Anthony Edwards' College Coach Calls All-NBA Rejection 'Absolute Joke'

Edwards was officially left off the All-NBA teams announcement on Sunday.

May 15, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) dribbles the ball against the San Antonio Spurs in the second half during game six of the second round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images | Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images

It has been known since April that Anthony Edwards would not have a place on this year's All-NBA teams. That became officially official with the announcement of all three teams on Sunday, and his college coach is not happy.

Edwards appeared in 61 regular-season games, which is comfortably below the 65-game threshold required to be under consideration for end-of-season awards. Luka Doncic and Cade Cunningham both played in 64 games, but they won their appeals to be under consideration for postseason honors. They had much stronger cases than Edwards, who was denied his appeal.

All-NBA teams for 2025-26 season

• First-team: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Nikola Jokic, Victor Wembanyama, Luka Doncic, Cade Cunningham
• Second-team: Jaylen Brown, Kawhi Leonard, Kevin Durant, Jalen Brunson, Donovan Mitchell
• Third-team: Tyrese Maxey, Jamal Murray, Jalen Johnson, Jalen Duren, Chet Holmgren

Edwards clearly performed like a top-15 player in the NBA this season, so it's certainly odd to see him left off the All-NBA teams. His career-high 28.8 points per game ranked third in the entire league. He added 5.0 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game on 48.9% shooting from the field, 39.9% from three and 79.6% from the free throw line.

Everyone seemed to accept that the rule is silly when Edwards was denied his appeal in April, but his former college head coach at Georgia, Tom Crean, might've missed the memo. He shared his opinion on the former Bulldogs' star being snubbed of All-NBA status.

"Just an absolute JOKE [Anthony Edwards] didn’t get a waiver to be eligible for NBA honors this year. Anthony epitomizes WANTING to play. Doing what it takes to play. He doesn’t take 'personal' days. He shows up. He brings it. He missed some for injury. He didn’t miss for convenience," he wrote on X.

Just an absolute JOKE @anthonyedwards didn’t get a waver to be eligible for @NBA honors this year. Anthony epitomizes WANTING to play. Doing what it takes to play. He doesn’t take “personal “ days. He shows up. He brings it. He missed some for injury. He didn’t miss 4 convenience pic.twitter.com/Dzl27oFpLv

— Tom Crean (@TomCrean) May 24, 2026

Crean's sentiment is not wrong. Edwards dealt with injuries throughout the regular season. The rule wasn't created to hold injured players out of postseason awards. It was created in hopes of limiting load management and players missing games due to rest. It's pretty hard to disagree with what Crean is saying, but a rule is a rule.

If Edwards was able to earn postseason honors with just 61 games played, it begins to bend the rules. What happens when someone plays 59 games in the future? If he won his appeal, a lot more players would begin to make cases down the road, but Crean can still yell at people online.