JuJu Watkins shows gratitude for making Ann Meyers Drysdale SG of the Year watchlist

After an incredible freshman year, USC star JuJu Watkins is gearing up for a standout sophomore season. She won many accolades for her outstanding performances, including being named the Ann Meyers Drysdale Shooting Guard of the Year last season.

As the start of the upcoming campaign nears, Watkins finds herself back on the radar for the award as she prepares to defend it in her second year playing for the Trojans.

USC posted a congratulatory message on Instagram:

"No surprise here," since she already won it as a freshman.

JuJu Watkins shared the post on her Instagram story. It included a folded hands emoji to express her appreciation for being on the watchlist for this prestigious award.

JuJu posted her gratitude on her IG story

The Ann Meyers Drysdale, first introduced in 2018, is given to the best female shooting guard in the nation and Watkins was the first to win it as a freshman. The 6-foot-2 California native averaged 27.1 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 2.3 steals per game for the Trojans, leading them to the NCAA Elite Eight.

Watkins also broke the record for the highest points racked up by a freshman in Division I basketball history, with 920 points.

JuJu Watkins College awards

• Pac-12 Freshman of the Year
• WBCA Freshman of the Year
• USBWA National Freshman of the Year
• Ann Meyers Drysdale Award
• Unanimous first-team All-American
• Pac-12 All-Freshman Team
• Pac-12 All-Defensive Team

JuJu Watkins inks a historic NIL deal with NYX Makeup

JuJu Watkins' NIL partnership portfolio has been stacked with several major deals with big companies since joining the University of Southern California.

The latest update to that catalog involves a deal between Watkins and NYX Professional Makeup — an international beauty brand — marking her as the first college basketball athlete to secure an endorsement contract with the company.

The makeup brand posted the news on its official Instagram page on Tuesday.

"I am thrilled to partner with NYX Professional Makeup to help further amplify their mission to inspire beauty enthusiasts around the world and embrace their own personal style," Watkins said per a press release.

JuJu Watkins, who already signed big deals from Nike and Gatorade this year, is in sixth place in On3's college women's basketball NIL rankings. According to On3's estimates, she has amassed over $576K in total NIL compensation.

The Trojans star has also garnered huge followers across social media — over 967K on Instagram and over 186K on TikTok.