From Luka Garza to Quentin Grimes, SI honors 15 players in men's college basketball.
The college basketball postseason is officially here, but before the madness gets into full swing, we're looking back at the best of the best on the men's side in 2020–21. (For Sports Illustrated's women's All-America honorees, click here.) Even during this pandemic season of canceled games, altered schedules and uneven records, the sport's stars were as strong as ever.
This year's All-America honorees, which were separated into first, second and third teams, were chosen by panel vote among the SI college basketball staff, with three earning unanimous first-team selection and designated with an asterisk (*). Be sure to check back on SI.com Wednesday for SI's ranking of the top 50 men's players for the 2020–21 college hoops season.
First Team All-America
Luka Garza, Iowa*
Garza returned to Iowa City as the favorite to win National Player of the Year, and has done nothing to dispel that status throughout the course of his senior season. The 6' 11" center has dominated college basketball for two years now, and added an improved outside shot to his already-impressive offensive arsenal this season. Garza has notched 12 double doubles while averaging 23.8 points and 8.7 rebounds, and he leads the country in win shares, box plus/minus and player efficiency rating. In a show of how consistent he can be, he failed to score at least 14 points in just one of his 27 games this season and has seven games of at least 30.
Ayo Dosunmu, Illinois*
The Chicago native is on the cusp of something special for his home-state school, having made the absolute most so far of his surprising decision to return for a junior season. Dosunmu has established himself as one of the country's premier players, and earned the reputation as the most clutch player in all of men's college basketball. He has a knack for shining the brightest when the pressure is the highest, making him and the Illini appointment television this postseason. Dosunmu will enter the Big Ten tournament averaging 20.9 points, 6.2 rebounds and 5.2 assists, and with one badass-looking mask.
Jared Butler, Baylor*
Butler is the single biggest reason Baylor has a national title in its sights, and he's turned in an even better season than his breakout sophomore campaign. The junior point guard is the guy the Bears can turn to in crunch time, and he is at the top (or nearly at the top) in several categories in Big 12 play: effective field goal percentage (first), true shooting percentage (first), assist rate (first), steal rate (second) and offensive rating (fourth). He's also turned a dependable three-point shot into an elite one, shooting 44.4% from three on 135 attempts.
Corey Kispert, Gonzaga
Kispert more than rose to the occasion as a senior, comfortably taking on the role of go-to player on a stacked Bulldogs roster. After three years in the shadows of former Gonzaga greats, Kispert came into his own in 2020–21, averaging 19.5 points and 4.9 rebounds while canning a ridiculous 46.3% of his 147 three-point attempts. He's the perfect leader for this Zags bunch, a seasoned vet who came into the picture one season after Gonzaga's 2017 title-game appearance and is looking to go out by capturing the program's first national championship.
Cade Cunningham, Oklahoma State
The much-ballyhooed freshman has made his mark in what will almost assuredly be his lone season in Stillwater. And now it looks like he'll get to play in March Madness after all as Oklahoma State continues to wait for the results of a postseason ban appeal. Cunningham has taken the reins of a young Cowboys team that impressed down the stretch, showing both a strong touch from the outside (42.5% on threes) and an ability to get inside and make teams pay at the free throw line. When the game's on the line you'll find the ball in his hands more often than not; and with Cunningham leading the way, Oklahoma State can dream of much more than ever seemed possible this month when the season began.
Second Team All-America
Evan Mobley, USC
Playing out West in the Pac-12, Mobley hasn't gotten quite the kind of buzz as fellow freshman Cunningham, but he's put together a stellar season in his own right. USC's staunch interior defense is largely a credit to Mobley and his length and shot-blocking abilities; and offensively, he's shooting 62.0% on twos while posting a high assist rate for a 7-footer. This March, the Trojans will likely go as far as Mobley (16.1 ppg, 8.6 rpg, 2.9 bpg) can take them.
Drew Timme, Gonzaga
Timme is the latest in the line of elite Gonzaga big men and his breakout sophomore season wasn't hard to forecast after Filip Petrusev departed. He's the perfect five in Mark Few's system, someone you can throw the ball to in the post for a bucket or that can beat opponents down the floor in for an easy lay-in in transition. Timme is shooting a superb 67.1% from two while averaging 18.9 points and 7.1 rebounds, and the only player higher than him on KenPom's Player of the Year rating is Garza.
Hunter Dickinson, Michigan
Dickinson's importance to the Wolverines became crucial last spring when fellow incoming freshman Isaiah Todd instead opted for the NBA G League, and Michigan hardly missed a beat thanks to the 7-footer's breakout performance. Capable of dominating games in the paint when he's at his best, Dickinson has been pivotal to the Wolverines' ability to wear teams down and turn their defense into easy offense. With the freshman anchoring the paint, Michigan has held opponents to the second-lowest two-point percentage nationally, at 41.9%.
Jalen Suggs, Gonzaga
Part of the Zags' "Big Three," the freshman has been dazzling fans since Day 1 in college, when he dropped a cool 24 points in the opener vs. Kansas. Suggs's playmaking ability is a natural fit alongside guards Kispert, Andrew Nembhard and Joel Ayayi, and his athleticism makes him a joy to watch in Few's up-tempo offense. His 13.9 scoring average may seem modest, but combine it with 5.5 rebounds, 4.5 assists and a 3.8% steal rate, and he's a pivotal piece in Gonzaga's chase for a perfect season.
Chris Duarte, Oregon
Duarte has quietly put together an outstanding senior season for a Ducks team that's finally healthy and probably isn't getting enough press heading into the postseason. The 6' 6" guard's shooting stats are eye-popping, with him making 62.3% of his twos and 44.0% of his threes and putting in efficient outings on a nightly basis. He's a nightmare defender on top of it, ranking in the top 15 in Pac-12 play in both block rate and steal rate, while almost never getting into foul trouble.
Third Team All-America
Davion Mitchell, Baylor: The Robin to Jared Butler's Batman, Mitchell stands out on both ends for the Bears. Offensively he's wildly efficient, and has grown by leaps and bounds in his perimeter shooting as a junior, now shooting 47.2%.
Herbert Jones, Alabama: The Crimson Tide's do-it-all glue guy is the anchor of their stifling defense, and between that, his rebounding ability and his improved shot, he's an invaluable piece for Nate Oats to have on the floor.
Kofi Cockburn, Illinois: Sometimes overshadowed by Dosunmu's brilliance, Cockburn has improved nearly across the board as a sophomore. Few teams have a big man that can slow the 285-pound 7-footer down, as evidenced by his 66% shooting on twos.
Cameron Krutwig, Loyola Chicago: Krutwig may be known more to the casual fan as the big man on the Ramblers' 2018 Final Four team, but he's now a dominant senior (15.0 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 3.0 apg) leading a Loyola team ranked in the top 10 in both the NET and KenPom.
Quentin Grimes, Houston: Grimes has really found a home in Kelvin Sampson's system after an O.K. freshman year at Kansas, and the 6' 5" junior and his 17.9 scoring average is a big reason the Cougars have been ranked high all year long.