Twitter Fingers: Cole Anthony reacts to 2020-21 NBA All-Rookie snub
The NBA announced its selections for the 2020-21 All-Rookie First and Second Teams on Thursday, and not everyone was pleased with the results.
The All-Rookie First Team is made up of reigning Rookie of the Year and Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball, Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards, Sacramento Kings guard Tyrese Haliburton, Detroit Pistons forward Saddiq Bey and Houston Rockets forward Jae’Sean Tate.
The All-Rookie Second Team consists of New York Knicks guard Immanuel Quickley, Memphis Grizzlies guard Desmond Bane, Pistons center Isaiah Stewart, Cleveland Cavaliers guard Isaac Okoro and Bulls forward Patrick Williams.
One name missing from the list is Orlando Magic guard Cole Anthony, who wasted no time in calling out the league and its voters on social media.
The 21-year-old former first-round pick didn’t hold back, referring to the selections as "disrespectful." Anthony went as far as to pin the critical tweet to the top of his profile so fans would know exactly how he feels about being left out.
Anthony "liked" a string of tweets from fans who responded critically to The Athletic's Shams Charania's initial announcement, one saying he was snubbed and another calling out players who were selected despite having "way worse numbers" than Anthony.
On Instagram, Anthony shared a meme to his nearly 700,000 followers that read "Cole Anthony is not impressed." It's safe to say he feels some type of way about not being selected for the First or Second Team lineups.
Anthony averaged 39.7% from the floor – including 33.7% from the 3-point line – and 83.2% from the free-throw line for 12.9 points in 2020-21, along with 4.7 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game. Despite missing nearly two months because of a rib injury, he finished fourth among rookies in scoring and fourth among rookies in assists.
Anthony exploded for a career-high 37 points in the regular-season finale May 16 against the Phoenix Suns, but it wasn’t enough to swing the pendulum his way when it came to the All-Rookie selections. He earned just one First Team vote and 38 Second Team votes for 40 total points. He was the second runner-up for the second team, behind Chicago Bulls forward Patrick Williams (50 total points), and he received the 12th-most points in the final voting, finishing behind Denver Nuggets guard Facundo Campazzo (42 points).
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On the other hand, Ball, the No. 3 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, averaged 15.7 points, 5.9 rebounds and 6.1 assists in the regular season to lead the Hornets to a Play-In Tournament appearance, despite missing 21 games because of a wrist injury. He was named Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month three times this season ahead of winning ROY.
Ball led all rookies in assists and steals (1.6) and finished second in scoring and rebounding. In 51 games, he averaged 28.8 minutes, shooting 43.6% from the floor, 35.2% from 3 and 75.8% from the free-throw line. He finished the regular season with seven double-doubles, second among rookies.
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Edwards, the former first overall pick, averaged a rookie-high 19.3 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists across 72 games in the regular season. He averaged 32.1 minutes while shooting 41.7% from the floor – including 32.9% from 3 – and 77.6% from the free-throw line.
At 19 years, 225 days old, Edwards became the third-youngest player in NBA history to record a 40-point game, behind LeBron James (19 years, 88 days) and Kevin Durant (19 years, 200 days).
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Haliburton, who won the first two Western Conference Rookie of the Month awards this year, ranked third among rookies in scoring (13.0) and second in assists (5.3). He averaged 30.1 minutes while shooting 47.2% from the floor – including 40.9% from 3 – and 85.7% from the free-throw line.
The former No. 19 overall pick, Bey, made a rookie-leading 175 3-pointers in the regular season while averaging 12.2 points and 4.5 rebounds.
Tate, who went undrafted out of Ohio State in the 2018 draft and spent two years playing overseas in Belgium and Australia in the NBL, appeared in 70 games with 58 starts in the regular season, averaging 11.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.21 steals while shooting 50.6% from the floor.
Here's how the NBA world reacted to the news.
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