Community Shootaround: 65-Game Eligibility Rule
Imagine All-NBA teams without Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Anthony Edwards, Victor Wembanyama and Stephen Curry.
No need to tax your brain. There’s a real possibility that each of those superstars, as well as several others, won’t be eligible for postseason awards this season.
The 65-game rule built into the most recent Collective Bargaining Agreement prohibits players who don’t take the court for at least that many regular season games from most postseason honors.
The spirit of the rule, if you will, was to discourage load management and tanking. However, the frequency of injuries across the league could severely impact those awards, which include Most Valuable Player, Defensive Player of the Year, Most Improved Player, the All-NBA teams and the All-Defensive teams.
Jokic will almost certainly not qualify this season, as he’s currently rehabbing a knee injury that will keep him out a month.
Doncic has already missed seven games. Antetounmpo and Wembanyama are teetering on the brink, having missed 14 games apiece. Edwards (8) and Curry (10) are also in danger of failing to meet the criteria, considering the season is just approaching the halfway point.
There are some minor exceptions to the rule – for example, a player who falls short of the 65-game minimum can also file an “Extraordinary Circumstances Challenge” in an effort to regain his award eligibility. But it’s likely that if a player doesn’t suit up for 65 games, they’ll be disqualified for those coveted awards.
There are also, of course, some financial implications regarding the awards, such as qualifying for super max extensions.
The flip side is that the league wants to give its paying customers the best product possible. All too often, fans are paying big bucks, only to see their favorite players sitting in street clothes due to a minor ailment or load management.
That brings us to today’s topic: Do you like the 65-game rule for postseason awards? If not, what would be a fairer system for eligibility – should the rule be tweaked or scrapped altogether?
Please take to the comments section to weigh in on this topic. We look forward to your input.
Torrey Craig Signs With Sydney Kings
Jan. 13: Craig has officially signed with the Sydney Kings, Uluc tweets.
Jan. 12: Free agent forward Torrey Craig is in advanced contract discussions with the Sydney Kings of the National Basketball League, sources tell Olgun Uluc of ESPN. The NBL consists of nine Australian teams and one based in New Zealand.
According to Uluc, Craig is expected to join Sydney for the remainder of the 2025/26 NBL season, which runs through February 20. The NBL playoffs (technically called the finals) are in March and April.
Craig has spent the past eight years in the NBA. He was waived by the Bulls in February and signed with the Celtics for the remainder of the ’24/25 campaign a few days later.
The 35-year-old expressed interest in re-signing with Boston in May, but the Celtics chose not to retain him over the offseason and he didn’t land with any other NBA clubs either. Craig represented Team USA for a pair of AmeriCup qualifying games in November as he auditioned for teams around the globe.
After going undrafted out of the University of South Carolina Upstate in 2014, Craig spent three seasons in the NBL, Uluc notes. He used that stint as a springboard into a long NBA career.
In 458 career regular season appearances, including 171 starts, Craig averaged 5.9 points and 3.9 rebounds in 19.5 minutes per game, with a shooting line of .452/.354/.701. The 6’5″ combo forward had a reputation as a solid defender who provided energy and hustle off the bench.
Southwest Notes: Eason, Finney-Smith, Rockets Trip, Bey, Morant
The Rockets are missing two key regulars for tonight’s game against Chicago. Tari Eason (right ankle sprain) and Dorian Finney-Smith (left ankle injury management) are sitting out, Will Guillory of The Athletic tweets.
Eason also missed Houston’s loss to Sacramento on Sunday after suffering the sprain against Portland on Friday. Finney-Smith has been eased back into action after undergoing ankle surgery during the offseason.
Here’s more from the Southwest Division:
- The Rockets had an added inconvenience prior to their game against Sacramento, John Hollinger of The Athletic reports. Unavailable to book the preferred hotel in Sacramento because the Lakers and Knicks had taken all the rooms, the Rockets stayed in San Francisco and then bused 85 miles to the Kings’ home arena on Sunday afternoon. As Hollinger notes, the Rockets have played 23 of its first 36 games on the road, tying an NBA record. That includes 11 road contests since Dec. 15, which gives them at least a partial excuse for their poor outing against the Kings.
- Pelicans forward Saddiq Bey (right hip flexor strain) has been upgraded to probable for tonight’s game against Denver, Guillory tweets. Bey has missed six games due to the injury. Bey, who is in the second year of a three-year deal, has averaged 15.1 points and 5.9 rebounds after missing last season due to a torn ACL.
- Grizzlies guard Ja Morant, the subject of heavy trade rumors since it was reported earlier this month the team was listening to offers for him, could return to action this week. The Grizzlies are playing the Magic in Berlin on Thursday and London on Sunday. Coach Tuomas Iisalo said the calf bruise that has sidelined Morant for five games is progressing to the point where Morant could play this week, according to The Athletic’s Joe Vardon.
Anthony Davis Doesn’t Need Hand Surgery, Still A Trade Candidate
6:04pm: Davis won’t require hand surgery, Charania tweets. He received a second opinion with specialist Dr. Steven Shin in Los Angeles on Tuesday and will be re-evaluated in six weeks. The report was later confirmed by the team in a tweet.
1:12 pm: There’s some optimism about Davis’ ability to return to the court before the end of March even if he undergoes surgery on his injured hand, tweets Marc Stein of The Stein Line.
The idea that surgery would be season-ending may be the aspect of ESPN’s reporting that Davis took exception to. Shortly after Charania published his report, Davis posted a tweet stating, “Y’all better stop listening to all these lies on these apps!”
It wasn’t clear based on that post if Davis was disputing that he’ll undergo surgery, his potential recovery timeline, or the fact that the Mavs are having renewed trade talks about him.
For what it’s worth, the wording in Charania’s full story at ESPN.com suggests that surgery would end Davis’ season only if he remains in Dallas, since the Mavs would have little incentive to bring him back down the stretch if they’re lottery-bound.
12:10 pm: Mavericks big man Anthony Davis will likely undergo surgery to repair ligament damage in his left hand, sources tell ESPN’s Shams Charania (Twitter link). According to Charania, a surgical procedure would sideline Davis for “several” months and could essentially end his season.
However, Charania reports in a follow-up tweet that the injury hasn’t resulted in Davis being removed from the trade block. In fact, sources tell ESPN that the Mavericks have reopened trade discussions with multiple teams who hold interest in the 10-time All-Star.
As Charania explains, a team that makes a trade for Davis could aim to get him back in action for or during the playoffs while also making him part of its plans for 2026/27 and beyond.
Davis sustained the hand injury late in the fourth quarter during last Thursday’s loss at Utah. His hand appeared to bend back at an odd angle while defending Utah star Lauri Markkanen on a drive (YouTube link). Reporting on Friday indicated that Davis had sustained ligament damage in the hand and that he was seeking multiple medical opinions as he weighed surgical and non-surgical treatment options.
While Davis was facing an extended absence either way, the expectation was that taking the surgical route would result in a longer-term layoff.
Despite a career résumé that includes four first-team (and one second-team) All-NBA nods, a championship, and a spot on the league’s 75th anniversary team, Davis’ trade value had declined this season due to his ever-growing injury history, his age (33 in March), his maximum-salary contract (which pays him $54.1MM this season), and his reported desire for an offseason contract extension. His current deal runs through at least next season, with a $62MM player option for 2027/28.
If the Mavs trade Davis at this year’s trade deadline, his inability to suit up right away will further diminish his value on the market, so the front office would be selling low. Still, former general manager Nico Harrison, who made Davis the centerpiece of last year’s shocking Luka Doncic trade, is no longer employed by the Mavs, and the current decision-makers in Dallas – led by interim co-GMs Michael Finley and Matt Riccardi – are presumably less attached to the star forward/center.
Atlanta and Toronto have been the teams most frequently linked to Davis since the regular season began, with the Hawks considered a more viable trade partner for Dallas since creating future cap flexibility by trading Trae Young to Washington. If the Hawks do make an offer for Davis, they wouldn’t be able to include either CJ McCollum or Corey Kispert as salary-matching pieces, since those two players can’t be “re-aggregated” in a trade prior to the February 5 deadline.
Lakers Sign Kobe Bufkin To 10-Day Contract
5:33pm: The signing is official, accordinig to a team press release.
1:29pm: The Lakers have agreed to a 10-day deal with guard Kobe Bufkin, reports Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).
The 15th overall pick in the 2023 NBA draft, Bufkin spent his first two professional seasons with the Hawks before being traded to the Nets this offseason. He was subsequently waived by Brooklyn before the 2025/26 regular season tipped off.
Bufkin battled injuries during his first two NBA seasons in Atlanta and made just 27 total appearances for the Hawks. He missed a significant chunk of his rookie year due to a fractured left thumb and a sprained toe, then underwent season-ending shoulder surgery in December 2024, less than two months into his second year.
Bufkin has been healthier so far this season though, making 14 appearances for the South Bay Lakers, Los Angeles’ G League affiliate. The 6’4″ guard has put up big numbers at the NBAGL level, averaging 26.7 points, 4.9 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 1.3 steals, and 1.3 blocks in 34.5 minutes per game, with an elite shooting line of .519/.409/.902.
Bufkin’s strong play in the G League earned him a 10-day contract from the Grizzlies in November, but he didn’t end up seeing any action in any of his five games with the team.
The 22-year-old’s 10-day contract will pay him $131,970, while the Lakers carry an identical cap hit. Los Angeles is right up against its first-apron hard cap and can’t currently sign a free agent to a rest-of-season contract.
Based on their cap situation, the Lakers were projected to be able to fit a rest-of-season signing under that hard cap as of January 18, but Bufkin’s 10-day deal will push that date back to Jan. 28.
Assuming the Lakers finalize their deal with Bufkin today, he’ll get an opportunity to suit up against his former team on his first day on the job — L.A. is hosting the Hawks on Tuesday night.
Northwest Notes: Avdija, Edwards, Gobert, Shannon Jr., Braun
Trail Blazers breakout star forward Deni Avdija won’t play tonight against Golden State. He’s sidelined with lower back soreness, the team’s PR department tweets. Avdija is averaging 26.1 points, 7.1 rebounds and 6.9 assists this season. Avdija has appeared in all 40 of Portland’s previous games.
Another key player, forward Jerami Grant, is doubtful due to left Achilles tendonitis.
Here’s more from the Northwest Division:
- Timberwolves star guard Anthony Edwards won’t suit up tonight against Milwaukee due to right foot injury maintenance, the team’s PR department tweets. This will be the eighth game Edwards has missed this season — he’ll be ineligible for postseason awards if he misses 10 more games. Center Rudy Gobert will also miss the game — he’s serving a one-game league suspension for accumulating too many flagrant fouls.
- Regarding Gobert’s suspension, ESPN’s Bobby Marks reports that the one-game ban will cost Gobert $201,149 (Twitter link). The Timberwolves will also receive a tax variance credit of $100,575.
- Timberwolves guard Terrence Shannon Jr. is making progress from his left foot abductor hallucis strain but there’s no timetable for his return, according to a team press release. Shannon will miss his 10th straight game this evening. He’s appeared in 22 games off the bench this season but the 2024 first-round pick has only averaged 4.5 points in 12.8 minutes per game.
- Nuggets guard Christian Braun will miss his second consecutive game due to a left ankle sprain. Braun warmed up to play against Milwaukee on Sunday but didn’t feel right and was ruled out, Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports tweets. It’s a concerning development, considering Braun missed nearly two months of action with an ankle injury before returning earlier this month.
- The Thunder’s Luguentz Dort is a late scratch for tonight’s key matchup with San Antonio due to left foot soreness, Justin Martinez of The Oklahoman tweets.
Pacific Notes: Hachimura, Luka, Harden, Suns, Warriors
Although he was available on Monday, Lakers forward Rui Hachimura sat out for a seventh straight game after head coach JJ Redick learned that Hachimura would be available for just one game in the team’s back-to-back set. As Dave McMenamin of ESPN writes, Redick decided to save the forward for Tuesday’s game against Atlanta.
The Lakers lost without Hachimura on Monday, falling to a Sacramento team that made 17-of-26 three-point tries. Luka Doncic racked up 42 points vs. the Kings, but was battling a groin issue that required treatment throughout the night, notes McMenamin.
“I was really uncertain (about playing),” Doncic admitted after the game. “Before the game, like warming up, I felt something. So we were just trying to get warm and get going.”
While Hachimura will make his return on Tuesday, it’s unclear whether Doncic (left groin soreness) or LeBron James (left foot joint arthritis and right sciatica) will play. They’re both listed as questionable, per Marc Stein (Twitter link), and could join Jaxson Hayes (left hamstring soreness) and Austin Reaves (left calf strain) on the sidelines.
“Obviously we’re dealing with a lot of injuries right now,” James said on Monday, according to McMenamin. “Not only guys that are not in uniform, but even guys that are in uniform. So, we’re just trying to weather the storm.”
We have more from around the Pacific:
- Clippers guard James Harden become the NBA’s ninth all-time leading scorer on Monday, passing Shaquille O’Neal‘s career total of 28,596 points. “Shaquille O’Neal, somebody that I literally grew up watching here in L.A.,” Harden said, per The Associated Press. “Him and Kobe (Bryant) doing their thing, winning multiple championships, the most dominant big man in the history of the game. It’s a true honor, it’s a testament to the work that I put in.”
- Asked if injured guards Jalen Green (right hamstring strain) and Jamaree Bouyea (concussion protocol) will be available at some point during the six-game road trip that begins on Tuesday, Suns head coach Jordan Ott replied, “That’s the plan” (Twitter link via Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic). Green has been out since November 8, while Bouyea has missed Phoenix’s past four games.
- Spencer Davies of R.org profiles second-year Suns big man Oso Ighodaro, who has earned praise from Ott for his versatility and his ability to be a “connector” in a variety of lineups. Phoenix has a +7.5 net rating during Ighodaro’s time on the court this season, compared to a -1.2 mark when he sits. “I think last year, when it was spot minutes, I was just giving everything I got,” Ighodaro said. “And now, (I’m) playing a little bit longer stretches, trying to maintain that same level of play just for my entire stretch I’m in the game. I’m definitely being asked to do a little bit more this year, so I’m trying to do all that while maintaining all the effort and intensity.”
- In the wake of Sunday’s loss to Atlanta, Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area refers to the Warriors‘ roster as “profoundly defective” due to the team’s lack of length and athleticism, while Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area questions whether head coach Steve Kerr should remain committed to a starting lineup featuring Moses Moody and Quinten Post alongside Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler, and Draymond Green. That five-man unit has started 13 of the Warriors’ past 14 games but has a net rating of -3.3 on the season.
And-Ones: Fields, OTE, NBA Europe, 2026 Draft, More
Former Hawks general manager Landry Fields has a new job, having been hired by Overtime Elite (OTE) as its president of league operations, writes Alex Schiffer of Front Office Sports.
The nine-team league, which launched in 2021 and is made up of prospects between the ages of 16 and 20, has several notable alumni, including recent NBA lottery picks like Alex Sarr, Amen Thompson, and Ausar Thompson. Fields will look for ways to continue growing OTE while overseeing all competitive, development, and operational aspects of the league, Schiffer writes.
“He’s got four unique parts of his career that touch everything we do,” Overtime CEO Dan Porter explained to Schiffer. “He was a player so he understands that ecosystem. And he’s a young guy. He knows what social media is. He deeply understands college. He played four years at Stanford. At the Spurs he really did player development and scouting and clearly our league is driven by talent. And at the Hawks, he dealt with all of the business side.
“None of (our other staff) have gone all the way up and down. We haven’t had someone who touches NBA, college, who was a player and touches all of those things.”
Here are several more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- The NBA is aiming for franchise valuations of up to $1 billion as it prepares to pitch investors on its new European league, according to Giles Turner and Jake Rudnitsky of Bloomberg (subscription required). With NBA commissioner Adam Silver overseas this week for games in Berlin and London, the league is expected to hold meetings this week with potential investors and teams for NBA Europe.
- The EuroLeague is seeking 10-year commitments from its A-license teams as it looks to avoid losing clubs to NBA Europe. According to Aris Barkas of Eurohoops, the EuroLeague has set this coming Friday as a deadline for those decisions and has threatened potential legal action against the NBA if it tries to recruit clubs that have committed to the EuroLeague.
- ESPN’s Jeremy Woo has updated his 2026 mock draft, which features Kansas star Darryn Peterson in the No. 1 spot on Houston point guard Kingston Flemings sneaking into the top five.
- Looking back at past transaction cycles, Zach Kram of ESPN analyzes 14 blockbuster trades completed since 2013 to determine what we can learn from them, while The Athletic’s NBA writers identify one trade that each of the NBA’s franchises would like to be able to undo.
- Michael Pina of The Ringer identifies his seven “least improved” players of the 2025/26 season so far, ranging from stars like Ja Morant and Evan Mobley to young role players like Rob Dillingham and Ochai Agbaji.
Hoops Rumors Mailbag: MIP, Hawks, Warriors, Morant, More
Our latest Front Office mailbag takes a look at the early frontrunners for the Most Improved Player award. We also answer several questions from readers that Luke Adams was unable to get to during Monday's live chat.
Bob asks:
Early thoughts on Most Improved Player? I'm thinking either Jalen Johnson or Deni Avdija, but I'm sure I'm missing some worthy candidates.
Mavericks Notes: Irving, Davis, Two-Ways, Flagg
The Mavericks are just 15-25 so far this season and are facing the prospect of being without star big man Anthony Davis for an extended period due to a hand injury. However, there have been no indications that the team is seriously considering the idea of shutting down point guard Kyrie Irving for the rest of the season, sources tell Grant Afseth of Dallas Hoops Journal.
Irving has spent most of the past year recovering from an ACL tear he sustained last March. While the Mavericks still haven’t provided any concrete updates on a potential timeline for the guard’s return to action, Afseth hears the “prevailing expectation” is that Irving is on track to play at some point after next month’s All-Star break.
According to Afseth, Irving looked “sharp, explosive, and efficient” while taking part in a full on-court workout with assistant coach Phil Handy during last week’s road trip. He showed no “visible hesitation” while taking part in those drills, which simulated game-like demands, Afseth adds.
Here’s more on the Mavericks:
- Head coach Jason Kidd didn’t have a concrete update on Monday when asked about Davis, who is reportedly seeking multiple medical opinions after sustaining ligament damage in his left hand. “I think that’s sometime this week that he’ll talk to the doctors,” Kidd said, per Eddie Sekfo of Mavs.com. “But there is no timetable when he’s going to make that announcement. The team is playing. We’ve been through this before, not just with AD. We’ve been hit with a lot of injuries the last two years. Next man up mentality.”
- Pointing out that Dallas is 5-15 when Davis doesn’t play this season, Christian Clark of The Athletic suggests the big man’s latest injury might actually be a blessing in disguise for the team, which could benefit from landing another high pick in the 2026 draft. After this year, the Mavs won’t control their own first-round selection again until 2031.
- Players on two-way contracts can be active for up to 50 regular season games, and Moussa Cisse (34) and Ryan Nembhard (33) are both on track to reach their limits in February. According to Kidd, Dallas is monitoring those figures very closely. “We’re good at that because we went through that last year,” Kidd said. “We all have dates for those guys if they play all the way out when they expire. We’ll be able to manage those from our experiences with last year’s two-ways.” The Mavs could eliminate that 50-game restriction by promoting Cisse and/or Nembhard to the 15-man roster, but they don’t currently have an open spot available and have limited cap flexibility below their second-apron hard cap.
- The last rookie to be named to the NBA’s All-Star Game was Blake Griffin in 2011. Could Cooper Flagg achieve the feat this year? Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News explores that subject, noting that Flagg is at least a lock to play in the Rising Stars event. “We hope that he does make the ‘big game’ and he gets voted in,” Kidd said. “He’s playing at a high level for a young player. He’s taking on the best defender. He’s trying to help his team win. He’s been very successful in late game. Hopefully he’s in the ‘big game,’ but he will participate in the ‘little game.'”