Ben Simmons named to 2015 McDonald's All-American Game

Ben Simmons, the 6'10 forward out of Melbourne, Australia, has been selected to play in the 2015 McDonalds All-American game, becoming the first Australian to achieve such a feat.

Ben Simmons | Photo credit: Dave Roback / The Republican

Simmons is having an unbelievable senior year at Montverde Academy, leading them to a 23-1 record. The LSU signee has also retained his position at the #1 spot on ESPN's updated Class of 2015 ranking.

Being the first Australian to play in the @McDAAG is a dream come true, gotta put on for my country ✊

— Ben Simmons (@BenSimmons25) January 29, 2015

The McDonald's All-American Game will be played on the 1st of April at Chicago's United Center. The annual event consists of the top players in the nation playing in an exhibition game at the conclusion of the high-school basketball season, in an East vs. West format. As part of the annual event, boys also compete in a slam dunk contest, a three-point shooting competition, and an overall timed skills competition.

Simmons will play on the East roster. The East roster also includes Dwayne Bacon, Antonio Blakeney, Isaiah Briscoe, Jaylen Brown, Thomas Bryant, Cheick Diallo, Henry Ellenson, Jawun Evans, Luke Kennard, Dedric Lawson and Diamond Stone.

Along with this accomplishment, Simmons was also named to the Naismith Trophy High School Player of the Year Boy's Midseason Team this week and is among the favourites to win the Naismith Trophy Boys High School Player of the Year award. Previous winners of the Player of the Year award include Kobe Bryant, Lebron James and Dwight Howard.

To catch up on the latest news of the Aussies playing high school basketball in the US, check out this month's recap.