Original subtitles

[ Door opens and closes ]

-It's been a great season. We're undefeated.

But the main goal is just to win a championship.

**

To get to the championship, we have to go through Etiwanda.

**

If we lose, we're out and our season is over.

**

-I don't think Etiwanda is a rivalry.

I think they're the team that is standing

in the way of our goals.

And we have to go through them

to win a championship.

They're just the team who's in our way.

[ Cheers and applause ]

-Everybody's coming through.

We got family, friends. We got Dawn Staley.

We got some other people pulling up.

And the whole Watkins crew -- we ready.

-There's a lot on the line tonight,

and the goal is to come out with a "dub."

[ Cheers and applause ]

[ Whistle blows ]

**

-I think we're two of the best coached teams

with the best players.

When you have that much talent,

you're both fighting for everything that you want.

You're going to have a battle every time.

-Watching the Etiwanda game was really stressful.

You're just sitting there. You're like,

"Okay, we hope they get this W and head to state."

**

-Like, I've never seen JuJu so off.

[ Whistle blows ]

Her rhythm, her dribble.

Every shot was just off.

I felt like the Monstars

came and just stole all our hoop skills.

-Take a deep breath!

**

-It was a battle for sure.

And it came down to the wire when it was all said and done.

[ Indistinct shouting ]

-Get it! -Oh!

[ Cheers and applause ]

-JuJu hits a 3. Boom.

Oh, my Lord. It's on.

**

[ Cheers and applause ]

We were tied up.

Puff was coming around.

Izela was guarding her.

[ Whistle blows ]

-What?!

-Come on!

-This ref made the most asinine call.

Izela did not foul her.

She was about to go out of bounds.

And this ref just blows her whistle.

**

[ Whistle blows ]

**

**

-We are trying to get JuJu the ball,

like, in the air, towards half-court.

If they collide, it's a foul,

and we'll shoot a free throw.

So, Mac... [ Speaking indistinctly ]

[ Indistinct conversations ]

[ Buzzer ]

**

-I think in moments like that,

where the shot clock's just so low,

you know, I always try to have hope.

-Half-court!

Go! -Shoot it!

[ Buzzer ]

[ Cheers and applause ]

-Like, I had, like, a damn near in-line shot to win.

Didn't make that.

And we lost.

So...

**

-And now with the championship plaque for the 2023

CIF Regional Girls Basketball Open Division Championships

goes to the Etiwanda Eagles.

-The refs should never decide a game,

like, not a game of that magnitude.

To see JuJu's reaction --

'cause that's her last game in that uniform at that school,

representing that school --

for her to lose that way, that was a sad moment.

[ Cheers and applause ]

-There was a lot of crying.

A lot of it was JuJu going through

the moment of processing, "My high-school career is over

and my career here is done

and I've kind of got to think about how that feels."

There was a sadness and shock that it ended the way it did.

-I didn't come out of my room for like three days,

didn't go to school.

It was bad.

Definitely one of my lowest points so far, so...

But, I mean, like, family was there.

-I don't know if I should be telling y'all this,

because I don't want her to be embarrassed,

but we just all cried together.

-Mariah, my mom, Kelli, just all sat on my bed with me,

just gave me hugs.

-I just had to tell her like, "Hey, it's happened to LeBron.

It's happened to Michael. It's happened to Kobe."

A great loss only makes you greater.

And I believe that was her great loss.

-They just keep me grounded and make me realize

that there's way more to life than just one game.

I was good after a couple days.

-She got up and she was like, "Okay,

what do we have going on today?"

[ Indistinct conversations ]

-Oh, my God. You're so weird.

-Coach text the group chat like, "Everybody got to be here.

We got to do this interview."

I'm like, "Bro, like, give it a second.

Like, let me heal in peace, please."

I'm calling Mackenly like,

"Can you believe coach got us, like,

coming to this gym for an interview?

Like, they couldn't give us a couple more days

to just cope with everything?"

-Let them tell you where to sit.

-It's 9:00 in the morning.

-It's like 8:00.

Daylight savings.

-She told us. -Oh, okay.

-Scooch over.

-Bro, I had no clue what was going on.

I was mad.

-And...

-Do you guys want to talk about the last game or no?

-No. We've moved on.

Okay, so, I just feel like everybody takes the "L,"

so we have to move on from this "L"

and take it and just move on with our lives.

You win some, you lose a couple.

That was our couple.

-Everyone, let me know when you're good.

Looking right at this camera. Alright.

-Can we actually get a ball in JuJu's hand?

-A lot of the times, people are like,

"Okay, JuJu, come here.

Like, let's get the team like this."

I hate when that happens.

So I'm like, "Okay, can I go back now?

Like, let me go with my team."

But I was like, "Whatever."

Like, I wasn't even paying attention to it.

I was already mad because I got dragged out of my bed

to come here after just taking a huge "L."

-Hey, I don't have a ball,

but will the 2023 Gatorade National Girls

Player of the Year...

[ Cheers and applause ]

Congratulations. Congrats.

-Gatorade Player of the Year is the biggest honor

you can get as a high-school athlete, period.

You truly have to be thebest of the best.

-Congrats.

-And it's not just a basketball award.

It's a character award. It's an academic award.

It's a community-service award.

So you're not just the most skilled player in the country,

you're also one of the best people in the country.

[ Cheers and applause ] -Let's go.

-She's crying. -Oh, my God!

-Now I'm gonna cry.

-The Gatorade Player of the Year --

that was one of my biggest goals.

-None of us were joking.

-And then Candace walks in with the award,

and then I'm just like, "Bro, like, what?!"

I was excited. I was really excited.

[ Cheers and applause ]

I cannot believe how much good acting was going on that day,

because I had no clue.

-Having a big family, I was nervous,

because somebody might say something.

-I can keep a secret. Maybe some other people can't.

-I almost broke this morning.

I was like, "Are you so happy for today?"

But then she was like, "Why?" I'm like, "Oh, never mind.

I don't know why." But I'm so happy she's happy.

-You know, I think every hooper that plays

in high school dreams of being the national player of the year.

-It's been, like, on her bucket list

since she started bouncing a ball.

-She really needed this from that,

you know, disappointing loss.

-It's also a really good way for us to,

like, finish our year.

You know, like, you just end in tears on the court,

so to end in good tears is a little bit better.

-It's your day.

-Oh!

-I'm like, "Are we sure we want to step all the way back there?"

There it is. Unh!

Has there ever been a point in time in your life where

something has happened and you doubted your abilities

or doubted basketball or doubted your ability

to go as far as you wanted to?

-No. And that's mainly because my support system is so strong.

They don't really let me doubt myself

and they've, like, helped me build my confidence.

So I don't doubt myself. -I love it.

Alright, so, one game.

-It's just crazy how life works.

One of the lowest points of my life,

and then, boom, here you go, here you go.

Like, it's just crazy.

And then it just makes you realize like, "Wow.

Like, there's always, like, a brighter side to things."

**

-Okay, so, I'm just going to touch you up,

'cause this is not looking...

So, how was the shoot-out?

-The what?

-They said it was a shoot-out or something?

-Shoot-around. Oh, my God.

-Shoot-around. -Shoot-out.

We went to Houston for the McDonald's All-American games.

I was very excited, because, like, I was always like,

"I wonder what it's gonna be like when I go."

Just to be a part of that and have that experience

was something that I always dreamt of.

-Well, how do you channel -- What's the idea in terms

of channel, and, like, and how do you settle down

from all the excitement that's going on around you?

-I already settled down from all of that.

-What'd you do? -I just, you know, isolated.

Me and my mom have always just had an open dialogue.

It's definitely so important, because there's always,

like, extra noise around everything,

and it's really a place and a time

where I could talk about what I want to do

and what are my goals specifically.

And then, once I'm finished, it's like,

"Okay, I feel prepared and locked in."

-Okay, so...

Like, what I notice, and I'm gonna say this,

is, like, when we go to your games

and you're just at a still moment,

you have, like, the most fiery games,

because you go into your own zone.

So I really want you to just zone out.

You only get to play your McDonald's All-American one time

in your lifetime, and today is your day.

Have fun.

-Number 12, JuJu Watkins!

[ Crowd cheering ]

-Seeing my daughter named a McDonald's All-American,

super-proud moment.

It's not easy to, you know, be a McDonald's All-American,

and she did that.

-Checking in for the West team, number 12, JuJu Watkins.

-Everybody that's in the NBA,

WNBA has reached, you know, that stature.

The list goes on and on -- LeBron James, Candace Parker.

Yeah, all the top 1-percenters that you know have done that.

When you're in it, you're not thinking about it,

but that's a major accomplishment, man.

That's a big, big deal.

-You know, it was very competitive.

And I feel like whenever you put such strong players

in the same game,

of course it's going to be, like, a competitive game.

Everybody's there to, like, prove who they are, like,

show who they are, showcase their talents.

Every time you put us on the court together,

we're gonna, like, go at it.

I haven't had that competition in a long time.

We won, Team West, of course, and then I got co-MVP.

-...this evening's Most Valuable Players,

for the West team, number 12, JuJu Watkins!

-Watching seeing her get MVP was the cherry on the top.

-It was amazing,

especially being, like, my last game.

And on to college.

-I'd always dreamed of playing for a college,

and, thankfully, SC was that for me.

Coach Lindsay -- you know, she gives me so much confidence

and she has so much trust in me that, you know,

it only allows me to feel better about myself.

I think that's everything a player could ask for in a coach.

-We wanted to welcome you to the '23-'24 season.

Whoo-hoo!

And a couple things.

Like, one of the reasons I wanted to do this is

because I want you to really feel

like this is a home away from home for you guys.

Like, not just for recruiting and things like that.

-[ Laughs ] Sorry.

-And I say that and it could be for

people for different reasons, right?

Like, if you just need to get away from campus for a day

and come over here and, like, not bother with me

and just say, "Lindsey, can I just use your room over there?"

If you need a home-cooked meal,

I'm really good at DoorDashing that.

-What is DoorDashing? -Me not cooking. Ordering.

But I do want you to feel like our family is your family

and I want you guys to feel like you're family with each other,

and so I really mean that.

And so it was important to me just before it gets going

for us to see each other before you have meetings

and kick-off things and we start practicing and all that.

Okay. Let's go.

Hey, guys, they said the taco guy needs 10 minutes.

-For me, it was kind of hard adjusting.

It's just such a drastic difference

between high school and college.

Navigating freshman life is difficult.

It's like being a freshman in high school,

just doing it all over again.

-Tacos are ready!

-Can I have two steak, one chicken, please?

Thank you. -Sir, are you too overwhelmed?

-Can you say "JuJu"? Can you say "JuJu"?

-Good? -Yeah, that's good.

-You got asada? -Hmm?

-Asada?

-Mm-hmm. -Mm-hmm.

-When I first got here, I didn't know who I was.

I feel myself, like, coming alive now.

-It hit different. -I'm about to go run it back.

-As an introvert, I think, naturally,

it's really easy to kind of stay off, you know, to the side.

But I really have to force myself

to become more extroverted and speak up,

especially on the court, just to, you know,

help during the game and help as much as I can.

**

Coach D, Coach D, tell me why I'm 169.

-What do you wanna be? -160.

Yeah, you're right. I am. I've been grubbin'.

I'm not gonna lie. -You've been grubbin'.

-We rise and grind. So we have 7:00 a.m. lifts.

Typically, we have three lifts a week.

I think the early mornings are tough

for every 18-to-22-year-old.

But I do believe it's my responsibility in here

to build the foundation

and make sure JuJu is strong enough to withstand

the speed of play and the contact in the game.

So, the big thing for me is, in the off-season,

gain our strength so that we can maintain it in season.

Are you going to gain some muscle in the off-season?

Yes, but when you start averaging the minutes

that you're going to average in practice and games,

you're going to lose.

So we want a little bit of a buffer

so that when you do lose,

you don't go below your ideal playing weight,

because then you're more inclined

to be less injury-resistant.

Does that make sense? Alright, people.

It's Friday, yeah? -Yeah.

-So this day and all of next week,

we start to de-load a little bit,

start to de-load as we're getting into games and so forth.

Okay? Fewer sets and reps.

But it doesn't mean we sacrifice the quality of our work.

We good with it? Let's have a day.

A.G., what we got? -"Trojans" on 3. 1, 2, 3...

-Trojans!

**

-Got to get those thighs parallel.

-Hey!

-The biggest change since I started this summer --

it's definitely the routine and getting my body

used to just bouncing back quick enough.

-You want it? Alright!

Everybody, let's go! Let's go!

Come on! Come on!

Get your checkbook! Let's go, kid! Come on!

-Oh, my God. -[ All cheering ]

-You guys are annoying, bro.

-JuJu is built different.

Her standard of herself is higher than any standard

anybody could ever impose on her.

I think getting outside her comfort zone

and having fun with it

and enjoying the process and the ride

and not being so just driven and focused on basketball.

[ Laughter ]

-Hey! Hey!

That little twerk? Hey! Hey!

Hey! -* We up next *

-Hey!

-All the spaces are open.

-No. They're closed. -[ Laughter ]

-The level of excitement emanates from JuJu,

and then it spreads to everyone else, too.

It's been really cool to see all of it develop organically.

I freakin' love JuJu. -Oh!

-It definitely didn't take long to jell

with everybody on the team.

So, really, I think the sky's the limit for us.

[ Laughter ]