Having USC in the mix is interesting. Lindsay Gottlieb does not have success or reputation of the other coaches involved. But, as mentioned, maybe JuJu wants to create her own powerhouse. And if she goes to USC, others will follow.
I guess Arizona's out. My hope is USC since they're leaving the Pac anyway and my Huskies wouldn't have to deal with her, but she still gets to stay on the west coast. Too, the rich certainly don't need to get richer. đŠ
I don't see Lindsay Gottlieb closing the deal. And Juju could probably make a WNBA roster right now, so you have to wonder if she'll actually stay for four years. She could threaten to challenge the WNBA in court if she doesn't want to go to college, but then again, NIL might keep her in school because it won't cost her any money.
I'm hoping for Stanford so our Carondelet point guard, Talana Lepolo, can play with her. It always helps assist totals to have a spectacular scorer alongside.
I don't think there's ever been an American that skipped college completely and went straight overseas. That's likely the only option she could jump into the WNBA early.
Weâll probably find out eventually with US-born Lithuanian JustÄ JocytÄ. She could be Draft-eligible in 2025 when sheâll be 20, or 2027 when sheâll be 22 if they consider her American birthplace as disqualifying for being classified as a ânon-Americanâ international player.
Considering NIL deals, Iâd be very surprised if JuJu Watkins or any other âpro-readyâ high school player actually skipped school and went straight overseas. With NIL deals, WCBB players will probably be more marketable than WNBA players until the end of time, sadly. (Or when all The Straightsâ˘ď¸ actually start [openly] wanting their kids to be gay. đ )
I donât want good guards going to Stanford. VanDerveer is one of the best coaches of all time, but for whatever reason, she just canât churn out good guard prospects for the pros. Candice Wiggins â fabulous rookie year, then trailed off little by little. Amber Orrange â never got more than a pro tryout. Lili Thompson â injuries and transferred but still was only on track to become a Kiana Williams. Kiana Williams â former Top-10 recruit and 4-year starter whoâs not currently in the League. And now Haley Jones seems poised to be next â even as we talk about her likely being a Top-6 pick, we still canât tell whether sheâll be elite like she could be, or just good/competent.
I mean, Layshia Clarendon whom Lindsay Gottlieb coached at Cal has had at least as productive a career as Wiggins (even if Clarendonâs career is now over as well), and Iâd argue even more so, especially since Clarendon had to sort of reinvent themself from being an off-guard to being a point guard â not easy by any means.
Agree on Clarendon v Wiggins but I think it was pretty one sided in favor of Clarendon. She was an All Star at least once and usually was good shot in the arm for whatever team picked her up via trade or waivers.
Supposedly Watkins is announcing her decision sometime in the next 24 hours. It's indeed between SoCar, SoCal, and Stanford.
I wonder how long she will stay at whatever school she selects? These days, college players seem to have a lot more mobility than pro players in the first 5 or so of their careers.
If she picks the real USC, I wouldn't be surprised if she changed schools. Maybe she'd find the culture shock at the upstart USC too much. If she picks Stanford, she'll very likely stay. Not many leave that campus ...
Iâd want to see her pick SoCal just from a pure talent distribution perspective. Not super fun seeing the top talent go to the same 6 or 7 upper-echelon teams if youâre not a fan of one of those teams.