Point Guard Selections Are Difficult

The selection committee for the McDonald for the McDonald’s All-American Game has a task ahead of itself this year. There’s an abundance of point guards to choose from and narrowing down the field is going to be tough.

Point Guard Selections Difficult

The 2001-02 season has proven to be a banner year for point guards. In turn, the college game is going to receive an injection of talent at that position this fall. Meanwhile, the McDonald’s game representatives have a difficult task ahead of themselves.

Over a dozen point guards have credentials worthy of consideration for a spot on the team. Obviously, a few are locks, but there’s an interesting battle for a finite number of slots. The way the game is set up, there are 24 players and the Top 20 slots are voted on by the selection committee. The four remaining spots are left open for debate but DeMatha head coach Morgan Wootten gets the final say.

Arguably, point guard is the deepest position this year. “You need to look at team with two guys from each position and two wild card guys,” Sports America communications director Kevin Foley said. Foley’s company oversees the selection process for McDonalds. “If it’s point guard heavy, then you could take more guys, especially if it’s point guard heavy.”

Let’s start with the locks for the game. Raymond Felton is in. He’s the best point guard in the distinguished group and he’s a done deal. So, is Anthony Roberson. Sure, he’s a combo guy but we’ll get to that later. Felton will wind up on the East Team and Roberson can go either way.

The best point guard in the West is Chris Rodgers; he’s also a combo guy. In my eyes, he’s in the game. Without counting the “wild card” slots, that leaves room for one more point man, technically.

Daniel Horton had a terrific summer and was the MVP as Cedar Hill captured the prestigious Slam Dunk To The Beach title in front of a number of voters. Again, he could be on either the East or West roster. Here’s where things get tricky.

Dee Brown and Sean Dockery are battling for the rights to the top point guard slot in Chicago. Both are serious candidates for the game. Both could make the game, both could miss the game. Add them both in, along with Horton and that’s six PGs.

But wait, the game is in New York and while it’s not set in stone, there always seems to be a local guy on the roster just to beef up attendance. Enter Elijah Ingram. Now, his selection wouldn’t be lip service; he’s certainly deserving of consideration. He plays on one of the best high school teams in the land and won numerous MVP awards on the AAU circuit last summer. Again, he’s a worthy candidate who lives a half-hour away from the site of the game. Advantage: Ingram.

Dallas Lincoln point guard Bryan Hopkins helped lead his AAU team to a pair of major national titles last year. His high school team is 26-0 and so good that he rarely finishes games – his teammate Chris Bosh is considered a lock for the game at the power forward slot. Hopkins has stated a case for inclusion on the McDonald’s roster and it’s a good one. But is it enough to break into the top tier?

The same can be said for Georgia Tech-bound guard Jarrett Jack. He’s playing well at Worcester Academy and he was no slouch on the summer circuit.

Virginia Beach Salem point guard John Gilchrist is a fine player with state title and AAU national title credentials. However, he hasn’t had the big year, at least not big enough to propel him into the game, this season. Syracuse-bound PG Gerry McNamara is a fine player as well, but unlikely doesn’t have the resume to break into the Top 6 for the game. What about Jeff Horner, an Iowa signee and candidate for Mr. Basketball in Iowa. He could be on the outside looking in as well. Oak Hill’s Justin Gray and The Colony’s Deron Williams are good players, but aren’t likely selections.

Rodgers, Horton, Roberson and to an extent, the smaller Hopkins and Dee Brown could be considered combo guards if they had too. Will that help? Well, it doesn’t hurt. There are probably only 3 bonafide locks at the shooting guard position and one of those – Rashad McCants – could be classified as a small forward if he had to. At small forward, there are even less locks and not that many bonafide candidates. There are plenty of big men to go around, so figure at least 8 total spots for big fellas, plus a wild card or two … easy.

In trying to make sense of this, it looks like at least six “point guards” should be included in the final tally. Count Felton, Roberson, Horton and Rodgers as likely choices, factor in Ingram’s credentials and his location and there is room for one more. That leaves, at least in one man’s opinion, a big battle for the final spot between Brown, Dockery, Hopkins and possibly Jack.

It should be an interesting vote and maybe an even more interesting decision about the four “wild card” selections, which take the total number of players to 24.

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