Anthony Edwards and Cade Cunningham are two elite players who will narrowly be ineligible for regular season awards. After missing Thursday's game against the Detroit Pistons, Edwards officially became ineligible. On top of this, Luka Doncic might end up being ineligible after suffering a hamstring injury on Thursday night.
For these players, missing out on awards doesn't really matter. They have plenty of individual accomplishments, and given their age, they'll only continue to add to their résumé. Crucially, Edwards and Cade have already secured a rookie max extension.
But what if a young player needs to make an All-NBA team to earn this contract and misses out on it because he missed a few extra games? That's simply not fair. Two years ago, Tyrese Haliburton played through a hamstring injury to secure an All-NBA spot and a bigger contract. This may have contributed to his hamstring injury in the playoffs.
In general, not seeing one of the league's best players on an All-NBA team doesn't seem right, and Edwards is the latest example of that.
At this point, I think most fans want to tweak or get rid of the 65-game rule. In spirit, I think the award is good, and it has cut back on load management. Nevertheless, tweaking it to a minutes played requirement or lessen the games played minimum for Second and Third Team are solutions I'd explore.
Why the NBA should tweak the 65-game rule
One idea that has been tossed around is setting a 2,000 minutes played requirement -- a threshold that both Cade and Ant have already cleared. In some ways, total minutes feels like a more accurate cut-off than games.
Averaging 29.3 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 3.7 assists, it's hard to argue that Edwards doesn't have the qualifications to at least make one of the All-NBA teams. Likewise, for Cade, who was an All-NBA First Team candidate.
I understand keeping a 65-game minimum for All-NBA First Team members. Nevertheless, does it really matter for the Second or Third Team?
A sliding number, say 60 for All-NBA Second Team and 55 for All-NBA Third Team, seems more reasonable. 60 games still account for over 70 percent of the season, and it would give players some more leeway.
Others would totally leave it up to the discretion of voters. For most of NBA history, this is what was done, and the voters typically heavily factored games played into their ballots.
Adam Silver seems steadfast on keeping this rule in place. At the end of the day, it's not the end of the world. Regardless, seeing players like Anthony Edwards and Cade Cunningham miss out on All-NBA honors after having career seasons isn't fair.
The games played rule has been a controversial topic all season long, and Edwards' recent ineligibility will only add to the debate.