Kentucky signees Daimion Collins, Nolan Hickman named McDonald's All-Americans

Two Kentucky men’s basketball signees have been named McDonald’s All-Americans.

In an announcement made Tuesday afternoon, five-star forward Daimion Collins and four-star point guard Nolan Hickman – who both signed with Kentucky during the early signing period in November – made the final 24-player McDonald’s All-American Game roster.

Collins, listed as the No. 11 overall prospect in the 247Sports Composite, signed with Kentucky over offers from Kansas, Texas, Texas Tech and Oklahoma, among others. As a senior in high school, the 6-foot-10 forward is averaging 35.2 points, 14.4 rebounds, 7.0 assists and 6.2 blocks per game.

“I’m really excited for Daimion and his family to join our program,” UK head coach John Calipari said at the time of his signing. “Daimion is an incredible young man with a bright future – someone who has only begun to realize just how good he can be. Our fans know I don’t like to make comparisons to our other guys, but Daimion has that type of length, the athleticism and the versatility that have separated our players from others. He wanted to be pushed and to be in a competitive environment to help him reach his full potential. The staff and I cannot wait to help him grow.”

As for Hickman, rated as high as the No. 28 overall player by ESPN, originally chose Kentucky over Arizona, Kansas, Oklahoma and Washington, among others. He is currently averaging 16.6 points per game, 5.3 assists, 3.9 rebounds and is making 38.6% of his shots from 3-point range during his senior campaign.

“I had the chance to see a lot of Nolan in the year or so before the pandemic hit,” Calipari said this fall. “I am really excited about his ability to play the point guard position. He has speed, vision and scoring ability. One of the best things about Nolan is his competitive spirit. He plays to win, which our best guards I’ve coached do. Nolan is someone who can play multiple positions in the backcourt, who can fly in transition, and most importantly can create for himself and his teammates. Our guys will love playing with Nolan as he is a team-first player who is incredibly mature.”

Check out the entire McDonald’s All-American Game roster:

• Patrick Baldwin Jr. (Undecided)
• Paolo Banchero (Duke)
• Nate Bittle (Oregon)
• Kendall Brown (Baylor)
• Kobe Bufkin (Michigan)
• Kennedy Chandler (Tennessee)
• Max Christie (Michigan State)
• Daimion Collins (Kentucky)
• J.D. Davison (Alabama)
• Moussa Diabate (Michigan)
• Michael Foster (Undecided)
• Jackson Grant (Washington)
• A.J. Griffin (Duke)
• Jaden Hardy (Undecided)
• Nolan Hickman (Kentucky)
• Chet Holmgren (Undecided)
• Caleb Houstan (Michigan)
• Harrison Ingram (Stanford)
• Trevor Keels (Undecided)
• Aminu Mohammed (Georgetown)
• Daeshun Ruffin (Ole Miss)
• Hunter Sallis (Undecided)
• Jabari Smith (Auburn)
• Peyton Watson (UCLA)

This is the 44th season rosters for the McDonald’s All American game have been picked, but for the second year and a row due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic there will not be a game.

With the latest selections, UK has signed 39 McDonald’s All Americans out of high school during the John Calipari era, more than any other school in the country during that time period. Multiple players from each of Calipari’s signing classes have been tabbed McDonald’s All Americans, including five each in 2013 and 2017.

Kentucky has signed 71 McDonald’s All Americans since the game began in 1977, including current Wildcats Brandon Boston Jr. (2020) and Terrence Clarke (2020).