls, according to Gatorade. Watkins had a 3.72 GPA.
The No. 1 player in the class of 2023, Watkins signed with USC, where he will attend this fall.