Juju Watkins Compared to Carmelo Anthony as Damian Lillard Brings Syracuse Legacy to Spotlight

Has Juju Watkins become to USC Trojans what Carmelo Anthony was to Syracuse Orange? Both players have had impressive stats for their college teams. But Melo led Syracuse to the 2003 NCAA championship. Juju is yet to achieve that feat. While USC lost the Elite 8 game against UConn, Milwaukee Bucks guard Damian Lillard sent out a tweet in the middle of the game putting the spotlight on Watkins.

“Juju like Melo at Syracuse fr… you wana win give her the ball man,” Lillard posted on ‘X’. It is worth mentioning that Juju scored 20+ points in every round of the NCAA tournament. She also played a crucial role in her team winning the Pac-12 tournament prior to March Madness.

While the USC Trojans might not have won the Championship this year, Juju has certainly shown glimpses of greatness. And as Lillard pointed out, for USC to have any hope of winning silverware, it will have to come via the 18-year-old sensation. While Carmelo Anthony may have got his NCAA championship in his first attempt, moving ahead to an NBA career, Watkins still has time to be eligible for her WNBA debut as she is just 18 as of now. And the WNBA draft requires a minimum age of 22 years.

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So she will have future opportunities to bring the NCAA champion title for herself. Moreover, Juju is a skilled player in her own sense. She does not need to follow the exact career footsteps of Carmelo Anthony. However, any similarities in the gameplay would only be helpful.

What sets Juju Watkins apart from others?

Though she may not have won the championship in her first attempt like Carmelo Anthony, Juju boasts a better stat line than Melo in her debut season. The ex-Syracuse star averaged 22.2 points, 10 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game as a Freshman. Meanwhile, the Trojans’ guard has averaged 27 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 3.3 assists per game in her debut season of 2023-24.

And the difference in category should not be a major factor here because she has had a better debut season than even the present college basketball greats like Caitlin Clark had. Caitlin may be the most impressive NCAA player right now with 31.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 8.9 assists per game in the 2023-24 season, even though she did not have a better debut season than what Juju has had.

In fact, Nick Young was so impressed by the 18-year-old players that he posted on X, “Juju could be the number 1 pick in this nba draft she cold….. USC winning a Chip!! ✌🏾✌🏾✌🏾 fight on!!” Even the LA Lakers legend LeBron James has on an occasion stated Watkins to be the next greatest thing in women’s basketball.

This shows that Juju Watkins has the potential to reach greater heights with time. What is your opinion of Juju Watkins being the Carmelo Anthony of the USC Trojans? Let us know your views in the comments.

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