McDonald’s All-American. It’s the Brass Ring of scholastic basketball. The hashtag every player wants by their name once all the awards are handed out, the All-Star games are played and the book is closed on high school careers. It makes parents irrational and their coaches lose even the most remote sense of objectivity. Collegiate recruiters often want them equally as much for the PR value as they do the actual basketball possibilities…and on occasion for a slightly green tinted contract bonus.
The lengths people go to in an effort to lay claim to McDonalds honors is extraordinary…and borders on the completely asinine. Changing schools (multiple times), changing clubs (multiple times), ridiculous social media self-promotion and ultimately believing in fairy tales told them by unscrupulous, agenda wielding adults would almost qualify as a reality show. A bad one, but then again…aren’t they all bad?
Once the show is over, however, it’s on to the next chapter and the true reality of Division I basketball. The Golden Arches cease to be shiny bling on the finger and becomes a burdening magnification of the already high level of expectations that come along with a D-I National Letter of Intent. The bar is already held high enough for incoming freshmen with gaudy stats, achievements and résumés. Toss in a weekend with Ronald and that kind of combo meal can be a just little bit tougher to choke down when the team meal is now with the college program of choice.
McDonald’s All-Americans are the majority of the top players in any one graduation class. No, they’re not the definitive list of the “best” because it’s actually a game and has a “position” element to the selection process. However, those 24 selected do represent a large contingent of the elite in the freshman class on campus the following fall. At the same time, McDonald’s recognition is like the stock market and investment funds…”past performance is no guarantee of future results”. College basketball is (no pun intended) a whole new ballgame and the transition from high school and club is equally challenging for All-Americans as it is for the last player on any collegiate bench.
That being said, today we thought we would take a quick glance at how the 2018 McDonald’s All-Americans are collectively bearing up halfway through their freshman campaigns and prior to the January 24th announcement of the 2019 honorees on ESPN’s “The Jump”.
This look is a little thinner as two of last year’s standouts suffered injuries that detoured their initial college seasons before they even moved into their dorm room. Izabella Nicoletti (Florida State) and Sedona Prince (Texas) both are looking to next season for their debut with the Seminoles and Longhorns.
Those schools with 2018 McDonald’s All-Americans on their rosters (14) have a combined record of 167 – 35 (82.6) thus far in the season. As a group (As of January 8th), the 2018 McDonald’s class had started 41 percent of all the games they had played in. Six of the them have started every contest that they’ve suited up for on the current schedule. Together they’re averaging 19.1 minutes of playing time each time out.
From a productivity standpoint their scoring totals combine for a 7.4 point per game average. On the boards, they’re grabbing 4.53 rebounds as a group and the combined assist average comes in at 1.02. In the turnover department they’re giving it up 1.66 times per game but getting it back by the way of .74 steals each time out.
From the floor they’re shooting a combined 44 percent. Behind the arch they’re connecting on 23.5 percent of their three point attempts while knocking down 64.7 percent of their free throws. Keep in mind that the last two stats are occasionally somewhat skewed as a group with some players not having the long ball in their offensive repertoire or by minimal attempts from the line due to limited minutes of playing time.
There are seven players scoring in double figures thus far this season. Elizabeth Balogun (Georgia Tech) leads the pack at 14.7 points per game while Madison Williams (Oklahoma) and Christyn Williams (UConn) are at 13.3 and 13.2 respectively followed by NaLyssa Smith (Baylor) and her 12.3 average.
Shakira Austin (Maryland) is the only double figure rebounder in the group setting the pace at 11.1 boards per game. Madison Williams (Oklahoma) backs up her scoring with 9.8 rebounds while Catherine Reese (Arizona) checks in at 8.4 and Valencia Myers (Florida State) comes home thus far at 7.3 a game.
Zarielle Green (Tennessee) paces the group in assists. Her 2.53 average makes her the only 2018 McDonald’s All-American averaging over two per game with Christyn Williams (UConn) following at 1.78 and Elizabeth Balogun (Georgia Tech) at 1.75. Balogun sets the current bar on steals averaging 1.5 with Green right behind at 1.4 per game.
NaLyssa Smith (Baylor) has also been the most efficient individual from the floor shooting 59 percent. Christyn Williams (UConn) connects on 56 percent of her opportunities while Elizabeth Dixon (Georgia Tech) finishes at a 54 percent clip.
We won’t throw any individual(s) under the bus but seven of the 22 are painfully averaging over two turnovers per game. Two of those seven are actually over the three turnover mark as well, much to the chagrin of their coaches and teammates.
There’s plenty of basketball left to play in the rookie seasons of the McDonald’s 2018 All-Americans. There’s no reason not to expect big things over the next three years from each of them as well as what we’ll see before the final buzzer this March. They’re still among the elite but they’ve got company as each college season features four classes of McDonald’s players. They’ve also got classmates who didn’t walk under the Golden Arches upping their games and joining them on center stage. Some will rise to the occasion and expectations while one or two may well change their address as unfortunately has become all too commonplace in recent years. It’s going to be interesting and we’ll already be watching that 2019 group in Atlanta on the March 27th. Stay tuned.
