City of Palms at 50: Our picks for best players, best title games, best fields, and more

The City of Palms Classic has come a long way from being a six-team local boys high school basketball tournament in 1973.

Immokalee won that inaugural event held at Edison Community College, then named The News-Press Boys Basketball Christmas Invitational. The event switched to being named the City of Palms Classic in 1986 as its metamorphosis to a statewide and national tournament underway.

On Monday, the 50th edition of what has become the nation's top holiday tournament tips off at 3:30 with Paul VI out of Virginia against Millennium from Arizona.

To honor the event's gold anniversary, we have pulled together a list of the 50 players, games, and moments that have defined the City of Palms over the years.

More: City of Palms Classic to welcome NBA and G-League scouts for 50th anniversary tournament

ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM

Through extensive research, The News-Press and Naples Daily News crafted a first, second, and third team comprised of five players each, followed by 10 honorable mentions. These are the players who balled best during their time in the tournament and not based on what they did in college or as professionals.

FIRST TEAM

Scottie Barnes

Schools: Montverde, University School

Highlights: The fan favorite was a two-time City of Palms Classic MVP during his three years at the Classic, being the only player to achieve the feat at two different schools. Barnes got his first MVP as a sophomore in 2017 at University School while getting another in 2019 with a loaded Montverde team that featured Cade Cunningham, Day'ron Sharpe, Moses Moody, Dariq Whitehead, and more.

Sharife Cooper

School: McEachern (Ga.)

Highlights: The three-time All-Tournament selection won MVP honors in 2018, propelling the Indians to a championship. In 2017, McEachern placed third in the tournament, while placing fourth in the 2019 field. Cooper eventually went on to be a guard at Auburn before being selected by the Atlanta Hawks in 2021.

Teddy Dupay

School: Mariner

Highlights: If there's a definition for a consensus First Team pick, Dupay was it. The three-time All-Tournament team selection and 1997 co-MVP played 14 games over his prep career in the City of Palms Classic, scoring 380 points, second all-time to Kenny Boynton's 406 over 12 games. Dupay shined in his final year before trekking to Florida, scoring 143 points over three games, including a 56-point effort against Cincinnati Roger Bacon and a 49-point effort against Compton Dominguez.

Kevin Love

School: Lake Oswego (Ore.)

Highlights: Love's play in the 2005 tournament caught many eyeballs, despite not winning tournament MVP. The All-Tournament selection put together a 27-point, 27-rebound performance against Compton Dominguez that may stand as the greatest rebounding performance in City of Palms Classic history. It remains to be seen if Love, who is a 5-time NBA All-Star and a 2016 NBA Champion will get the call from Springfield, Mass. for the Hall of Fame.

Austin Rivers

School: Winter Park

Highlights: The standout son of Doc Rivers became the first-ever player in City of Palms history to win back-to-back MVPs in 2008 and 2009. Rivers propelled Winter Park to a third-place finish in 2008, a second-place finish in 2009, and a fourth-place finish in 2010, making the All-Tournament team as well in his final season.

SECOND TEAM

RJ Barrett

School: Montverde

Highlights: On a down team for Montverde standards, Barrett carried his weight and then some, serving as the lone Eagle to make the All-Tournament team as MVP in 2016. Barrett scored 15 points in the championship game against Memphis East, outdueling Alex Lomax, T.J. Moss, and company to win 63-54 over Penny Hardaway's bunch.

Kenny Boynton

Schools: American Heritage, Blanche Ely

Highlights: Boynton called Fort Myers home for three seasons, playing with Blanche Ely before transferring to American Heritage. He made three All-Tournament teams, with the first coming in 2006 and the last coming in 2008. Boynton scored a tournament record 406 points, averaging 33.8 points per game over 12 contests. His scoring outputs were consistent, scoring 139 points in 2007, 134 in 2006, and 133 in 2008.

Jaylen Brown

Schools: Wheeler (Ga.)

Highlights: Brown was 1-for-1 in his lone tournament at the Classic, taking home MVP honors thanks to a 72-65 win over Ben Simmons and Montverde. In the title game against the Eagles, the Boston Celtics star scored 25 points with 12 rebounds and 6 assists.

Glen Davis

School: LSU Laboratory (La.)

Highlights: The player widely known as "Big Baby" Davis led LSU's Laboratory School to a City of Palms runner-up finish behind Los Angeles Westchester. Davis scored 35 points while adding 20 rebounds in the 70-58 loss. Davis added 29 points against St. John's Jesuit in the semifinals and 26 versus Bremerton (Wash.) in the quarterfinals before being convicted for committing healthcare fraud two decades later.

Ben Simmons

School: Montverde

Highlights: The Simmons' phenomenon during his time in Fort Myers has been unmatched as of late, as hundreds of fans wanted pictures, autographs, and more from the No. 1 recruit in the 2015 class. Simmons split MVP honors with Brooklyn Lincoln's Isaiah Whitehead in 2013, before making the All-Tournament team a season later after finishing runner-up to Wheeler (Ga.).

THIRD TEAM

Lonzo Ball

School: Chino Hills (Calif.)

Highlights: Ball gave Fort Myers many fun moments during his 2015 tournament, as the Chino Hills squad played at a high pace, cherrypicked a handful of times, and won epic games against Thomas Jefferson, Montverde, High Point Christian, and Patrick School in overtime to help give the Huskies a perfect 35-0 season that year. Ball almost had a triple-double in the game, with 20 points, 8 rebounds, and 11 assists.

Randolph Childress

School: Flint Hill (Va.)

Highlights: Childress was a key player in helping the tournament break through, as he and Brooklyn Lincoln's Norman Marbury shared co-MVP honors in 1989. Arguably the greatest championship game in City of Palms history, Childress banged home a trey at the buzzer in triple overtime to give Flint Hill a two-point win to win the City of Palms Classic. Childress had 24 points in the semifinal against Manual Arts, also an overtime win, before dropping 37 in the title game.

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist

School: St. Patrick (N.J.)

Highlights: Kidd-Gilchrist made All-Tournament in 2008 and 2010, also being named MVP in '10 following his team's win over Julian Royal and Alpharetta Milton in the championship. Before trekking to Kentucky, Kidd-Gilchrist finished with 25 points, 12 rebounds, and 5 blocks in the final game that year.

Julius Randle

School: Prestonwood Christian (Texas)

Highlights: The 2011 City of Palms Classic was headlined by Randle and company, as Prestonwood Christian won by 7, 6, and 5 points before winning by 20 in the title game against Grace Prep in an all-Texas title game. Randle had 31 points and 15 rebounds in the semifinal win over Riverside Academy (La.) before finishing with 7 points and 7 rebounds in the title game.

Samardo Samuels

School: St. Benedict's (N.J.)

Highlights: Samuels had a big tournament for St. Benedict's in their quest to capture the City of Palms Classic title in 2007. The skyscraper of a forward finished with 20 points and 5 rebounds in a dominant title win over Chester (Pa.). Samuels added 25 points and 7 boards in a semifinal win over New Orleans Cox as well before heading to Louisville to play for coach Rick Pitino.

2022 Championship: Imhotep Charter's defensive masterclass propels Panthers to City of Palms Classic title

HONORABLE MENTION

Cole Anthony, Archbishop Molloy (N.Y.), Oak Hill (Va.)

Trevor Ariza, Westchester (Calif.)

Reed Baker, Bishop Verot

Chauncey Billups, George Washington (Colo.)

Cade Cunningham, Montverde

Eugene Edgerson, St. Augustine (La.)

Alex Lomax, Memphis East (Tenn.)

Norman Marbury, Lincoln (N.Y.)

Shabazz Muhammad, Bishop Gorman (Nev.)

Jahlil Okafor, Whitney Young (Ill.)

BEST CITY OF PALMS TOURNAMENT FIELDS

With so many fields over 50 years, trimming this list to five was beyond tricky. In order from oldest to most recent, here are our picks for the best City of Palms Classic fields.

2015

The last tournament at Bishop Verot in 2015 was a fitting sendoff, as the tournament saw a record 17 first-round NBA draft picks congregate in Fort Myers before the tournament shifted to Florida SouthWestern the following year. Topping that list were Jayson Tatum, Michael Porter Jr., RJ Barrett, Bam Adebayo, LaMelo Ball, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander among plenty of others.

1993

The 1993 field was supposed to see Daunte Culpepper, Danny Fortson, Ron Mercer, and Tim Thomas all competing for titles, but the quartet and their respective teams were all competing in the consolation brackets in what was the final tournament at Edison Community College. Tommie Davis and Los Angeles Crenshaw became crowd favorites that year, as the program averaged 97 points per game with a high of 117 points in a dominant tournament performance.

1991

The 1991 field may have had just a pair of draft picks that year in Felipe Lopez (1998, 24th overall, San Antonio Spurs) and Jeff McInnis (1996, 37th overall, Denver Nuggets) that year, but the tournament was filled with an ideal Final Four of Miami Senior, Franklin Learning Center (Pa.), Oak Hill Academy (Va.), and Rice (N.Y.). Miami Senior's Steve Edwards took home tournament MVP honors for Miami Senior, which won its quarterfinal, semifinal, and championship games by 8, 12, and 20 points, respectively. A total of 7 players between those four teams made the 11-person All-Tournament team.

2019

The 2019 field had its share of ballers in the field, headlined by a pair of top five picks in Cade Cunningham and Scottie Barnes, who both shared the floor for the same team in Montverde that year. Paolo Banchero, a No. 1 overall pick and last year's NBA Rookie of the Year, made the trip from Seattle to play for O'Dea. Shaedon Sharpe, Jalen Duren, Jarace Walker, Dariq Whitehead, Mark Williams, A.J. Griffin, Moses Moody, Jaden Springer, and Day'ron Sharpe were the other first-round picks to take the court that year.

2023

The tournament has yet to be played, but this year's field features the top five seniors in the 2024 class. It's headlined by Cooper Flagg, Dylan Harper, Ace Bailey, Tre Johnson, and V.J. Edgecombe. It also features top 25 seniors in Isaiah Evans, Asa Newell, Liam McNeeley, Derik Queen, Boogie Fland, Pat Ngongba, and Khani Rooths. That doesn't include the underclassmen including Cameron Boozer, Jasper Johnson, Caleb Holt, Caleb Haskins, and Alex Constanza. This field has serious potential to match and even surpass 2015.

CITY OF PALMS BEST CHAMPIONSHIP GAMES

1989: Flint Hill (Va.) vs. Lincoln (N.Y.)

Nothing can beat a three-overtime game that showcased a buzzer-beater to win it all, right? Hitting many clutch shots throughout his career, Randolph Childress nailed a three-pointer to lift Flint Hill a 70-68 win over Brooklyn Lincoln. Flint Hill's City of Palms Classic title remains as the only one that has been won by a team from Virginia.

2004: Niagara Falls (N.Y.) vs. Palm Beach Lakes

A back-and-forth game that saw three lead changes in the final minute resulted in a 52-51 win for the Wolverines, as the flight back to Buffalo was a good one. Jonathan Flynn nailed a three-pointer with under 20 seconds to go, denying a comeback from the Rams who started to see treys fall from Corey Claitt, Daniel Bryant, and Leonardo Bryant. Paul Harris was named the tournament MVP after finishing with 13 points, 13 rebounds, and 4 assists for Niagara Falls.

2010: St. Patrick (N.J.) vs. Milton (Ga.)

Jarrel Lane. That's all. The combo guard under 6-feet tall sunk a trey at the buzzer on ESPNU to give Kevin Boyle his first of many City of Palms Classic titles, as St. Patrick came away with a 69-67 win over Milton. The Celtics became the second team from New Jersey to capture the title at the time, joining Newark St. Benedict's in 2007.

2013: Montverde vs. Paul VI (Va.)

One of the weirder and more unique games the Classic has seen, this game started at Bishop Verot but finished at Fort Myers High School. Verot's air conditioning failed because of a faulty air conditioning system, leading to players slipping on condensation in a hot gym that was packed with fans. Finishing nearly 3 1/2 hours after it started, Montverde came away with a 58-53 win over the Panthers. Ben Simmons, who shared co-MVP honors that year, had 9 points and 12 rebounds for Montverde.

2015: Chino Hills (Calif.) vs. The Patrick School (N.J.)

Games to determine a champion are always epic, but even more so when the winning team left all five starters in from virtually start to finish in a contest that went past the fourth quarter. Chino Hills and the Ball Brothers willed their way to an epic 66-60 overtime decision over The Patrick School, as the Huskies got 20 points, 8 rebounds, and 11 assists from Lonzo Ball. LaMelo Ball added 13 points and 2 rebounds, while LiAngelo Ball added 11 points.

CITY OF PALMS BEST INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCES

Kenny Boynton's tournament record 61 points vs. Dunbar

Unfortunately for the Tigers, guarding Kenny Boynton gave them and plenty of other teams constant fits. The American Heritage guard consistently had his way against Dunbar, netting 61 of the Patriots' 88 points in a 17-point win in 2007, a record that still stands today. It wasn't the last time the Tigers saw Boynton, as he dropped 43 on them a year later in an 86-67 win.

Nick Calathes' 50 points against Compton Dominguez

Calathes' high school days lived up to the hype, and the standout nearly kept Lake Howell alive in the 2005 main bracket. The future Florida product made 18 of his 25 field goals, sunk 10 of 14 free throws, and shot 4 of 7 beyond the arc against a stingy Dominguez team in 2005.

Teddy Dupay's 1997 tournament

Dupay may have just played three games at the City of Palms Classic in 1997 but was undoubtedly the best three-game stretch of any of the thousands of players that have played in the tournament. Dupay put up 56 points against Cincinnati Roger Bacon, 49 on Compton Dominguez, and 38 on Memphis Hamilton en route to having the highest scoring average in the tournament by a whopping seven points.

Joe Girard III's 59 points vs. Brunswick

The person who's seven points behind Dupay in the scoring average is none other than Girard, who captivated a 2018 audience with 59 points against Brunswick in a game where Boynton's single-game scoring record of 61 points was in trouble. Girard made 20 of 42 shot attempts in the game, adding 7 rebounds and 4 assists in an 80-65 win over the Georgia-based Pirates. In two games played, Girard scored 81 points.

Kevin Love's tournament record 27 rebounds

If there's a tournament record that won't get topped, this might be the one. Compton Dominguez was on the other side of many historic performances, including a 50-point effort from Calathes in the same tournament. Love scored 27 points and added 27 rebounds as Lake Oswego (Ore.) came away with a 68-59 win in the 2005 quarterfinals.

CITY OF PALMS BIGGEST UPSETS

2018: Mountain Brook (Ala.) over IMG Academy

The landmark upset of the tournament this generation was seeing a team with Josh Green, Armando Bacot, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, Jaden Springer, and Jarace Walker lose to a Mountain Brook squad that Trendon Watford carried. Watford scored 26 second-half points to beat the Ascenders 72-67 that year. The future LSU product and NBAer scored 38 points while adding 12 rebounds.

1990: Gibbs over Fairdale (Ky.)

Riding momentum throughout the entire tournament, St. Petersburg Gibbs managed to come away with a 90-88 win over the tournament's top seed in Fairdale, who was also ranked No. 4 in the country. Bill Teal, Dwight Brown, and Pat Lawrence all had big games, with Brown scoring a game-high 28 points against the "Dunkin' Dogs", while Lawrence added 20.

2004: Palm Beach Lakes over South Gwinnett (Ga.)

There aren't many first-round upsets in a 16-team tournament, but Palm Beach Lakes over South Gwinnett was a stunner. South Gwinnett was ranked as USA Today's No. 2 team at the time but fell 82-73 at the hands of Daniel Bryant and Palm Beach Lakes. Bryant, a 5-foot-8 senior guard, scored 26 points, adding 5 rebounds and 5 assists.

2012: Bishop Verot over St. Thomas Aquinas

Without its best player Ricky Doyle, the Vikings ground out a 49-48 buzzer-beating win thanks to a shot by senior guard Max Williams that sent the John J. Nevins Gymnasium into a frenzy. Doyle had a stress fracture in his left foot, leading to a tougher climb for the Vikings. Mason Taylor had a double-double for Verot, finishing with 24 points and 13 rebounds. Taylor was going to shoot but saw Williams open, who nailed the game-winner.

1999: Northwest Christian over Mater Dei (Calif.)

One of the smallest schools in the state that year, the Eagles took down a nationally ranked Mater Dei team by 16 points, 72-56, to advance to the City of Palms title game despite being the underdog due to their size. Northwest Christian's Eddie Starks would win tournament MVP honors that year despite losing to Louisville Ballard (Ky.).

CITY OF PALMS MISSED OPPORTUNITIES

Vince Carter, Mainland

Vinsanity had a wild high school experience, playing football, volleyball, and basketball while also holding a saxophone scholarship from Bethune-Cookman. Carter scored over 2,200 points and finished with over 1,000 rebounds in his prep career, but never made his way to Fort Myers for the City of Palms Classic with Daytona Beach Mainland.

LeBron James, St. Vincent-St. Mary (Ohio)

City of Palms tournament guru Donnie Wilkie had James and St. Vincent-St. Mary verbally committed to the tournament for James' junior and senior seasons, but coach Keith Dambrot leaving SVSM for the college ranks left Wilkie without the best high school basketball player (and NBAer) this generation.

Bronny James, Sierra Canyon (Calif.)

There were efforts put into place to try and get LeBron's eldest son with Sierra Canyon along with Amari Bailey in 2021, but it didn't work out between the two sides. California had strict rules that limited Wilkie in terms of who they were allowed to play, leading to an unsuccessful combination. Could there be a third try at getting a member of the James family, with Bryce James being a senior next season?

Brandon Knight, Pine Crest

Knight is just one of three players to ever notch back-to-back Gatorade Basketball Player of the Year awards nationwide, and he played just over two hours away in South Florida at Pine Crest. Not seeing Knight in the tournament at least one of those years looked weird in retrospect, given Knight's proven ability for two seasons that garnered national attention.

Zion Williamson, Spartanburg Day (S.C.)

A big player during the explosion of social media, Williamson's highlight reel dunks were all over Instagram, YouTube, Vine, Twitter, and many more platforms, as fans were flocking to see the future NBAer who had been a top-rated recruit in Duke's 2018 class at 6-foot-6, 272 pounds.

PAST CHAMPIONS

2021 championship: Montverde goes back-to-back, wins 48th Annual City of Palms Classic title over Oak Hill

• 2022: Imhotep

• 2021: Montverde Academy

• 2020: Canceld due to Covid

• 2019: Montverde

• 2018: McEachern (Ga.)

• 2017: University School

• 2016: Montverde Academy

• 2015: Chino Hills (Calif.)

• 2014: Marietta (Ga.) Wheeler

• 2013: Montverde Academy

• 2012: Montverde Academy

• 2011: Plano Prestonwood Christian

• 2010: St. Patrick

• 2009: Paterson (N.J.) Catholic

• 2008: Mater Dei

• 2007: St. Benedict's (Newark, N.J.)

• 2006: Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei

• 2005: Nashville (Tenn.) Brentwood Academy

• 2004: Niagara Falls (N.Y.)

• 2003: Los Angeles (Calif.) Westchester

• 2002: Manhattan (N.Y.) Rice

• 2001: Los Angeles (Calif.) Westchester

• 2000: Los Angeles (Calif.) Westchester

• 1999: Louisville Ballard

• 1998: Georgetown (Ky.) Scott County

• 1997: Baton Rouge (La.) Parkview Baptist

• 1996: Miami Senior - Classic II

• 1996: Lexington (Ky.) Catholic - Classic I

• 1995: Compton (Calif.) Dominguez

• 1994: New Orleans (La.) St. Augustine

• 1993: Los Angeles (Calif.) Crenshaw

• 1992: Washington (D.C.) Dunbar

• 1991: Miami Senior

• 1990: St. Petersburg Gibbs

• 1989: Falls Church (Va.) Flint Hill

• 1988: Miami Carol City

PRE-NATIONAL FORMAT

• 1987: Miami Jackson

• 1986: Jacksonville Forrest

• 1985: Fort Myers

• 1984: Cypress Lake

• 1983: Cypress Lake

• 1982: Fort Myers

• 1981: Cypress Lake

• 1980: Cypress Lake

• 1979: Cypress Lake

• 1978: Okeechobee

• 1977: Pompano Beach High

• 1976: Pompano Beach High

• 1975: Belle Glade Glades Central

• 1974: Fort Myers

• 1973: Immokalee

Follow Southwest Florida Sports Reporter Alex Martin on X: @NP_AlexMartin. For the best sports coverage in Southwest Florida, follow @newspresssports and @ndnprepzone on Instagram.

This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: 50th annual City of Palms Classic: Best players, best title games, best fields, plus more