McDonald’s All American Game: Two sets of high school teammates headed to Houston together

By Thomas Frey Mar 27, 2023, 2:00pm

Camden and Montverde Academy will be well represented in high school basketball's premier all-star showcase.

Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Magic Johnson and Shaquille O'Neal are among the basketball legends that have taken the floor for the McDonald's All American Game since its inaugural season in 1977.

Matas Buzelis, Isaiah Collier, Ron Holland and Bronny James are among the next generation of stars that will suit up at the Toyota Center in Houston for the 2023 edition Tuesday night.

ESPN will air the contest at 9 p.m. ET with the girls game preceding it at 6:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2.

Among this year's storylines will be D.J. Wagner of Camden (N.J.) becoming the first third-generation McDonald's All American, joining his father Dajuan (2001) and grandfather Milt (1981).

Wagner and fellow Camden senior Aaron Bradshaw are one of two sets of high school teammates in this year's game. The Panthers went 23-2 this season and are ranked No. 4 nationally by MaxPreps.



Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.) will also be sending multiple players to Houston in Kwame Evans and Sean Stewart. The duo helped their team to a 23-2 record and a berth in GEICO Nationals later this week. It's the fourth time in school history the Eagles have sent multiple players to the McDonald's game.

In total, 47 groups of high school teammates have gone to the game together starting in 1979 with Antoine Carr and Ricky Ross of Heights (Kan.) and Sidney Lowe and Dereck Whittenburg from DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.). Lowe and Whittenburg later started for the underdog Jim Valvano-led North Carolina State team that won the 1983 national title.

Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) has sent multiple players to the showcase six times, which is more than any other high school. In 2004 Rajon Rondo and Josh Smith represented the Warriors.

Brook and Robin Lopez from San Joaquin Memorial (Fresno, Calif.) played in the 2006 McDonald's All American game in San Diego and have combined to play in 1,913 career NBA games, more than any other set of high school teammates who participated.

In 2022 a record seven schools — IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.), Link Academy (Branson, Mo.), Montverde Academy, North Little Rock (Ark.), Prolific Prep of Napa Christian (Napa, Calif.), Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, Calif.) and Sunrise Christian Academy (Bel Aire, Kan.) — sent multiple players to Chicago for the game. IMG Academy had three players in Jaden Bradley, Jarace Walker and Keyonte George. The 2020 Montverde Academy team is the only other school to have three (Scottie Barnes, Cade Cunningham and Day'Ron Sharpe).

Read on for a complete look at high school teammates in the McDonald's All American Game.
D.J. Wagner (left) and Aaron Bradshaw of Camden High School in New Jersey will both take the floor for Tuesday's McDonald's All American Game in Houston. The duo will continue teaming up next season at Kentucky. (Photo: Lonnie Webb)
D.J. Wagner (left) and Aaron Bradshaw of Camden High School in New Jersey will both take the floor for Tuesday's McDonald's All American Game in Houston. The duo will continue teaming up next season at Kentucky. (Photo: Lonnie Webb)
1979
DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.): Sidney Lowe, Derek Whittenburg
Heights (Wichita, Kan.): Antoine Carr, Ricky Ross



1989
Flint Hill (Oakton, Va.): Arron Bain, George Lynch

1990
Christ the King (Middle Village, N.Y.):
Derrick Phelps, Khalid Reeves
St. Nicholas (Bronx, N.Y.): Adrian Autry, Brian Reese

1991
Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.): Cory Alexander, Ben Davis

1992
Dunbar (Baltimore, Md.): Donta Bright, Michael Lloyd
Oak Hill Academy: Chris Davis, Martice Moore

1993
Artesia (Lakewood, Calif.): Avondre Jones, Charles O'Bannon
Oak Hill Academy: Jeff McInnis, Jerry Stackhouse

1997
Harvard-Westlake (Studio City, Calif.):
Jarron Collins, Jason Collins

1999
DeMatha: Keith Bogans, Joseph Forte

2001
Oak Hill Academy:
Rashaad Carruth, DeSagana Diop
Fort Bend Willowridge (Houston, Texas): Daniel Ewing, T.J. Ford

2003
Blair Academy (Blairstown, N.J.): Luol Deng, Charlie Villanueva

2004
Oak Hill Academy:
Rajon Rondo, Josh Smith
Renaissance (Detroit, Mich.): Joe Crawford, Malik Hairston

2006
Episcopal Academy (Newtown Square, Pa.):
Wayne Ellington, Gerald Henderson
Lawrence North (Indianapolis, Ind.): Mike Conley, Greg Oden
San Joaquin Memorial (Fresno, Calif.): Brook Lopez, Robin Lopez

2007
Huntington (W.Va.):
O.J. Mayo, Patrick Patterson



2009
Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.):
David Wear, Travis Wear

2010
Findlay Prep (Henderson, Nev.): Cory Joseph, Tristan Thompson

2012
Findlay Prep:
Brandon Ashley, Anthony Bennett

2013
Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.):
Kasey Hill, Dakari Johnson
Fort Bend Travis (Richmond, Texas): Aaron Harrison, Andrew Harrison

2014
Findlay Prep:
Kelly Oubre, Rashad Vaughn

2015
Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nev.):
Chase Jeter, Stephen Zimmerman

2017
La Lumiere (La Porte, Ind.):
Brian Bowen, Jaren Jackson Jr.

2018
Oak Hill Academy: Keldon Johnson, David McCormack
Hudson Catholic (Jersey City, N.J.): Louis King, Jahvon Quinerly



2019
IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.):
Armando Bacot, Josh Green, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl
Ranney (Tinton Falls, N.J.): Bryan Antoine, Scottie Lewis

2020
IMG Academy: Jaden Springer, Mark Williams
Montverde Academy: Scottie Barnes, Cade Cunningham, Day'Ron Sharpe
Prolific Prep (Napa, Calif.): Nimari Burnett, Jalen Green
Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, Calif.): B.J. Boston, Ziaire Williams

2021
Sunrise Christian Academy (Bel Aire, Kan.):
Kendall Brown, Kennedy Chandler

2022
IMG Academy: Jaden Bradley, Keyonte George, Jarace Walker
Montverde Academy: Dillon Mitchell, Dariq Whitehead
North Little Rock (Ark.): Nick Smith, Kel'el Ware
Sierra Canyon: Amari Bailey, Kijani Wright
Sunrise Christian: Gradey Dick, Mark Mitchell
Link Academy (Branson, Mo.): Julian Phillips, Jordan Walsh
Prolific Prep: Adem Bona, M.J. Rice

2023
Camden (N.J.):
Aaron Bradshaw, D.J. Wagner
Montverde Academy: Kwame Evans, Sean Stewart