New Delhi, May 21 (IANS ) The NBA All-Rookie teams have been announced and while the selections of generational talents Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren to the first team were no surprise, Dallas Mavericks' Dereck Lively II's placement on the second team has left some confused.
Expected to be a lock for the top tier based on his impact on Dallas, Lively took to Instagram to express his disappointment. He re-shared the announcement, hinting at the league's bias against the Mavericks with the caption, "They really don't mess with the Mavs."
Lively’s comments may stem from the fact that Dallas teammate Luka Doncic had a stellar season averaging 33.9 pts, 9.2 reb, 9.8 ast through the course of the season but finished third in the Most Valuable Player of the season rankings.
Lively has been an instrumental part of this Mavs team which finds themselves in the fabled Western Conference Playoffs after eliminating the number one seed, Oklahoma City Thunder. They will be facing the in-form Minnesota Timberwolves who eliminated the defending champions and will be playing their first conference finals in 20 years.
NBA All-Rookie Teams 2023/24
First team: Victor Wembanyam (San Antonio Spurs), Chet Holmgren (Oklahoma City Thunder), Brandon Miller (Charlotte Hornets), Jaime Jaquez Jr. (Miami Heat), Brandin Podziemski (Golden State Warriors)
Second Team: Dereck Lively II (Dallas Mavericks), GG Jackson II (Memphis Grizzlies), Keyonte George (Utah Jazz), Amen Thompson (Houston Rockets), Cason Wallace (Oklahoma City Thunder)