McDonald's All-American Game

The McDonald's All American Game is the all-star basketball game played each year for American and Canadian 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. It is rare for girls to compete in the slam dunk contest. They have, however, won it three times—in 2004 by Candace Parker, in 2019 by Fran Belibi, and most recently in 2022 by Ashlyn Watkins.^[1] The boys' game has been contested annually since 1978, and the girls game has been played each year since it was added in 2002.^{[clarification needed]}

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.^[2][3] 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.^{[citation needed]} 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,^[4] the 2014 UConn Huskies,^[5] the 2021 Baylor Bears, and the 2023 UConn Huskies. The 2023 Final Four was the first in which no McDonald's All-Americans participated.^[6]

The teams are sponsored by the fast-food chain McDonald's. Proceeds from the annual games go to local Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) and their Ronald McDonald House programs.