The 2020–21 Florida State Seminoles men's basketball team represented
Florida State University during the
2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season
The 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began on November 25, 2020 and concluded on March 14, 2021. The 2021 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament culminated the season and began on March 18 and concluded on April 5.
Season ...
. The Seminoles were led by head coach
Leonard Hamilton, in his 19th year, and played their home games at the
Donald L. Tucker Center on the university's
Tallahassee, Florida
Tallahassee ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In 2020, the populatio ...
campus as members of the
Atlantic Coast Conference.
The Seminoles entered the year as the defending conference champions and were picked to finish the season third in the league with
Scottie Barnes
Scott Wayne Barnes Jr. (born August 1, 2001) is an American professional basketball player for the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Florida State Seminoles, earning third-team al ...
and
M. J. Walker
James Michael "M. J." Walker Jr. (born March 28, 1998) is an American professional basketball player for the Canterbury Rams of the New Zealand National Basketball League (NZNBL). He played college basketball for Florida State Seminoles.
High ...
receiving pre-season recognition.
The Seminoles finished the season 18–7, and 11–4 in
ACC play, to finish in second place. As the second seed in the
ACC tournament they earned a bye into the Quarterfinals where they advanced due to COVID-19 issues over
Duke
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...
, defeated
North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...
in the semifinals, but lost to
Georgia Tech
The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...
in the Finals. They earned an at-large bid to the
NCAA tournament as a four seed in the
East Region. They defeated 13-seed
UNC Greensboro in the first round and 5-seed
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
in the second round before losing to 1-seed
Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
in the Sweet Sixteen.
Scottie Barnes
Scott Wayne Barnes Jr. (born August 1, 2001) is an American professional basketball player for the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Florida State Seminoles, earning third-team al ...
, Balsa Koprivica, and
RaiQuan Gray
RaiQuan Kelvan Gray (born July 7, 1999) is an American professional basketball player for the Austin Spurs of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Florida State Seminoles.
Early life and high school career
Gray grew up playing ...
went on to be selected in the
2021 NBA draft
The 2021 NBA draft, the 75th edition of the National Basketball Association's annual draft, was held on July 29, 2021, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. With the first overall pick, the Detroit Pistons selected Cade Cunningham. The NBA us ...
.
Previous season
The
Seminoles
The Seminole are a Native American people who developed in Florida in the 18th century. Today, they live in Oklahoma and Florida, and comprise three federally recognized tribes: the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, the Seminole Tribe of Florida, and ...
finished the
2019–20 season with a record of 26–5, 16–4 in ACC play, to finish in first place. The
ACC tournament was canceled prior to the team beginning play. The
NCAA tournament was subsequently canceled as well due to the
coronavirus pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...
. Florida State ended the season ranked in the top five of both polls. On March 14, 2020, the Florida State Senate declared the Florida State Seminoles as the national champions for the 2019–2020 season.
Patrick Williams,
Devin Vassell
Devin Anthony Vassell (born August 23, 2000) is an American professional basketball player for the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Florida State Seminoles.
Early life and hig ...
, and
Trent Forrest
Landon Trent Forrest (born June 12, 1998) is an American professional basketball player for the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association (NBA), on a two-way contract with the College Park Skyhawks of the NBA G League. He played colleg ...
would go on to participate in the
2020 NBA draft
The 2020 NBA draft was held on November 18, 2020. The draft was originally scheduled to be held at Barclays Center in Brooklyn on June 25, but due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it was instead conducted at ESPN's facilities in Bristol, Connecti ...
.
Offseason
Departures
Incoming transfers
2020 recruiting class
Roster
Schedule
Source:
, -
!colspan=12 style=, Regular season
, -
!colspan=12 style=,
ACC tournament
, -
!colspan=12 style=,
NCAA tournament
, -
Rankings
*Coaches did not release a Week 2 poll.
Awards
*Werner Ladder National Coach of the Year semifinalist
**Leonard Hamilton
Watchlists
*
Bob Cousy Award
The Bob Cousy Award presented by The College of the Holy Cross (or Bob Cousy Collegiate Point Guard of the Year Award) is an annual basketball award given by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame to the top men's collegiate point guard. ...
**
Scottie Barnes
Scott Wayne Barnes Jr. (born August 1, 2001) is an American professional basketball player for the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Florida State Seminoles, earning third-team al ...
*
Jerry West Award
The Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Award is an annual basketball award given by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame to the top men's collegiate shooting guard. The award is named after former Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard, ...
**
M. J. Walker
James Michael "M. J." Walker Jr. (born March 28, 1998) is an American professional basketball player for the Canterbury Rams of the New Zealand National Basketball League (NZNBL). He played college basketball for Florida State Seminoles.
High ...
*
Naismith Trophy
The Naismith Trophy is a trophy awarded to the men's champion of the FIBA Basketball World Cup, and is named in honor of basketball's inventor, James Naismith. The trophy was first awarded to the winner of the 1967 FIBA World Championship. The ...
**Scottie Barnes
All-ACC
*Second Team
**M.J. Walker
*Third Team
**RaiQuan Gray
**Scottie Barnes
*Freshman Team
**Scottie Barnes
*ACC Sixth Man of the Year
**Scottie Barnes
*ACC Freshman of the Year
**Scottie Barnes
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:2020-21 Florida State Seminoles men's basketball team
Florida State
Florida State University (FSU) is a public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher e ...
Florida State Seminoles men's basketball seasons
Florida State Seminoles men's basketball
The Florida State Seminoles men's basketball team represents Florida State University (variously Florida State or FSU) in the intercollegiate sport of basketball. The Seminoles compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Divi ...
Florida State Seminoles men's basketball
The Florida State Seminoles men's basketball team represents Florida State University (variously Florida State or FSU) in the intercollegiate sport of basketball. The Seminoles compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Divi ...
Florida State
Florida State University (FSU) is a public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher e ...