UNC Basketball Class of 2024 signees nominated for McDonald's All-American Game

By nearly all accounts, the UNC basketball program has one of the strongest incoming freshman classes in the nation for 2024. According to 247 Sports, the Tar Heels have the sixth-best incoming class in the nation and the second-best in the ACC behind Duke.

That fact was underscored on Tuesday when the entire UNC Basketball Class of 2024--small forward Drake Powell, shooting guard Ian Jackson, and center James Brown--was nominated for the 2024 McDonald's All-American Game.

Powell, Jackson, and Brown are among 724 senior boys and girls who were nominated for the game, with the final selections to be announced live on ESPN's "NBA Today" on Jan. 23. The All-American Game will be played on April 2 in Houston.

North Carolina has a rich tradition at the McDonald's All-American Game. To date, 83 future Tar Heels have been selected for the boys' All-American Game. Eight of those Tar Heels are on the list of the 45 Greatest McDonald's All-Americans. Seven were included on the initial list issued for the game's 35th anniversary in 2012, with an eighth, Rasheed Wallace, added in 2022 for the 45th anniversary.

Head coach Hubert Davis only signed three players to the class of 2024. By comparison, Duke and Purdue have six signees each, while Kentucky and Missouri have five apiece. Still, the fact that all three of them are even being considered for the McDonald's All-American Game shows that quality matters as much, if not more, than quantity.

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