Roundball Classic

Magic Johnson (pictured here in 1999) sponsored the event in the 1990s.

The Roundball Classic, originally known as The Dapper Dan Roundball Classic (also known as Magic Johnson's Roundball, Sonny Vaccaro's Roundball Classic, EA Sports Roundball Classic, Asics Roundball Classic) is well known in the sports world as the first national high school All Star basketball game. It was sponsored by and used as a fundraising event for the Dapper Dan Charities in Pittsburgh. The inaugural game was played at the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on March 26, 1965.

History

Founding

The cofounders of the game, Sonny Vaccaro and Pat DiCesare, were two boyhood friends from the small Western Pennsylvania town of Trafford. Vaccaro was a young school teacher and sports enthusiast who in the early 1960s had organized local high school basketball tournaments throughout Pennsylvania. His friend and college roommate Pat DiCesare (future president of DiCesare Engler Productions) had made a name for himself by promoting major concert events in Western Pennsylvania. Vaccaro wanted to do a basketball tournament in the Pittsburgh area, and asked DiCesare if he had interest in promoting the event. DiCesare, who had just brought the Beatles to the Pittsburgh Civic Arena, wanted the event to have national appeal and take place in a large venue. So, he encouraged his friend to recruit the best players in the country. The two friends decided that the game would feature high school All-Star players recruited from Pennsylvania against those recruited from the rest of the United States, and it would be played at the Pittsburgh Civic Arena.

Tim Tormey, a friend and business mentor to Pat DiCesare, initiated a meeting between DiCesare and Al Abrams. Abrams was the senior sports editor for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and the president of the Dapper Dan Club, a charitable organization associated with the Post-Gazette. Having Abrams involved meant sponsorship for the game as well as months of sports coverage in the Post-Gazette leading up to the game. Abrams agreed to have the Dapper Dan Club sponsor the game, but DiCesare had to guarantee Abrams that he would cover any monetary losses and that a portion of the proceeds would go the Dapper Dan Club charities. DiCesare booked a date for the first game to be played on March 26, 1965, at the Civic Arena.

The first game suffered a major recruiting loss when the premier recruit in the nation, Lew Alcindor (later known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) declined their offer to play in the game. His coach would not allow him to play. Otherwise, Vaccaro had succeeded in getting big time high school talent from Pennsylvania and the rest of the United States. The format for the first game featured the National All-Stars vs. the Pennsylvania All-Stars at 9pm with a preliminary game that featured the Western Pennsylvania All Stars vs. City Catholic All-Stars game at 7pm. More than 10,000 fans attended the first game.

Growth

In the early years, the game quickly gained greater media coverage and a bigger fan following. The game was important for recruiting purposes as hundreds of colleges coaches and even pro scouts attended the game. It was known to be the "premier high school basketball attraction in the entire nation".

The most popular years were in the 1970s and early 1980s with a record crowd of almost 17,000 fans in 1977. In 1985 the matchup was slated as the East US All-Stars vs. the West US All-Stars. Some believed that changing the format and eliminating the Pennsylvania All-Stars compromised the attendance of the game. The attendance declined slightly in the mid to late 1980s, but the game still received national attention. It was well represented by all of the major recruiting figures in college basketball, and well respected in the sport of basketball. ESPN continued to broadcast the game yearly. Ultimately, the game was hurt by the emergence of other high school All Star games that followed – most notably the McDonald's High School All-American Game that began in 1977. Also, the NCAA enacted a rule that restricted athletes to play in only two All-Star games.

Decline and end

The game suffered two major losses in the early 1990s when both Nike and the Dapper Dan Club pulled their sponsorship. With DiCesare's blessing, Sonny Vaccaro moved the game to Detroit in 1993. The 28th Annual Roundball Classic was the last to be played in Pittsburgh on April 11, 1992.

The demand for the game in Pittsburgh was great enough that the Civic Arena in cooperation with Pat DiCesare continued doing a high school All-Star basketball game with Asics as a sponsor and utilizing player recruiters from local colleges. As expected, the Pittsburgh game could not get the talent that Vaccaro was able to get in Detroit. The last game in Pittsburgh was played in April 1994.

Vaccaro took the game to Detroit in 1993 where it became known as Magic Johnson's Roundball Classic. The game was played there for 7 years. It was moved to Raleigh, North Carolina in 2000 until it finally was moved to Chicago in 2002 (the 2001 edition was held at the Welsh–Ryan Arena in Evanston, Illinois) where it was simply named "The Roundball Classic". The game continued to have successful years after Pittsburgh. Most notably, it sold out the United Center in Chicago in 2003 when the game featured LeBron James, gathering an attendance of 19,678, the highest in Roundball Classic history, beating the previous record of 16,649 established in 1977. The last game was The 43rd Roundball Classic played in Chicago in 2007.

Game results

Year Result Attendance
1965 Pennsylvania 89, U.S. 76 10,334
1966 U.S. 114, Pennsylvania 106 9,587
1967 U.S. 97, Pennsylvania 88 10,700
1968 U.S. 103, Pennsylvania 90 13,266
1969 Pennsylvania 74, U.S. 67 13,380
1970 U.S. 87, Pennsylvania 81 13,402
1971 Pennsylvania 110, U.S. 98 13,592
1972 U.S. 97, Pennsylvania 88 13,207
1973 U.S. 87, Pennsylvania 74 13,600
1974 U.S. 77, Pennsylvania 76 13,092
1975 U.S. 107, Pennsylvania 96 13,333
1976 U.S. 105, Pennsylvania 93 16,166
1977 Pennsylvania 98, U.S. 92 16,649
1978 U.S. 105, Pennsylvania 100 16,355
1979 April 5 (Semifinals):
U.S. Southwest 97, Pennsylvania 92
U.S. East 111, U.S. Midwest 105
8,081
April 6 (Finals):
U.S. East 109, U.S. Southwest 95
U.S. Midwest 109, Pennsylvania 91
14,539
1980 U.S. 89, Pennsylvania 87 16,361
1981 U.S. 108, Pennsylvania 73 15,512
1982 Pennsylvania 91, U.S. 85 14,326
1983 U.S. 123, Pennsylvania 121 12,770
1984 U.S. 105, Pennsylvania 98 13,283
1985 U.S. 114, Pennsylvania 97 11,621
1986 U.S. North 96, U.S. South 94
U.S. East 98, Pennsylvania 96
8,309
1987 West 110, East 99 12,325
1988 East 121, West 100 14,042
1989 East 96, West 84 12,378
1990 East 111, West 97 11,655
1991 West 104, East 103 10,101
1992 East 105, West 102 10,909
1993 West 131, East 95 14,257
1994 East 141, West 135 10,121
1995 West 114, East 99 12,183
1996 West 127, East 117 13,412
1997 West 124, East 106 14,163
1998 West 135, East 116 13,758
1999 West 146, East 137 10,327
2000 East 146, West 131 N/A
2001 East 151, West 148 5,712
2002 East 115, West 103 7,359
2003 West 120, East 119 19,678
2004 East 124, West 110 15,421
2005 West 136, East 119 14,598
2006 West 118, East 102 10,384
2007 West 144, East 123 9,865

Wins by team

Pennsylvania vs. United States format

Team Wins
United States 15
Pennsylvania 5

East vs West format

Team Wins
West 12
East 9

MVPs

Pennsylvania vs. United States format

Calvin Murphy was the MVP of the 1966 game and scored a Roundball Classic record 37 points.

After the game two MVPs were named: one for the Pennsylvania team and one for the U.S. team. In 1979 and 1986 three U.S. selections played (East, Midwest and Southwest in 1979; East, South and North in 1986).

Year Team Player High School (state)
1965 Pennsylvania Simmie Hill Midland
United States Bernie Williams DeMatha Catholic (MD)
1966 Pennsylvania Sam Iacino Farrell
United States Calvin Murphy Norwalk (CT)
1967 Pennsylvania Dick DeVenzio Ambridge
United States Jim McDaniels Allen County (KY)
1968 Pennsylvania Dennis Wuycik Ambridge
United States Tom Riker Saint Dominic (NY)
1969 Pennsylvania Mark Gianfrancesco Wilkinsburg
United States Nick Weatherspoon Canton McKinley (OH)
1970 Pennsylvania Tom McMillen Mansfield
United States Dwight Jones Wheatley (TX)
1971 Pennsylvania Jimmie Baker Olney
United States Campy Russell Pontiac Central (MI)
1972 Pennsylvania Joe Bryant John Bartram
United States Phil Sellers Thomas Jefferson (NY)
1973 Pennsylvania Jeep Kelly Schenley
United States Adrian Dantley DeMatha Catholic (MD)
1974 Pennsylvania Brad Davis Monaca
United States Moses Malone Petersburg (VA)
1975 Pennsylvania Rodney Lee Edison
United States Phil Hubbard Canton McKinley (OH)
1976 Pennsylvania Sonny Lewis Schenley
United States Jay Shidler Lawrenceville (IL)
1977 Pennsylvania Eugene Banks West Philadelphia
United States Wes Matthews Warren Harding (CT)
1978 Pennsylvania Bruce Atkins Wilkinsburg
United States Walker Russell Pontiac Central (MI)
1979 Pennsylvania Bill Varner Valley
United States Sidney Green (East) Thomas Jefferson (NY)
Leon Wood (Midwest) Saint Monica (CA)
Dominique Wilkins (Southwest) Washington (NC)
1980 Pennsylvania Tony Costner Overbrook
United States Vern Fleming Mater Christi (NY)
1981 Pennsylvania Vic Alexander Benjamin Franklin
United States Patrick Ewing Cambridge Rindge and Latin (MA)
1982 Pennsylvania Chip Greenberg La Salle
United States Richard Rellford Suncoast (FL)
1983 Pennsylvania Rico Washington Benjamin Franklin
United States Pearl Washington Boys and Girls (NY)
1984 Pennsylvania Junie Lewis Abington
United States Cedric Henderson Marietta (Georgia)
1985 Pennsylvania Doug West Altoona
United States Rod Strickland Oak Hill Academy (VA)
1986 Pennsylvania Rod Brookin Steelton
United States Elander Lewis (East) Albany (NY)
Eddie Cumbo (South) Wheatley (TX)
Anthony Pendleton (North) Flint Northwestern (MI)

East vs. West format

Rasheed Wallace scored 30 points in 1993 and was named the MVP for the East team.
Year Team Player High School (state)
1987 East Brian Shorter Oak Hill Academy (VA)
West Marcus Liberty King College Prep (IL)
1988 East Orlando Vega Oak Hill Academy (VA)
West Anthony Peeler Paseo Academy (MO)
1989 East Billy McCaffrey Allentown Central Catholic (PA)
West Shaquille O'Neal Robert G. Cole (TX)
1990 East Anthony Miller Benton Harbor (MI)
West Ed O'Bannon Artesia (CA)
1991 East Chris Webber Detroit Country Day (MI)
West Glenn Robinson Roosevelt (IN)
1992 East Othella Harrington Murrah (MS)
West Andre Woolridge Benson (NE)
1993 East Rasheed Wallace Simon Gratz (PA)
West Rashard Griffith King College Prep (IL)
1994 East Felipe López Rice (NY)
West Maurice Taylor Henry Ford (MI)
1995 East Ryan Blackwell Pittsford (NY)
West Robert Traylor Murray–Wright (MI)
1996 East Tim Thomas Paterson Catholic (NJ)
West Rashad Phillips Ferndale (MI)
1997 East Melvin Ely Thornton Township (IL)
West Ricky Davis Davenport North (IA)
1998 East Cory Hightower Mount Zion Christian Academy (NC)
West Rashard Lewis Elsik (TX)
1999 East DerMarr Johnson Maine Central Institute (ME)
West Jason Richardson Arthur Hill (MI)
2000 East Brian Morrison Lake Washington (WA)
Taliek Brown St. John's Prep (NY)
West Mario Austin Sumter County (AL)
2001 East John Allen Coatesville (PA)
West Kwame Brown Glynn Academy (GA)
2002 East Raymond Felton Latta (SC)
West Jason Fraser Amityville Memorial (NY)
Sean Dockery Julian (IL)
2003 East Mustafa Shakur Friends' Central School (PA)
West LeBron James St. Vincent–St. Mary (OH)
2004 East J. R. Smith St. Benedict's Prep (NJ)
West Shaun Livingston Peoria (IL)
A. J. Price Amityville Memorial (NY)
2005 East Danny Green St. Mary's (NY)
Nate Minnoy Hales Franciscan (IL)
West Eric Devendorf Oak Hill Academy (VA)
Brandon Rush Mount Zion Christian Academy (NC)
2006 East Derrick Caracter Notre Dame Prep (MA)
Alex Stepheson Harvard-Westlake (CA)
West Greg Oden Lawrence North (IN)
Daequan Cook Dunbar (OH)
2007 East O. J. Mayo Huntington (WV)
West Corey Fisher St. Patrick (NJ)
JJ Hickson Joseph Wheeler (GA)
Kevin Love Lake Oswego (OR)

Alumni

Notable alumni include:

Venues


This page was last updated at 2024-01-18 06:50 UTC. Update now. View original page.

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