DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — JuJu Watkins made the most of her brief trip to the USA Basketball senior national team camp.
While she wasn't able to participate in the on-court activities because the Southern California star is still recovering from an ACL injury she suffered last March, Watkins saw the invitation as an opportunity to grow her leadership abilities.
“It’s enough just being (here) and feeling the energy, that’s mostly what I’ve picked up on,” the reigning AP Player of the Year said. “Hearing everyone’s voices, the communications, the leadership, it’s something that you can see automatically. It brings up your standards, so I’ll definitely be taking some of these lessons back to USC to continue to grow as a leader and a player.”
Watkins was able to get up a few stationary shots with coaches after practice was over, which was a positive step in her rehab.
“Whatever I can do, I am trying to maximize that,” she said.
Watkins had announced in September that she would miss the entire college season to give her full attention to rehab. She said Friday that she had tried to put off the decision whether to play for as long as possible, but in the end she “had to come to terms with where I was at. Getting over that mental curve has been the biggest thing."
U.S. coach Kara Lawson said it was important that Watkins, who will be a vital part of the team in the future, to attend the camp.
“We wanted her here ... I think you can see that there’s a great deal of talent there, and that’s somebody that is going to be in the conversation, obviously, in the future,” Lawson said. “We were really intentional about inviting her here and having her be a part of it. I think there’s great value in having her observe and be around the group, and then just the connectivity."
Watkins was only around on Thursday and Friday because she returned to Los Angeles for the 16th-ranked Trojans' game against No. 1 UConn on Saturday.
Being at camp gave her a chance to connect in person with Paige Bueckers. Watkins said Bueckers has been great in helping her with her ACL rehab. Bueckers missed the 2022-23 season with her own ACL tear.
“She’s been checking on me every couple months. Great person,” Watkins said. "So to be here with her, and see her kill it, and see her on the other side of it, it’s very inspiring. She’s just helped me throughout the process of sending the texts, checking in on me, that’s meant a great deal.”
Watkins said she had always wanted to be part of the senior team. The Olympics are in her hometown of Los Angeles in 2028.
“It’s always been a dream of mine to be in this atmosphere, so to live out those dreams, even though it looks different, I’m still blessed to be here,” she said.
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Juju Watkins speaks to the media after a training camp for the U.S women's national basketball team, Friday, Dec. 12, 2025, in Durham, N.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley)
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel on Saturday said it killed a top Hamas commander in Gaza after an explosive device detonated and wounded two soldiers in the territory's south.
Hamas in a statement did not confirm the death of Raed Saad. It said a civilian vehicle had been struck outside Gaza City and asserted it was a violation of the ceasefire that took effect on Oct. 10.
Saad served as the Hamas official in charge of manufacturing and previously led the militant group's operations division. The Israeli statement described him as one of the architects of the Oct. 7, 2023, attack that sparked the war, and said that he had been “engaged in rebuilding the terrorist organization” in a violation of the ceasefire.
The Israeli strike west of Gaza City killed four people, according to an Associated Press journalist who saw their bodies arrive at Shifa Hospital. Another three were wounded, according to Al-Awda hospital.
Israel and Hamas have repeatedly accused each other of truce violations.
Israeli airstrikes and shootings in Gaza have killed at least 386 Palestinians since the ceasefire took hold, according to Palestinian health officials. Israel has said recent strikes are in retaliation for militant attacks against its soldiers, and that troops have fired on Palestinians who approached the “Yellow Line” between the Israeli-controlled majority of Gaza and the rest of the territory.
Israel has demanded that Palestinian militants return the remains of the final hostage, Ran Gvili, from Gaza and called it a condition of moving to the second and more complicated phase of the ceasefire. That lays out a vision for ending Hamas’ rule and seeing the rebuilding of a demilitarized Gaza under international supervision.
The initial Hamas-led 2023 attack on southern Israel killed around 1,200 people and took 251 hostages. Almost all hostages or their remains have been returned in ceasefires or other deals.
Israel’s two-year campaign in Gaza has killed more than 70,650 Palestinians, roughly half of them women and children, according to the territory’s Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between militants and civilians in its count. The ministry, which operates under the Hamas-run government, is staffed by medical professionals and maintains detailed records viewed as generally reliable by the international community.
Much of Gaza has been destroyed and most of the population of over 2 million has been displaced. Humanitarian aid entry into the territory continues to be below the level set by ceasefire terms, and Palestinians who lost limbs in the war face a shortage of prosthetic limbs and long delays in medical evacuations.
Find more of AP’s Israel-Hamas coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war
Seen from a building heavily damaged during the Israeli air and ground operations, tents fill a makeshift camp for displaced Palestinians in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Seen from a building heavily damaged during the Israeli air and ground operations, tents fill a makeshift camp for displaced Palestinians in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Palestinians drive past a destroyed car following an Israeli strike in Gaza City, Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
Palestinians looks at a destroyed car following an Israeli strike in Gaza City, Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
Palestinians looks at a destroyed car following an Israeli strike in Gaza City, Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
