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Mr. Basketball of Arkansas

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The Mr. Basketball of Arkansas award is awarded every year to the student-athlete chosen as the best individual high school basketball player in the state of Arkansas in the U.S. This award was earned by the best of the best in the state of Arkansas. Players who were leaders on and off the court, showed sportsmanship, and lead their team to victory in most occasions.

Award winners

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Year Player High School College NBA/NFL draft
2023 Annor Boateng Little Rock Central High School, Little Rock Missouri
2022 Derrian Ford (2) Magnolia High School, Magnolia Arkansas then transferred to Arkansas State
2021 Derrian Ford Magnolia High School, Magnolia Arkansas then transferred to Arkansas State
2020 Jaylin Williams Fort Smith Northside High School, Fort Smith Arkansas 2022 NBA draft: 2nd Rnd, 34th overall by Oklahoma City Thunder
2019 Isaac McBride Baptist Prep High School, Little Rock Oral Roberts
2018 Isaiah Joe Fort Smith Northside High School, Fort Smith Arkansas 2020 NBA draft: 2nd Rnd, 49th overall by Philadelphia 76ers
2017 Daniel Gafford El Dorado High School, El Dorado Arkansas 2019 NBA draft: 2nd Rnd, 38th overall by Chicago Bulls
2016 Malik Monk Bentonville High School, Bentonville Kentucky 2017 NBA draft: 1st Rnd, 11th overall by Charlotte Hornets
2015 KeVaughn Allen (2) North Little Rock High School, North Little Rock Florida NBA G-League:

Rio Grande Valley Vipers

2014 KeVaughn Allen North Little Rock High School, North Little Rock Florida NBA G-League:

Rio Grande Valley Vipers

2013 Bobby Portis Hall High School, Little Rock Arkansas 2015 NBA draft: 1st Rnd, 22nd overall by the Chicago Bulls
2012 Archie Goodwin (2) Sylvan Hills High School, Sherwood Kentucky 2013 NBA draft: 1st Rnd, 29th overall by the Oklahoma City Thunder (traded to Phoenix Suns via Golden State Warriors)
2011 Archie Goodwin Sylvan Hills High School, Sherwood Kentucky 2013 NBA draft: 1st Rnd, 29th overall by the Oklahoma City Thunder (traded to Phoenix Suns via Golden State Warriors)
2010 Preston Purifoy Conway High School, Conway UAB Undrafted

Plays for FC Porto in Euro League

2009 N/A N/A N/A N/A
2008 A. J. Walton[1] Hall High School, Little Rock Baylor Undrafted

Plays for Astoria Bydgoszcz in the Polish League

2007 James Anderson (2) Junction City High School, Junction City Oklahoma State 2010 NBA draft: 1st Rnd, 20th overall by the San Antonio Spurs
2006 James Anderson Junction City High School, Junction City Oklahoma State 2010 NBA draft: 1st Rnd, 20th overall by the San Antonio Spurs
2005 Brandon Ballard Buffalo Island Central High School, Monette Arkansas State No NBA History
2004 Marcus Monk[2] East Poinsett County High School, Lepanto Arkansas 2008 NFL draft: 7th Rnd, 248th overall by the Chicago Bears
2003 Ronnie Brewer[2] Fayetteville High School, Fayetteville Arkansas 2006 NBA draft: 1st Rnd, 14th overall by the Utah Jazz
2002 Antwoine Blanchard Parkview Magnet High School, Little Rock Texas State Undrafted
2001 Gavin Ludgood Clarksville High School Florida Atlantic University
2000 Kim Adams[2] J. A. Fair High School, Little Rock Arkansas State Undrafted
1999 Joe Johnson[2] Little Rock Central High School, Little Rock Arkansas 2001 NBA draft: 1st Rnd, 10th overall by the Boston Celtics
1998 Jason Harrison[3] Parkview High School, Little Rock Mississippi Undrafted
1997 N/A N/A N/A N/A
1996 Nick Bradford Fayetteville High School, Fayetteville Kansas Undrafted
1995 N/A N/A N/A N/A
1994 Matt Daniel[4] Jonesboro High School, Jonesboro Colorado/Harding Undrafted

Schools with multiple winners

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The universities that have multiple award winners tend to be schools that are in, if not, close to the state of Arkansas. These schools are known to have a rich history of basketball in their state and the players that earned the award multiple times have either been drafted to the NBA, or played for a team in the NBA G-League. Oklahoma State University was the first-ever school to have achieved the NCAA championships in back-to-back years. In addition, the school has a total of 6 final four appearances throughout the history of the school, so as you can see Oklahoma State is a school with huge success in the basketball department. The University of Kentucky was known to be successful in the first few years of their career, but there were a couple of setbacks that the school experienced, like a couple of Kentucky players being involved in illegal activities that almost costed the coach his job. The University of Florida, like most of the SEC schools, were once thought of as a football college but eventually after making the NCAA tournaments 3 times in a row, the school soon received recognition as a prestigious basketball university winning multiple SEC championships.

School Number of Awards Years
Fayetteville High School 2 1996, 2003
Fort Smith Northside High School 2 2018, 2020
Hall High School 2 2008, 2013
Junction City High School 2 2006, 2007
Little Rock Central High School, Little Rock 2 1999, 2023
Magnolia High School 2 2021, 2022
Parkview High School 2 1998, 2002
Sylvan Hills High School 2 2011, 2012

Significance

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George Mikan[5] was a big influence in this award being developed, being that he was the first "Mr. Basketball" player to ever win the award. His influence on the award gave away the idea for each state in the U.S. to be able to have their own Mr. Basketball award. States, for example like, Illinois,[6] Alabama, and Maine who were able to have significant stories regarding the Mr. Basketball award winners in their state.

References

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  1. ^ "Men's Hoops Renews SWC Rivalry with Arkansas - Baylor Bears Official Athletic Site - BaylorBears.com". www.baylorbears.com. Archived from the original on 2011-07-20.
  2. ^ a b c d "Arkansas Hawks Basketball". arkansashawks.com. Archived from the original on 2009-06-08.
  3. ^ "Holmes Community College - Students". Archived from the original on 2011-07-19. Retrieved 2010-02-01.
  4. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-17. Retrieved 2010-02-01.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  5. ^ Schumacher, Michael. (2008). Mr. Basketball George Mikan, the Minneapolis Lakers, and the birth of the NBA. University of Minnesota Press. OCLC 756717963.
  6. ^ Issacsohn, Austin (May 2016). "Illinois' Mr. Basketball, Charlie Moore Commits to Cal". Daily Cal – via ULOOP Inc.

[1] Schumacher, Michael. Mr. Basketball: George Mikan, the Minneapolis Lakers, and the Birth of the NBA. University of Minnesota Press, 2008. Open WorldCat, http://site.ebrary.com/id/10277748. [2] Isaacsohn, Austin. Illinois’ Mr. Basketball, Charlie Moore Commits to Cal. ULOOP Inc., May,2016. https://www.dailycal.org/2016/05/18/charlie-moore-commits-to-cal-basketball/ [7]O'Brien, Chris (November 2018). https://www.alligator.org/sports/gators-trying-to-find-their-stroke-before-battle-atlantis/article_66f40400-e80f-11e8-a6db-278ebaf33f18.html. Gators trying to find their stroke before Battle 4 Atlantis

  1. ^ Schumacher, Michael. (2008). Mr. Basketball George Mikan, the Minneapolis Lakers, and the birth of the NBA. University of Minnesota Press. OCLC 756717963.
  2. ^ Issacsohn, Austin (May 2016). "Illinois' Mr. Basketball, Charlie Moore Commits to Cal". Daily Cal – via ULOOP Inc.