The NBA announced 2017’s All-Rookie teams on Monday. One man was missing: Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot of the Philadelphia 76ers, who didn’t receive a vote.
The 2016 NBA Draft class had an atrocious rookie year. Two of the three finalists for Rookie of the Year were drafted in 2014, and the other finalist was a second round pick. The top pick, Ben Simmons of the Philadelphia 76ers, didn’t play at all due to injury, and the second and third picks were non-factors on their teams.
Philadelphia 76ers
On Monday afternoon, when the NBA announced the All-Rookie teams for this past season, many Sixers fans were surprised that Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, the 24th overall pick of the 2016 NBA Draft, did not receive a single vote. In a normal year, fans can expect that an international player taken late in the first round would not receive a vote, but this was no normal year.
For instance, Brandon Ingram, the second overall pick from the LA Lakers, averaged just 9.4 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 2.1 assists in 28.8 minutes per game while shooting 62.1 percent from the free throw line. Furthermore, he actively made his team worse by posting -0.3 win shares. The third overall pick, the Boston Celtics’ Jaylen Brown, 6.6 points, 2.8 boards, and 0.8 assists each night while playing 17.2 minutes per game.
For the entire season, Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot put up 6.4 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 1.1 assists in just 17.2 minutes per night. His numbers really took off after the All-Star break: he put up 11 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 1.6 assists while shooting 92 percent from the charity stripe. Additionally, he showed promise as a defender as well as a first step that is as quick as lightning.
Sure, TLC’s stats may not have totally warranted a selection to the All-Rookie second team, but the numbers show that he deserved at least some votes. If Jaylen Brown somehow managed to get 106 votes to be put on the All-Rookie second team, TLC deserved something close to that.
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Other rookies who received votes include Alex Abrines from the OKC Thunder, Kris Dunn from the Minnesota Timberwolves, DeAndre’ Bembry of the Atlanta Hawks, and Dragan Bender of the Phoenix Suns. Each one of those players put up fewer points per game than TLC, and the French wing also averaged more rebounds and assists than Abrines, Bembry, and Bender. Somehow, Bender shot 36.4 percent from the free throw line and managed to get a vote.
This will be a disappointment for Luwawu-Cabarrot, but he’s the type of person to use it as a motivator and come back next season ready to prove the voters wrong. If the Philadelphia 76ers stand pat in free agency and don’t add a quality shooting guard, the 22-year-old could be in line to start.
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When given the opportunity to start at the end of last season, he made the most of it. He averaged 12.6 points, 3.7 boards, and 2.1 assists in 29.8 minutes, which are really solid numbers for a rookie who was the fourth or fifth option offensively. If he can develop into a prototypical 3-and-D player like many are predicting, the voters for the All-Rookie teams will certainly regret overlooking him.