Who is Juju Watkins? A closer look at Sierra Canyon's star and No. 1 recruit joining University Of Southern California

Seventeen-year-old Juju Watkins has officially declared for the University of Southern California. The teenage star has continued to shock the basketball world over the course of the past year, winning a 2022 FIBA World Cup gold medal to go along with MVP honors.

Just last season, Wakins helped the famed Sierra Canyon High School basketball program win the California State Championship. Where she would go to college has been a focal point of women's basketball news in recent months. With the WNBA already on the minds of many fans and analysts, it was merely a question of where Watkins chose to play college ball.

On Tuesday morning, the news broke through longtime reporter Adrian Wojnarowski regarding Watkins' decision. In his words, the signing was a "monumental" one for the Southern California Trojans.

A follow-up report from ESPN included quotes from Watkins as she explained what went into the decision process. Growing up in California just miles away from USC, it seems only fitting that the budding young star plays for a hometown team.

"I didn't want to rush this process. A lot of people in my class had already committed before me, and I definitely was taking my time. But I want to make sure it was 1,000 percent where I wanted to go."

Watkins also shared a video on her Twitter account announcing her decision. You can see the video below.

You can see some highlights from a recent game where Watkins dropped 30 points at the LynnWood Fall Showcase in the video below.

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Juju Watkins' player profile including height, weight, and style of play

Standing at 6-foot-2, Watkins is considered the best high school point guard in the world. With an aggressive style of play that includes a fierce jump shot and a gentle touch around the rim, Watkins has an incredibly deep bag of moves. Whether she's dishing the ball to a teammate on a backdoor cut, creating her own shot, or spotting up as a shooter, she knows how to impact the game.

During her recent gold-medal run with Team USA in the Under-17 FIBA World Cup tournament, Watkins posted impressive averages. A team-high 13.1 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 2.3 steals per game prove she's a threat on both ends of the floor.

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Who are Juju Watkins' parents?

Although Juju Watkins has already become a massive star, her parents were never professional athletes. According to the limited information available, Watkins' father played basketball at Verbum Dei, while her mom "participated" in Basketball at Washington Prep.

It isn't known whether her mother played collegiate basketball, or if she enjoyed basketball as a hobby. Regardless, the two have raised one of the sport's biggest young stars.

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Juju Watkins' record with Sierra Canyon

During her time with Sierra Canyon, Juju Watkins averaged a whopping 24.8 points per game to go along with 10.3 rebounds per game. As a five-star recruit, Watkins' impressive rebounding numbers indicate that she isn't afraid to do the dirty work in the paint. As many have attested to in the past, rebounding is largely an 'effort' based stat that reflects the tenacity of players.

During her time with Sierra Canyon, Watkins helped lead the team to an astounding 30-2 record. Throughout the course of her stint with the team, she picked up two Gatorade California Player of the Year awards.

Watkins isn't just on the court to break down barriers, however. Off the court, she's living up to the Sierra Canyon 'Trailblazers' name as well. Earlier this year, Watkins became the first female star to sign with Klutch Sports. The sports management firm is of course run by Rich Paul, a longtime friend of LeBron James.

Juju Watkins and Bronny James both recently signed with Nike, marking a new era of collegiate athletes.

Below you can see a clip of Kyrie Irving attending one of her games.