Lincoln’s Wayne McNamara Named RI Boys Basketball Gatorade Player of the Year
CHICAGO (March 21, 2024) — In its 39th year of honoring the nation’s most elite high school athletes, Gatorade
today announced Wayne McNamara of Lincoln High School is the 2023-24 Gatorade Rhode Island Boys
Basketball Player of the Year. McNamara is the first Gatorade Rhode Island Boys Basketball Player of the Year to
be chosen from Lincoln High School.
The award, which celebrates the nation’s top high school athletes for excellence on the court, in the classroom
and in the community, distinguishes McNamara as Rhode Island’s best high school boys basketball player. From
CEOs and coaches to star athletes, Gatorade Player of the Year winners showcase the power of sport, touting an
all-star group of alumni that includes LeBron James (2002-03 & 2001-02, St. Vincent – St. Mary High School, Ohio),
Karl-Anthony Towns (2013-14 & 2012-13, St. Joseph High School, N.J.) and Jayson Tatum (2015-16, 2014-15 &
2013-14, Chaminade College Preparatory School, Mo.).
The 6-foot-1, 185-pound senior guard led the Lions (26-1) to the program’s first Division 2 tournament title in 25
years and a run to the semifinals of the statewide championship tournament this past season. McNamara averaged
24.8 points, 12.9 rebounds, 5.2 assists and 3.0 steals and was named MVP of the Division 2 championship game. He
shot 59.3 percent from the field and will graduate as Lincoln’s career scoring leader with 1,445 points.
The senior class president, McNamara has volunteered locally on behalf of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Northern Rhode
Island, serving as a childcare-giver as well as a youth coach, referee and mentor. He has also donated his time
visiting local elementary schools for “High Five Fridays,” greeting elementary school students as they start their final
weekday. “He is a coaching dream,” said Kyle Bodington, head coach of North Kingstown High School. “I’ve seen
him cover Division 1 prospects from point guards to swing players with much success. He’s not flashy on offense,
but gets to the rim very well and is productive. If I was able to draft a player from Rhode Island, he would be my first
pick. He is a hard-worker and a good teammate.”
McNamara has maintained a 4.08 GPA in the classroom. He has made a verbal commitment to attend Brown
University, where he will play basketball, this fall.
The Gatorade Player of the Year program annually recognizes one winner in the District of Columbia and each of
the 50 states that sanction high school football, girls volleyball, boys and girls cross country, boys and girls
basketball, boys and girls soccer, baseball, softball, and boys and girls track & field, and awards one National Player
of the Year in each sport. The selection process is administered by the Gatorade Player of the Year Selection
Committee, which leverages experts including coaches, scouts, media and others as sources to help evaluate and
determine the state winners in each sport.
McNamara joins recent Gatorade Rhode Island Boys Basketball Players of the Year Azmar Abdullah (2022-23, Bishop
Hendricken High School), Denzel Correia (2021-22, Rocky Hill Country Day School), Matt Constant (2020-21, St.
Andrew’s School), and Erickson Bans (2019-20, Shea High School), among the state’s list of former award winners.
As part of Gatorade’s commitment to breaking down barriers in sport, every Player of the Year also receives a grant
to donate to a social impact partner. To date, Gatorade Player of the Year winners’ grants have totaled more than
$4.9 million across more than 1,600 organizations.
To learn more about the Gatorade Player of the Year program, check out past winners or to nominate studentathletes, visit playeroftheyear.gatorade.com or follow us on social media on Facebook at facebook.com/GatoradePOY, Instagram at instagram.com/Gatorade and Twitter at twitter.com/Gatorade.
