No. 18 Southern California won’t be lacking star power even as Associated Press 2024-25 player of the year JuJu Watkins sits out this season to recover from a torn anterior cruciate ligament.
Watkins’ absence puts more of a spotlight on Jazzy Davidson, who was rated as the nation’s No. 1 prospect in her high school class by ESPN.
“For those who don’t know her, as soon as the ball gets tipped for the 2025-26 season, everyone will know her,” USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb said during Big Ten media days. “She’s a really unique talent. She can score. She can facilitate. She plays both ends of the floor. Jazzy will make an incredible impact not only on us but on the national scene.”
Davidson, a 6-foot-1 forward, had 28.5 points, 8.7 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 3.8 steals and 2 blocks per game her senior season at Clackamas (Oregon) High School. She was a four-time selection as Gatorade’s high school player of the year for the state of Oregon.
She also averaged 14.6 points, 4.1 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 3 steals while helping the United States win this year’s FIBA U19 World Cup. Gottlieb told reporters that Davidson “comes in ready in a way that is very unique for someone her age.”
Gottlieb was how Davidson can help pick up the slack while Watson isn’t available this season.
“No one’s filling JuJu’s shoes,” Gottlieb said. “Those are very unique shoes. But the fact that Jazzy can step into our program and already just make a really unique and incredible impression on everybody is pretty wild. She’s really, really good. I’ll start with that. She’s next-level good.”
Davidson heads our list of impact freshmen in women’s basketball this season. Here’s a look at some others:
Sienna Betts, UCLA
How soon Betts will be available remains uncertain. The 6-4 forward from Grandview High School in Aurora, Colorado, will miss at least the first game of No. 3 UCLA’s season due to a left leg injury. Betts should make quite the impact once she’s healthy. Betts scored 16 points in the McDonald’s All-American Game and was named the game’s most valuable player. Betts is the younger sister of UCLA teammate Lauren Betts, who earned AP All-America first-team honors last season.
Nyla Brooks, North Carolina
No. 11 North Carolina’s 6-1 freshman guard was a McDonald’s All-American who averaged 18.3 points, 7.6 rebounds and 2.6 assists while helping Bishop Ireton win a Virginia state championship. She was the Gatorade player of the year for the state of Virginia. Coach Courtney Banghart has raved over Brooks’ length and athleticism. Brooks had 12 points and seven rebounds in a 91-82 preseason loss to No. 2 South Carolina.
Aaliyah Chavez, Oklahoma
This 5-10 guard arrives at No. 6 Oklahoma after being named the Gatorade, Naismith, MaxPreps and Sports Illustrated national high school player of the year. Chavez had 34.9 points, 9.1 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 3.7 steals her senior year while helping Monterey High School win a Texas state championship. She scored 4,796 points in her high school career. Chavez also won the 3-point contest at the McDonald’s All-American Game. Chavez scored 15 points in 20 minutes in No. 6 Oklahoma’s 106-41 exhibition victory over Oklahoma Christian.
Aaliyah Crump, Texas
Crump is a 6-1 guard who had 24.4 points, 8.2 rebounds, 3.7 steals and 3.3 assists per game while leading Minnetonka High to a Minnesota state championship her junior year before she transferred to Montverde (Florida) Academy for her senior season. Crump averaged 10.5 points and 5.5 rebounds in two exhibition victories for No. 4 Texas.
Jaliya Davis, Kansas
Davis will become the third McDonald’s All-American to play for Kansas. She’s only the second to sign with Kansas directly out of high school. The 6-2 forward shot 12 of 18 from the floor and scored a game-high 29 points in Kansas’ 90-59 exhibition victory over Fort Hays State. Davis averaged 25 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.3 steals and 2.1 assists as a senior while helping Blue Valley North win a second Kansas state championship in three years.
Mia Pauldo, Tennessee
Tennessee has a set of twins on its roster for the first time with the arrival of Mia and Mya Pauldo of Paterson, New Jersey. Mia had the higher recruiting ranking of the two 5-6 guards. She won the Gatorade player of the year award for the state of New Jersey and was rated as high as the nation’s No. 9 prospect in her class. She had 18 points, seven assists, four steals and no turnovers in Tennessee’s 148-48 exhibition victory over Columbus State. The Pauldo sisters helped Morris Catholic win three consecutive New Jersey state championships.
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AP Sports Writer Aaron Beard and AP freelance writer Rich Rovito contributed to this report.
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By STEVE MEGARGEE
AP Sports Writer
