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Chelsea Gray warns USC basketball star JuJu Watkins to avoid same mistakes she did with injury

Originally posted on NCAA Basketball on ClutchPoints
By Richard Pereira | Last updated Mar 26, 2025 1:03 PM ET

Chelsea Gray can relate to what USC Trojans star JuJu Watkins is going through with her ACL injury, having dealt with a similar situation herself.

Gray appeared as a special guest on an episode of the Run It Back podcast on Tuesday. She had dislocated her knee during her junior year at Duke which caused her to miss the rest of her season. Gray than injured the same knee again the following year and missed her senior year as well never playing in college again. Gray also dealt with a fractured foot when she tripped on Breanna Stewart and hearing a pop in her left foot.

While she still went to have a solid career in the WNBA, Gray wants Watkins to be patient with the process and to not rush herself back.

“Take it one day at a time, it’s not a race. Don’t try to come back too soon, the game will be there for you to come back too. The worst thing I ever did was come back too soon, I felt like I was losing something, people know who you are, people respect you when you come back,” Watkins said at the 46:19 mark.

“It’s going to be even better if you come back healthy. Just take it one day at a time, your circle is going to get even tighter of people that want to see you succeed, see you do right. So I’m excited for her journey. I think she’s going to come back even better.”

What’s next for USC after JuJu Watkins’ injury

USC Trojans head coach Lindsay Gottlieb greets guard JuJu Watkins (12) as she comes out of the game in the fourth quarter of an NCAA Tournament game against the UNC Greensboro Spartans at Galen Center. Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images

It is important advice for Chelsea Gray to give to JuJu Watkins, hoping for the best as she recovers from the ACL injury.

In the meantime, the USC Trojans will need to step up in her absence. Despite being without their best scorer, their squad remains solid with the likes of Kiki Iriafen, Rayah Marshall and Kennedy Smith among others.

USC goes into the Sweet 16 with a 30-3 overall record, having gone 16-1 in Big Ten Play. They average 81.6 points on 44.4% shooting from the field and 32.2% from beyond the arc. As a result, they blow out opponents by a margin of 22.8 points per game.

The 1-seed Trojans will prepare for their upcoming matchup, facing 5-seed Kansas State on March 29 at 8 p.m. ET.

This article first appeared on NCAA Basketball on ClutchPoints and was syndicated with permission.

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