Minnesota is the State of Hockey but that isn’t stopping local hoopers from helping turn the Land of 10,000 Lakes into one of the best basketball player-producing states in the country.
From Lindsay Whalen to Tyus and Tre Jones, Paige Bueckers, Gary Trent Jr. and Chet Holmgren, Minnesota has been a hotbed on the hardwood and two of the best high school players in the country, both from the Twin Cities, were named McDonald’s All-Americans on Tuesday.
Olivia Olson of Benilde-St. Margaret’s and Liv McGill of Hopkins were named to the prestigious group, an honor previously bestowed on only seven girls from Minnesota.
The short list McDonald’s All-Americans from Minnesota:
- Olivia Olson, Benilde-St. Margaret’s (2024)
- Liv McGill, Hopkins (2024)
- Tessa Johnson, St. Michael-Albertville (2023)
- Maya Nnaji, Hopkins (2022)
- Paige Bueckers, Hopkins (2020)
- Nia Coffey, Hopkins (2013)
- Rebekah Dahlman, Braham (2013)
- Taylor Hill, Minneapolis South (2009)
- Liz Podominick, Lakeville (2003)
Olson and McGill are ranked 15th and 16th, respectively, and are five-star recruits in ESPN’s Hoop Gurlz 2024 rankings. Olson is committed to Michigan and McGill will play for the Florida Gators in college.
Tessa Johnson is a freshman at South Carolina, where she has averaged 15.6 minutes off the bench for the 17-0 Gamecocks. Nnaji is the third-leading scorer at Arizona as a sophomore while Bueckers is in a race with Iowa’s Caitlin Clark to be the top pick in this summer’s WNBA Draft.
The first girls McDonald’s All-American team was in 2002.
Olson and McGill are ranked 15th and 16th, respectively, in ESPN’s Hoop Gurlz 2024 rankings.
