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Kentucky

D.J. Wagner hits game-winner, named MVP in McDonald's All-American Game

On3-Social-Profile_GRAYby:On3 Staff Report•03/28/23
D.J. Wagner, Kentucky basketball commitment
Kentucky basketball commitment D.J. Wagner gets ready to high-five someone after a game on Jan. 2 8, 2023. (Tim Nwachukwu / Getty Images)

Kentucky commitment DJ Wagner came into the McDonald’s All-American Game with quite the pedigree in front of him. By the time he left, he had done well to make a name for himself, flushing home the winning bucket for the East squad following a sizeable second-half comeback.

Wagner, of course, follows his father and grandfather as previous McDonald’s All-Americans, with Dajuan and Milt also having a special place in the game’s legacy.

The winning bucket came after the East got out in transition in the open floor, allowing Wagner to put his own stamp on the game.

After the game it was all Wagner could do to speak about the honor it was to suit up in the same game his father and grandfather before him had. He was named the game’s MVP on Tuesday night.

“It’s an honor for me every day just to wear this last name, step up behind two greats, two legends,” Wagner said. “So it’s just an honor.”

Wagner certainly did his part to come out on the winning side of things. The West built a sizeable double-digit lead early in the game, only to watch the East whittle it away down the stretch.

Finally, the East broke ahead for good.

“It was a great experience,” DJ Wagner said. “I’m just honored just to be able to come out here and step on the court with these guys in this stage. It’s a great feeling. We all talked about it, we said we was going to want to come out here and compete, because that’s what we do. We’re all competitors. And that’s what we did.”

The East could have folded and headed home, rather than fighting to the bitter end like it did. For Wagner, fighting to the end was never a question.

The entire East squad was reassuring itself throughout the game, aware that they could make a late push and turn the game on its head.

“The whole game we were saying, ‘We’re good,'” DJ Wagner said. “We knew we was going to face some adversity, so just to keep fighting, just to keep working and it was going to come to us.”

As far as getting the chance to be a part of the whole experience, Wagner was a man of few words. His play did all the talking necessary on Tuesday night.

“It feels great,” he said. “It’s an honor.”