If you were to ask someone if they remembered anything about the class of 2003 in high school basketball, odds are you would hear the name LeBron James as part of the response.
The nation’s No. 1 overall player in the 2003 class, James was considered a generational prospect when he came out of St. Vincent-St. Mary High School in Ohio – so good, in fact, that he was selected with the first pick in that year’s NBA Draft.
James has gone on to become one of the game’s all-time greats, but he isn’t the only reason people should remember the high school basketball class of 2003. That group also produced a number of other current and former NBA greats, as well as some who shined at the college level. Here is a look at a few of those players and what they have accomplished.
Chris Paul
Besides James, Paul is likely the most familiar name to come out of the high school basketball class of 2003. The five-star attended Winston-Salem Prep in North Carolina and went on to play two seasons at Wake Forest, where he was a two-time All-ACC selection and 2004-05 First Team All-American, among other honors. He averaged 15 PPG/3.9 RPG /6.3 APG/2.5 SPG during that span.
At the conclusion of those two seasons, Paul was selected with the No. 4 overall pick in the 2005 NBA Draft by the Charlotte Hornets, marking the start of what has been a Hall of Fame-caliber career for the star point guard.
Now in his 18th NBA season with the Phoenix Suns – his fifth NBA team – Paul has averaged 18.1 PPG/4.5 RPG/9.5 APG/2.1 SPG throughout his career, while also compiling a list of accolades that could land him in the Hall of Fame. Included in those honors are 12-time All-Star selection, 11-time All-NBA selection, five-time All-Defense, five-time assist champion, and six-time steals champion.
Luol Deng
Another notable name from the 2003 class in high school basketball is Deng, who was actually considered the nation’s No. 2 overall player behind James out of Blair Academy in New Jersey.
Deng went on to play only one season collegiately, at Duke in 2003-04, when he averaged 15.1 PPG and 6.9 RPG for the Blue Devils. Receiving All-ACC honors, Deng was selected with the No. 7 overall pick in the 2004 NBA Draft by the Phoenix Suns, beginning what would become a 15-year career for the former five-star.
Last active in 2019, Deng averaged 14.8 PPG, 6.1 RPG, and 2.3 APG in his NBA career, a majority of which was spent with the Chicago Bulls. Deng was a two-time All-Star and a one-time All-Defense selection.
Trevor Ariza
Also a five-star prospect, Ariza is another familiar name to come out of that high school basketball class of 2003, attending Westchester Senior High School in California.
Similar to Deng, Ariza played only one season of college basketball, which came in 2003-04 at UCLA, where the five-star averaged 11.6 PPG, 6.5 RPG, and 2.1 APG. Making the Pac-12 All-Freshman team, Ariza then entered the 2004 NBA Draft and was selected with the No. 43 overall pick by the New York Knicks.
Ariza, currently a free agent, has played 19 NBA seasons with 10 different teams, averaging 10.4 PPG, 4.8 RPG, and 2.1 APG during that span. He’s a past NBA champion, having been a member of the 2009 Los Angeles Lakers.
Paul Millsap
While there were a few notable five-star prospects to come from the high school basketball class of 2003, Millsap is likely the most accomplished three-star of the group. The forward graduated from Lincoln Preparatory in Louisiana and went on to play three seasons at Louisiana Tech, where he averaged 18.6 PPG, 12.7 RPG, and 2 BPG.
Millsap was selected in the 2006 NBA Draft, going No. 47 overall to the Utah Jazz. He has played 16 seasons with five different teams, averaging 13.4 PPG, 7.1 RPG, and 2.2 APG in a career that also includes four All-Star appearances, as well as an All-Defense honor.
In addition to those four players, here are a few other notable names who came out of high school basketball’s 2003 class:
- Kendrick Perkins (Ozen, TX)
- Charlie Villanueva (Blair Academy, NJ)
- Kris Humphries (Hopkins, MN)
- Brandon Bass (Capitol Pre-College Academy for Boys, LA)
- Jared Dudley (Horizon, CA)
- Shannon Brown (Proviso East, IL)
