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The Carolinas Classic All-Star Basketball Games have been in existence for 25 years featuring the best high School senior round ball athletes from North and South Carolina. The ultimate goal for many of these players is eventually to reach the professional ranks in their sport.
Taking a close look at the rosters of past Classic events, it is apparent that several achieved their dream. Considering MVP candidates for the 2022 NBA season, one cannot overlook Temetrius “Ja” Morant, the outstanding point guard for the Memphis Grizzlies. Morant played his high school ball at Crest in Sumter, SC and headlined the 2017 Carolinas Classic South Carolina men’s’ team before achieving All-American status (2019) at Murray State University.
In 1998, the inaugural year of the games, three players continued to the pros. Josh Howard from Glenn High School in Kernersville, NC and Wake Forest University played professionally with Dallas, Washington, Utah, and Minnesota. David West from North Carolina had a 15-year NBA career with four teams, and Shaunzinski Gortman, a University of South Carolina graduate, played for four years in the WNBA with the Minnesota Lynx.
The WNBA also attracted three other female athletes from the Classic including Alaina Coates from Dutch Fork High School in Irmo, SC (2013) who was an All-American at the University of South Carolina and drafted second overall by the Chicago Sky. Others were Joy Cheek (2006) drafted by the Indiana Fever and Paris Kea (2013) from Greensboro, NC drafted by Indiana and later played for the New York Liberty.
Two other players recognizable to NBA fans are P. J. Tucker (2003) from Raleigh’s Enloe High School, drafted by the Toronto Raptors in 2006 and now playing for the Miami Heat, and Devonte Graham (2013) of Raleigh’s Broughton High School and the University of Kansas, a point guard for the New Orleans Pelicans. In addition, Ish Smith (2006-NC), Trevor Booker (2006-SC), Ken Bazemore (2007-NC), C. J. Williams (2008-NC), Brice Johnson (2012-SC), Isaiah Hicks (2013-NC), Gary Clark (2014-NC), and Kyran Bowman (2017-NC) all played professionally.
Interestingly, three Classic standouts went pro in a different sport. D. J. Moore (2006), DeAndre Hopkins (2010), and Jonathon Rumph (2011), all from South Carolina, went to the NFL. Hopkins has been one of the top wide receivers in the game, currently playing with the Arizona Cardinals.
Even though a very small percentage of high school and college basketball players will ever make it to the professional level, we can certainly hope another star will arise from the 2022 Carolinas Classic. The event is Saturday, March 26 at Hoggard High School in Wilmington, NC. Tickets to the games are available for purchase online and are $10 for adults and $5 for children and students. Games begin at 6:00 p.m.