Led by Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James, St. Vincent-St. Mary High School was the talk of high school basketball circles in the early 2000s when they rose to the No. 1 team in the nation and won three state championships.
“The Fab Five,” as they called themselves in homage to the legendary University of Michigan team that became a cultural phenomenon in the early ’90s, James and his childhood friends became one with “The Chosen One.” Phenomenon in his own right “Arguably the greatest high school basketball star of all time, who garnered significant media attention as a teenager.
James naturally made the jump from high school straight to the pros when he was drafted No. 1 by the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2003 before launching a legendary NBA career that has spanned four championships, four MVP awards, and player honors the NBA’s all-time top scorer.
While none of his former St. Vincent-St. Mary’s teammates made it into the NBA, each forging their own path and achieving success in multiple areas.
Where are you now? Here’s a closer look at the other members of the famous Fab Five after high school.
MORE: How to live stream LeBron James high school biopic ‘Shooting Stars’
Where are the Fab Five now?
Dru Joyce III
Joyce III (or Lil’ Dru) was the starting point guard for St. Vincent-St. Maria. After high school, he began a successful playing career abroad.
He spent 12 seasons in Europe, mostly in Germany, with stints in France and Belarus.
After ending his playing career in 2019, Joyce III became an assistant coach at Cleveland State University before joining Duquesne in 2022 as the team’s assistant head coach. Duquesne’s head coach Keith Dambrot coached Joyce, James and the Fab Five for two seasons at St. Vincent-St. Maria.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipVvDdZowyo
Sian Cotton
Cotton, the team’s big man, later played college football as a defensive tackle at Ohio State University.
After limited time in his first two seasons with the Buckeyes, Cotton transferred to Youngstown State and then to NAIA Walsh University, where he finished his football career.
After leaving football behind, Cotton focused on his other passion: music. In 2013, one of Cotton’s songs was included in the soundtrack of the video game NBA 2K14, curated by James.
Willie McGee
After active high school, McGee played football at Fairmont State University.
After graduating in 2008, he returned to his alma mater as a coach, serving as an assistant coach at St. Vincent-St. Mary and later became the school’s athletic director. He held that position and also coached boys’ basketball at Akron East High School as of 2015 before pursuing further coaching stints at the University of Akron and Chowan University.
In 2016, he founded the DALE program, an organization that organizes events for disabled and underprivileged local children that focus on education, athletics and empowerment.
He currently works for the LeBron James Family Foundation.
Romeo Travis
Travis continued to play basketball after high school. He played at the University of Akron and became the best blocker of all time.
He then played professionally abroad for 14 years in Spain, Germany, Italy, Croatia, Russia, Philippines, Ukraine, Israel and France, winning championships in Balkan League (2012) and French Pro A League (2018), where he was also named league MVP that same season.
He last played for Limoges CSP in France in 2021.
LeBron James poses with his real friends and high school teammates Dru Joyce III (Lil Dru), Sian Cotton, Willie McGee and Romeo Travis at the premiere of the Peacock film Shooting Stars. pic.twitter.com/1Msxy88jCM
– Variety (@Variety) June 1, 2023
After retiring in 2021, Travis returned to St. Vincent-St. return. Mary as assistant coach.