JuJu Watkins Hints At Why Women Hold 'Upper Hand' in NIL Era

USC Trojans star guard JuJu Watkins shared an interesting stance about the current NIL landscape.

Feb 2, 2025; Iowa City, Iowa, USA; USC Trojans guard JuJu Watkins (12) looks on during the game against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images | Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

As intriguing as the 2025-26 NCAA women's basketball season has been, there's no question that a shadow is looming over the women's college game, given that USC Trojans superstar guard JuJu Watkins is missing the entire year because of an ACL injury.

Watkins suffered this injury during the first quarter of USC's March 24 NCAA Tournament game, when she was driving to the basket and slipped on the court floor. Fans feared the worst right away, and their fears were confirmed when it came out that Watkins did indeed suffer a torn ACL, which would not only force her to miss the rest of that season but keep her out for the entire 2025-26 campaign, as well.

Not Watkins is relegated to the sidelines while her talented Trojans squad tries to remain national championship contenders without their leader and best player. While Watkins' star power has taken a hit because she isn't on the court, JuJu undoubtedly is still one of the biggest names in women's college basketball and has benefited from the NCAA's NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) landscape, which allowed players to profit off their performance in terms of brand deals and partnerships.

Mar 24, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; USC Trojans guard JuJu Watkins (12) during an NCAA Tournament second round game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Galen Center. Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images | Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images

JuJu Watkins Sends Strong Message About NIL Landscape

JuJu did a December 4 interview with SELF, where she was asked to confirm or debunk several basketball myths. At one point, she read, "A large social media following automatically equates to NIL deals."

"This might be true," Watkins said with a laugh, per a video from SELF's YouTube channel. "I don't really know what the logistics are, but this might be true, unfortunately."

A bit later on, she read a card that had, "Female athletes can't earn as much as male athletes through NIL," written on it.

"This is false," Watkins responded. "Yeah, I think when it comes to NIL, it's like women have the upper hand. There are so many different ways to do NIL, and I think naturally, women just are better."

Watkins' stance is sure to raise eyebrows, given that LSU Tigers star Flau'jae Johnson is the top NIL earner in women's college sports right now (according to On3), and she ranks at No. 47 overall in the country. She's also the only woman in the top 100 aside from Kai Trump (No. 83), who is Donald Trump's granddaughter.

That being said, Watkins might have a point when it comes to women's players capitalizing on the brand deals and partnerships they're offered, and utilizing their star power in more unique and creative ways.

One would imagine Watkins would be on that top 100 list if she was healthy this season.