The ABCD Basketball Camp was a youth basketball camp founded by Sonny Vaccaro that was held from 1984 to 2006. The camp gathered the highest ranked high school players of the United States, and was considered one of the top events of high school basketball. ABCD stood for Academic Betterment and Career Development.
History The ABCD Camp was founded in 1984 by Sonny Vaccaro and was sponsored by Nike. The camp took place every year in the month of July usually lasting 4–5 days, and was held in different locations in the initial years, among which the Bren Events Center at UC Irvine in 1992 and at Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, Michigan in 1993 before moving to the Rothman Center, at Fairleigh Dickinson University in Hackensack, New Jersey, where the camp was held from 1994 until its final edition in 2006.
The camp was sponsored by the corporations Vaccaro was signed to: from 1984 to 1992 Nike was the sponsor; in 1993 the camp was under the Converse brand, while from 1994 to 2003 Adidas was the sponsor. After 2003, Vaccaro had a deal with Reebok that lasted until the last edition of the camp in 2006. Several college coaches attended ABCD Camp during their recruitment process of high school players: among them Bob Bender, Jim Boeheim, P. J. Carlesimo, Joe Harrington and Mike Krzyzewski. NBA scouts also participated and in some cases, camp participants were drafted out of high school, for instance Kevin Garnett, Kobe Bryant, Jermaine O'Neal, Tracy McGrady, Kwame Brown, Eddy Curry, Sebastian Telfair and Gerald Green.
Sponsorships 1984–1992: Nike 1993: Converse 1994–2003: Adidas 2004–2006: Reebok
Camp MVPs YearClassPlayerHigh SchoolState1992SeniorsAntonio McDyessQuitmanMississippiUnderclassmenFelipe LópezRiceNew York1993SeniorsWillie MitchellDetroit PershingMichiganUnderclassmenLester EarlGlen OaksLouisianaStephon MarburyAbraham LincolnNew York1994SeniorsStephon MarburyAbraham LincolnNew YorkUnderclassmenTim ThomasPaterson CatholicNew Jersey1995SeniorsKobe BryantLower MerionPennsylvaniaUnderclassmenKhalid El-AminMinneapolis NorthMinnesota1996SeniorsDion GloverCedar GroveGeorgiaAnthony PerrySt. AnthonyNew JerseyUnderclassmenClarence GilbertDillardFloridaStromile SwiftFair ParkLouisiana1997SeniorsRashard LewisElsikTexasUnderclassmenDerMarr JohnsonMaine Central InstituteMaine1998SeniorsLeon SmithMartin Luther KingIllinoisUnderclassmenAlton FordMilbyTexas1999SeniorsTaliek BrownSt. John's PrepNew YorkAvery QueenMaine Central InstituteMaineUnderclassmenApolinar FernandezArtesiaCaliforniaT. J. FordWillowridgeTexas2000SeniorsBilly EdelinOak Hill AcademyVirginiaMo WilliamsMurrahMississippiUnderclassmenLenny CookeNorthern Valley RegionalNew JerseyCharlie RodríguezClovis WestCalifornia2001SeniorsDeAngelo CollinsInglewoodCaliforniaAntonio LawrenceSan Joaquin MemorialCaliforniaUnderclassmenLeBron JamesSt. Vincent–St. MaryOhioSebastian TelfairAbraham LincolnNew York2002SeniorsTravis OutlawStarkvilleMississippiCharlie VillanuevaBlair AcademyNew JerseyUnderclassmenSebastian TelfairAbraham LincolnNew YorkDarius Washington Jr.EdgewaterFlorida2003SeniorsShaun LivingstonPeoriaIllinoisJosh SmithOak Hill AcademyVirginiaUnderclassmenTasmin MitchellDenham SpringsLouisianaBrandon RushMount Zion Christian AcademyNorth Carolina2004SeniorsDanny GreenSt. Mary'sNew YorkMonta EllisLanierMississippiUnderclassmenDerrick CaracterSt. PatrickNew JerseyGreg OdenLawrence NorthIndiana2005SeniorsDamion JamesNacogdochesTexasGreg OdenLawrence NorthIndianaUnderclassmenKevin LoveLake OswegoOregonO. J. MayoNorth College HillOhio2006SeniorsDeAndre JordanChristian Life Center AcademyTexasTaylor KingMater DeiCaliforniaKevin LoveLake OswegoOregonO. J. MayoHuntingtonWest VirginiaBill WalkerNorth College HillOhioUnderclassmenWilliam BufordLibbeyOhioDrew GordonArchbishop MittyCalifornia
Notable players
The players mentioned have at least 1 All-Star selection in the NBA or were lottery picks in the NBA draft.
Shareef Abdur-Rahim Cole Aldrich Carmelo Anthony Gilbert Arenas Chauncey Billups Carlos Boozer Chris Bosh Kwame Brown Kobe Bryant Marcus Camby Sam Cassell Derrick Coleman Mike Conley Eddy Curry Mike Dunleavy Jr. Jonny Flynn Randy Foye Kevin Garnett Ben Gordon Eddie Griffin Penny Hardaway Tim Hardaway James Harden Allan Houston Dwight Howard Juwan Howard LeBron James Brandon Jennings DerMarr Johnson Joe Johnson DeAndre Jordan Jason Kidd Christian Laettner Shaun Livingston Rashard Lewis Kevin Love Stephon Marbury Kenyon Martin Jamal Mashburn O. J. Mayo Antonio McDyess Tracy McGrady Alonzo Mourning Jameer Nelson Joakim Noah Jermaine O'Neal Shaquille O'Neal Greg Oden Lamar Odom Tony Parker Paul Pierce Jason Richardson Glenn Robinson Derrick Rose Jalen Rose Jerry Stackhouse Damon Stoudamire Stromile Swift Wally Szczerbiak Sebastian Telfair Isaiah Thomas Tim Thomas Robert Traylor Antoine Walker Gerald Wallace Rasheed Wallace Chris Webber Chris Wilcox Yi Jianlian
References