The McDonald's All-American Game is an American all-star basketball game played each year for boys' and girls' high school basketball graduates. Consisting of the top players, each team plays a single exhibition game after the conclusion of the high-school basketball season, in an East vs. West format. As part of the annual event, boys and girls compete in a slam dunk contest and a three-point shooting competition, and compete alongside All-American Game alumni in a timed team shootout. The last of these competitions replaced separate overall timed skills competitions for boys and girls. While it is rare for girls to compete in the slam dunk contest, occasionally a girl will elect to participate. The contest has been won by a girl three times: Candace Parker won in 2004, Fran Belibi in 2019, and most recently in 2022 by Ashlyn Watkins. The boys' game has been played annually since 1978, and the girls' game has been played annually since 2002.
The McDonald's All-American designation began in 1977 with the selection of the inaugural team. That year, the All-Americans played in the McDonald's Capital Classic all-star game against a group of high school stars from the Washington, D.C. area. The following year, the McDonald's All American Game began with a boys contest between the East and West squads. In 2002, with the addition of a girls contest, the current girl-game / boy-game doubleheader format began.
The McDonald's All-American Team is the best-known of the American high-school basketball All-American teams. Designation as a McDonald's All-American instantly brands a player as one of the top high-school players in the United States. Selected athletes often go on to compete in college basketball. All but four of the teams to win the NCAA men's championship since 1978 have had at least one McDonald's All-American on their rosters. The exceptions are the 2002 Maryland Terrapins, the 2014 UConn Huskies, the 2021 Baylor Bears, and the 2023 UConn Huskies. The 2023 Final Four was the first in which no McDonald's All-Americans participated.
The teams are sponsored by McDonald's. Proceeds from the annual games go to local Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) and their Ronald McDonald House programs.
Greatest Boys McDonald's All-Americans On January 31, 2012, McDonald's All-American Games unveiled its list of 35 of the Greatest McDonald's All-Americans, released in celebration of the 35th Anniversary of the McDonald's All-American High School Boys Basketball Game. In 2017, five players were added to the list in celebration of the 40th Anniversary. Another five players were added in 2022 to celebrate the 45th Anniversary of the game.
The Greatest Boys McDonald's All-Americans list includes some of the top names in men's basketball history, and features past and present Olympics, NBA and NCAA stars. The players were selected by members of the McDonald's All-American Games Selection Committee. In determining the list, all past McDonald's All-Americans were considered based on their high school careers and performances in the McDonald's All-American Games, success at the collegiate and professional level, and post-career accomplishments. The full list of players includes:
^Inducted in 2017 *Inducted in 2022 Inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
Year Player College 1977 Michigan State 1979 Ohio State Virginia Indiana Georgia North Carolina 1980 North Carolina Marquette 1981 Georgetown North Carolina St. John's 1983 North Carolina 1984 Kansas 1987 Odessa / UNLV 1988 Duke Georgetown 1989 Duke LSU 1990 Duke 1991 Purdue * Michigan 1992 California 1993 North Carolina * North Carolina 1995 Colorado North Carolina Did not attend Kansas 1996 Did not attend * Did not attend 1999 Duke 2002 Syracuse * Georgia Tech Did not attend 2003 Did not attend Wake Forest 2004 Did not attend 2005 North Carolina 2006 Texas 2007 ^ Oklahoma ^ Arizona State ^ UCLA Memphis 2010 ^ Duke 2011 ^ Kentucky
Annual game results An MVP/MOP award is presented each year to the most outstanding boy and girl players. The award is officially called the John R. Wooden Most Valuable Player Award.
Boys McDonald's All American Games All-time Stats and Award Winners. East All-Stars (23 wins)West All-Stars (22 wins)
+Boys results Year Result Host arena Host city Game MVP, High School Attendance TV Network Commentators 1977 The inaugural 1977 team did not play in the current East versus West format (MVP: Gene Banks) Games Not Televised 1978West 94, East 86 The Spectrum Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Rudy Woods, Bryan High School (TX) 13,063 1979East 106, West 105 (OT) Charlotte Coliseum Charlotte, North Carolina Darren Daye, John F. Kennedy HS (CA) 11,666 1980 West 135, East 111 Oakland Coliseum Arena Oakland, California Russell Cross, Manley HS (IL) 1980 game and rosters at page 68. 8,429 1981 East 96, West 95 Levitt Arena Wichita, Kansas Adrian Branch, DeMatha HS (MD) Aubrey Sherrod, Wichita Heights HS (KS) 10,006 1982 West 103, East 84 Rosemont Horizon Rosemont, Illinois Efrem Winters, King College Prep High School (IL) 15,836 1983 West 115, East 113 Omni Coliseum Atlanta, Georgia Winston Bennett, Male HS (KY) Dwayne "Pearl" Washington, Boys and Girls High School (NY) 14,926 1984 West 131, East 106 Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, California John Williams, Crenshaw High School (CA) 10,214 1985 East 128, West 98 Moody Coliseum University Park, Texas Walker Lambiotte, Central HS (VA) 9,007 ESPN Jim Thacker Dick Vitale 1986 East 104, West 101 Joe Louis Arena Detroit, Michigan J. R. Reid, Kempsville HS (VA) 15,527 1987 East 118, West 110 The Spectrum Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Mark Macon, Buena Vista THS (MI) 10,156 ABC 1988 East 105, West 99 The Pit Albuquerque, New Mexico Alonzo Mourning, Indian River HS (VA) Billy Owens, Carlisle HS (PA) 12,815 Keith Jackson Dick Vitale 1989 West 112, East 103 Kemper Arena Kansas City, Missouri Shaquille O'Neal, Robert G. Cole HS (TX) Bobby Hurley, St. Anthony HS (NJ) 9,419 Gary Bender Dick Vitale 1990 East 115, West 104 Market Square Arena Indianapolis, Indiana Shawn Bradley, Emery County High School (UT) Khalid Reeves, Christ the King HS (NY) 12,033 1991 West 108, East 106 Springfield Civic Center Springfield, Massachusetts Chris Webber, Detroit Country Day School (MI) Rick Brunson, Salem HS (MA) 8,246 CBS Greg Gumbel Billy Packer 1992 West 100, East 85 Alexander Memorial Coliseum Atlanta, Georgia Othella Harrington, Murrah HS (MS) 7,589 James Brown Billy Packer 1993 East 105, West 95 Mid-South Coliseum Memphis, Tennessee Jacque Vaughn, John Muir HS (CA) Jerry Stackhouse, Oak Hill Academy (VA) 10,225 Greg Gumbel Bill Raftery 1994 East 112, West 110 Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum Uniondale, New York Felipe López, Rice HS (NY) 6,008 Verne Lundquist Bill Raftery 1995 West 125, East 115 Kiel Center St. Louis, Missouri Kevin Garnett, Farragut Academy HS (IL) 16,201 1996 East 120, West 105 Civic Arena Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Shaheen Holloway, St. Patrick HS (NJ) 13,411 Gus Johnson Bill Raftery 1997 East 94, West 81 Clune Arena Colorado Springs, Colorado Kenny Gregory, Independence HS (OH) 5,858 Gus Johnson Dan Bonner 1998 East 128, West 112 Norfolk Scope Norfolk, Virginia Ronald Curry, Hampton HS (VA) 10,253 ESPN Dave Barnett, Bill Raftery, Jay Bilas 1999 West 141, East 128 Hilton Coliseum Ames, Iowa Jonathan Bender, Picayune Memorial HS (MS) 10,993 Dave Barnett, Larry Conley, Jay Bilas 2000 West 146, East 120 FleetCenter Boston, Massachusetts Zach Randolph, Marion HS (IN) 18,624 Dave Barnett Tim McCormick 2001 West 131, East 125 Cameron Indoor Stadium Durham, North Carolina Eddy Curry, Thornwood HS (IL) 9,314 Dave Sims 2002 East 138, West 107 Madison Square Garden New York City, New York JJ Redick, Cave Spring HS (VA) 16,505 Dave Sims Larry Conley 2003 East 122, West 107 Gund Arena Cleveland, Ohio LeBron James, St. Vincent-St. Mary HS (OH) 18,728 Dan Shulman Jay Bilas 2004 East 126, West 96 Ford Center Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Dwight Howard, Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy (GA) J. R. Smith, St. Benedict's Preparatory School (NJ) 14,402 Dave Pasch, Doug Gottlieb, Tim McCormick 2005 East 115, West 110 Joyce Center Notre Dame, Indiana Josh McRoberts, Carmel (IN) 7,660 2006 West 112, East 94 Cox Arena San Diego, California Chase Budinger, La Costa Canyon HS (CA) Kevin Durant, Montrose Christian School (MD) 11,900 Dave Pasch, Jay Williams, Tim McCormick 2007 West 114, East 112 Freedom Hall Louisville, Kentucky Michael Beasley, Notre Dame Prep (MA) 11,632 Eric Collins, Len Elmore, Tim McCormick, Quint Kessenich 2008 East 107, West 102 Bradley Center Milwaukee, Wisconsin Tyreke Evans, American Christian Academy (PA) 10,914 2009 East 113, West 110 BankUnited Center Coral Gables, Florida Derrick Favors, South Atlanta HS (GA) 5,981 2010 West 107, East 104 Value City Arena Columbus, Ohio Harrison Barnes, Ames HS (IA) Jared Sullinger, Northland HS (OH) 9,210 Bob Wischusen, Jay Williams, Quint Kessenich 2011 East 111, West 96 United Center Chicago, Illinois Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, St. Patrick HS (NJ) James Michael McAdoo, Norfolk Christian (VA) 19,909 Bob Wischusen, Jay Williams, Stephen Bardo, Quint Kessenich 2012 West 106, East 102 Shabazz Muhammad, Bishop Gorman HS (NV) 16,308 2013 West 110, East 99 Aaron Gordon, Archbishop Mitty HS (CA) 15,818 Carter Blackburn, Jay Williams, Jalen Rose, Quint Kessenich 2014 West 105, East 102 Jahlil Okafor, Whitney Young (IL) Justin Jackson, Homeschool Christian Youth Association (TX) 17,116 2015 East 111, West 91 Cheick Diallo, Our Savior New American School (NY) Adam Amin, Jay Williams, Jalen Rose, Quint Kessenich 2016 West 114, East 107 Josh Jackson, Justin-Siena HS/Prolific Prep (CA) Frank Jackson, Lone Peak HS (UT) 2017 West 109, East 107 Michael Porter Jr., Nathan Hale HS/Father Tolton HS (MO) 2018 West 131, East 128 Philips Arena Atlanta, Georgia Nassir Little, Orlando Christian Prep (FL) ESPN2 Mike Couzens, Jay Williams, Cory Alexander, Quint Kessenich 2019 East 115, West 100 State Farm Arena Cole Anthony, Oak Hill Academy (VA) 2020Game Not PlayedToyota CenterHouston, TexasCancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic2021Game Not Played2022 East 105, West 81 Wintrust Arena Chicago, Illinois Dariq Whitehead, Montverde Academy (FL) ESPN Ted Emrich, Cory Alexander, Paul Biancardi2023 East 109, West 106 Toyota Center Houston, Texas D. J. Wagner, Camden High SchoolIsaiah Collier, Wheeler High School 2024 East 88, West 86 Dylan Harper, Don Bosco PrepDerik Queen, Montverde Academy2025 West 105, East 92 Barclays Center Brooklyn, New York Darryn Peterson, Cuyahoga Valley Christian AcademyCameron Boozer, Christopher Columbus High School2026 West 102, East 86 Desert Diamond Arena Glendale, Arizona Jason Crowe Jr., Inglewood High SchoolCaleb Holt, Prolific Prep
Denotes All-Star Games in which joint winners were named
Girls