Anthony Anderson

Anthony Nathaniel Anderson (born November 12, 1981), also known by his initials as Double A, is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Moncton Magic of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBL).

Standing 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m), he plays the point guard position.

Anderson has played in the NBL Canada with the Riptide and Mill Rats for nearly six seasons.

He became the fourth Minuteman of all-time to be Freshman, Rookie, or Newcomer of the Year and the first since Marcus Camby in 1994.

At the team banquet, Anderson won the Mark Donoghue Most Productive Player Award for "having numbers in every category."

He was named to the 2000 Boston Globe All-Scholastic team and became one of the most highly ranked guards in the United States.

Bennett said, "In 35 years, he's the best player I've ever had. He sees the floor so well and can always find the open man."

Anderson decided to play college basketball for the UMass Minutemen over Florida State, Villanova, and St. John's.

He verbally committed to play for UMass and became eligible after initial struggles with his SAT scores.

Anderson quickly became a key part of the Minutemen as a freshman, starting in 26 of the team's 29 games.

He had personal ties with teammate Shannon Crooks, who was brought up in the same area of Massachusetts.

According to head coach Steve Lappas, Crooks helped Anderson adjust to the college level.

Lappas said, "I think he helped Anthony a lot. They're both from Boston so they have a little kinship there and they're pretty close so I think he definitely helped him."

He most notably was named Rookie of the Year for the Atlantic 10 Conference in 2002.

He closed his college career at UMass as its second-best three-point shooter in school history, behind only Monty Mack.

Anderson attended Lynn English High School in Lynn, Massachusetts before college, where he was one of the top basketball players in the Northeastern Conference.

After leaving UMass, Anderson shortly competed as a rookie with the PAWS London Capital following a brief hiatus in his career, in which he only played locally for personal reasons.

On January 29, 2002, in a loss to Dayton, Anderson scored a season-high 20 points and made 6 of 7 three-pointers.

In mid-February 2002, Anderson was named co-WHMP/UMass Athlete of the Week after scoring 14 and 11 points against Duquesne and La Salle respectively.

By the end of the season, he was averaging 10.0 points, 3.4 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 1.1 steals.

Anderson finished his freshman year by being named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week four times—a league-high—and ultimately earned conference All-Rookie and Rookie of the Year honors.

He later drew the attention of the Millrats, for whom he would play in the 2007–08 season.

Anderson then competed in Cyprus and Poland before returning to Manchester.

He remained with the team as they relocated to Saint John and the NBL Canada.

He became the first Minuteman to record over 5 threes that season and scored double figures for the 10th time as a freshman.

On November 16, 2011, Anderson took part in his first official collegiate game against Arkansas–Little Rock, scoring 10 points, grabbing 5 rebounds, and recording 4 assists.

He played a team-high 37 minutes as the Minutemen won the game, 66–60.

In the days that followed, the point guard would earn Atlantic 10 Conference Rookie of the Week honors.

On December 4, 2011, Anderson posted career-highs of 13 points and 7 assists vs. Holy Cross.

He eclipsed the scoring total in his following game against Boston College, in which he recorded a team-high 19 points.

In this game, Anderson hit three three-pointers in the closing 15.2 seconds, but he could not lead his team to the victory.

Midway through his stint with the Mill Rats, Anderson played in Qatar in 2013.

His individual accolades in his professional career include ABA All-Star Game MVP, All-ABA First Team, ABA Most Valuable Player, and third and second-team All-PBL.

In the NBL Canada, Anderson has appeared on the All-NBL Canada First Team thrice, made the NBL Canada All-Star Game on two occasions, and was named Most Valuable Player in 2014.

Anderson attended Lynn English High School in Lynn, Massachusetts, where he played basketball under head coach Ronald Bennett.

He was named Most Valuable Player of the Northeastern Conference as a junior and senior.

In his final season with the team, Anderson averaged 24 points, 10 assists, and 9 rebounds and led them to a 19–5 record.

As of February 2016, he is the league's all-time leading scorer and is known as one of its most prominent players.

Anderson also played for Saint John and their previous incarnation, the Manchester Millrats, in the Premier Basketball League (PBL) and the American Basketball Association (ABA).

Anderson played four seasons of college basketball under head coach Steve Lappas at the University of Massachusetts Amherst with the Minutemen.