McDonald's All-American Game Roster 2016: Top Prospects in Showcase Event
Even if you're more enamored with the late-season NBA action and drama of the NCAA tournament, it's well worth it to take note of the players participating in the McDonald's All-American Game.
The overwhelming majority of the nation's top-rated recruits will be playing in the exhibition. For some of these players, this marks the beginning of what could be years of exposure and recognition at a national level. It's the future of the sport gathered onto one court.
This year's event is set to take place at the United Center in Chicago at 9 p.m. ET on Wednesday. ESPN will carry the broadcast. Here are the East and West rosters and a rundown of the top five prospects in the event, based on 247Sports' composite rankings.
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| Name | Pos. | High School | College |
| Bam Adebayo | PF | High Point Christian Academy (High Point, NC) | Kentucky |
| Udoka Azubuike | C | The Potter's House Christian Academy (Jacksonville, FL) | Kansas |
| Tony Bradley Jr. | C | Bartow High School (Bartow, FL) | North Carolina |
| Miles Bridges | SF | Huntington Prep (Huntington, WV) | Michigan State |
| Terrance Ferguson | SG | Advanced Preparatory International (Dallas, TX) | Undecided |
| De'Aaron Fox | PG | Cypress Lakes High School (Katy, TX) | Kentucky |
| Markelle Fultz | SG/PG | DeMatha Catholic High School (Hyattsville, MD) | Washington |
| Andrew Jones | SG/PG | MacArthur High School (Irving, TX) | Texas |
| Sacha Killeya-Jones | PF | Virginia Episcopal School (Lynchburg, VA) | Kentucky |
| V.J. King | SF | Paul VI Catholic High School (Fairfax, VA) | Louisville |
| Kobi Simmons | PG | St. Francis High School (Alpharetta, GA) | Arizona |
| Jayson Tatum | SF | Chaminade College Preparatory School (St. Louis, MO) | Duke |
| Name | Pos. | High School | College |
| Jarrett Allen | C | St. Stephens Episcopal School (Austin, TX) | Undecided |
| Lonzo Ball | PG | Chino Hills High School (Chino Hills, CA) | UCLA |
| Marques Bolden | C | DeSoto High School (DeSoto, TX) | Undecided |
| Zach Collins | C | Bishop Gorman High School (Las Vegas, NV) | Gonzaga |
| Alterique Gilbert | PG | Miller Grove High School (Lithonia, GA) | Connecticut |
| Kyle Guy | SG | Lawrence Central High School (Indianapolis, IN) | Virginia |
| Dewan Huell | PF | Miami Norland Senior High School (Miami, FL) | Miami |
| Frank Jackson | PG | Lone Peak High School (Highland, UT) | Duke |
| Josh Jackson | SF | Justin-Siena High School/Prolific Prep Academy (Napa, CA) | Undecided |
| Joshua Langford | SG | Madison Academy (Madison, AL) | Michigan State |
| T.J. Leaf | PF | Foothills Christian High School (El Cajon, CA) | UCLA |
| Malik Monk | SG | Bentonville High School (Bentonville, AR) | Kentucky |
Top Prospects
Josh Jackson, SG (No. 1 overall, No. 1 SG)
Josh Jackson is the nation's top overall recruit, and one of the last elite prospects to reveal where he will be playing college ball. Rivals' Eric Bossi reported Sunday that Jackson has already made a decision and will announce soon. According to 247Sports, Kansas, followed by Michigan State and then Arizona, are the schools with the best chances of landing Jackson.
The star recruit is hoping to have those closest to him by his side when he announces, so his announcement might not come until after the Nike Hoop Summit on April 9.
"I really want my family and close friends to be around," Jackson said, per SNY.tv's Ryan Fish. "So it's hard to do it when I got an event like this and then next week Hoop Summit. [It'll happen] just whenever I can get a break."
A 6'7" guard/forward noted for his extraordinary leaping ability, Jackson wasn't shy about showing off his incredible vertical in the dunk contest at the Chicago Theatre on Monday. All American Games has the highlight:
Here's more from Scout Recruiting:
Like many exhibitions, defense is usually an afterthought at the McDonald's All-American Game. Expect Jackson to take advantage of the opportunity and show off his ridiculous athleticism on multiple occasions, teasing the fans of the schools awaiting his decision.
Jayson Tatum, SF (No. 3 overall, No. 1 SF)
Duke basketball has a potential gem in the form of small forward Jayson Tatum.
A deft scorer out on the wing and in the post, Tatum showed he can raise his game when it matters most, scoring 40 points in Chaminade College Prep's win over Kickapoo in the Missouri Class 5 state championship game. This bodes well for the Duke program, where every game comes with the pressure of high expectations and a long history of success.
According to Prep Hoops Illinois' Scott Burgess and Keeping It Heel, Tatum is already proving himself in practice for the McDonald's All-American Game:
Duke lacked depth this season and is almost certain to lose swingman Brandon Ingram to the professional ranks. The Blue Devils will be counting on Tatum to contribute right away.
De'Aaron Fox, PG (No. 4 overall, No. 1 PG)
De'Aaron Fox is no stranger to filling up the stat sheet. According to USA Today, the 6'4" point guard averaged averaged 32.4 points, 7.7 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 2.7 steals per game during his senior season at Cypress Lakes High School in Katy, Texas.
Numbers like that will get all the elite programs to come calling, and Fox has chosen to play at Kentucky under head coach John Calipari, who has made it his mission to prepare star recruits for professional basketball.
While these players haven't even yet laced up for an NCAA game, it's not too early to start talking about their NBA potential. Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman assessed the pro potential of several top recruits, including Fox:
"De'Aaron Fox's quickness and bounce ace the NBA eye test. He's thin at 185 pounds, but Fox can really shake east or west and explode vertically off the floor.
With willing vision and the ability to break down defenses, Fox excels at setting the table for teammates. He'll be sharing the ball next year with Malik Monk and possibly Isaiah Briscoe, but Fox is no doubt the best bet to lead Kentucky in assists.
Limited strength and shooting range could affect his field-goal percentage during what's likely to be a one-and-done freshman year. However, he's bound to win NBA support for his perimeter defense.
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Size, scoring punch, court vision and a willingness to play defense. There's not much more you can ask for at the point guard position.
Malik Monk, CG (No. 5 overall, No. 1 CG)
Fox isn't the only top-five prospect headed to Kentucky. Malik Monk is a combo guard with explosive athleticism and the second-best recruit in a Wildcats class that also features power forwards Edrice "Bam" Adebayo (No. 11 overall prospect) and Sacha Killeya-Jones (No. 26).
Like Jackson, Monk put on a clinic at Monday's dunk contest, but he actually managed to win a different skill competition, per Kentucky Basketball:
Monk hails from Lepanto, Arkansas, a town with a population of less than 2,000. Bleacher Report traveled to the tiny community to learn more about Monk, his background and his uber-athletic game:
It's safe to say that Monk, although a bit undersized for a shooting guard at 6'3 1/2", will soon be playing basketball in locations far bigger than Lepanto or Lexington, Kentucky.
Lonzo Ball, PG, (No. 7 overall, No. 3 PG)
UCLA basketball fans could use a boost after a season that saw the Bruins go 15-17 miss the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2010.
The Bruins faithful might not have to look any further than Chino Hills High School, where their next great basketball recruit in Lonzo Ball just completed a perfect 35-0 season playing alongside his brothers LaMelo and LiAngelo.
"It's great to all be playing together and to accomplish this goal together," Ball said, per the Los Angeles Times' Eric Sondheimer. "It's what we set out to do at the beginning of the season, and we did it."
SB Nation's Ricky O'Donnell has the lowdown on Ball's game:
"Ball is a 6'5 UCLA commit and the oldest of three brothers set to play for the Bruins. Ball has a brilliant floor game, great size and can make threes despite a funky release. He's been groomed to play an uptempo style that relies on outlet passes and 30-foot threes, which should make for must-see TV in Westwood next year.
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If Ball can live up to his enormous potential, UCLA should find itself being a much more competitive program next season. The Bruins managed big wins over the likes of Arizona and Kentucky last season, but dropped far too many winnable games along the way and lost six of their last seven.
Having a true star like Ball on the team could prevent them from sinking too low while still reaching awesome heights.
All recruit info courtesy of 247Sports unless otherwise noted.
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