NBA’s 65-game rule could affect MVP race and supermax deals،
TWO WEEKS AGO, Joel Embiid returned from a four-game absence caused by ankle soreness, an injury that kept him out of the Philadelphia 76ers' Christmas Day showpiece against the Miami Heat.
After that Jan. 2 win over the Chicago Bulls, in which Embiid recorded a triple-double of 31 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists, the reigning NBA MVP was asked about the league's new policy which could end its repetition before a draw. only one vote for the award is cast.
The league rule, put in place in early October as part of efforts to reduce load management, states that players will be almost certain to be ineligible for major individual awards – Most Valuable Player, Defensive Player of the year and All-NBA honors. among them – if they fail to play in at least 65 matches.
“I just want to play as many games as possible,” Embiid, the reigning MVP and favorite for this season's award, said after Philadelphia's win over Chicago. “It’s a shame to have missed the last four games, but you can’t control it.
“At the start of the season…my goal was to try and play 82 games.”
Three days later, Embiid twisted his left knee during Philadelphia's loss to the New York Knicks. He missed the next three games before returning to the court Monday with another dominant performance in a win over the Houston Rockets. Embiid and the Sixers host the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday and Nikola Jokic, his main rival for the MVP award in each of the last three seasons.
After missing those seven games, Embiid has missed 10 this season and can only miss seven of the 76ers' remaining 44 games to remain eligible.
And as the season nears its halfway point, Philadelphia's big man isn't the only superstar who could be impacted for playoff honors and the millions in financial incentives that come with it.
THE 65 GAMES RULE represents just under 80% of the 82 regular season games. Alongside the in-season tournament and wider player participation policy, it was designed to place more emphasis on the regular season and to encourage teams to play their elite players more often.
“There's no magic in 65s, but we try to take into account the games, of course, that are going to be missed because there are injuries, and maybe even sometimes it's necessary for a player to rest,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said. said during his NBA Finals press conference in Denver last spring. “This is something we negotiated with the players' association. Everyone has an interest in the league performing at its best in a highly competitive regular season.”
Last week, as part of a league-commissioned report that says load management does not reduce the long-term risk of player injuries, the NBA exposed the increase in missed games among star players over the past 40 years.
In the 1980s, star players – defined in the report as players who were All-Star or All-NBA selections in the current or previous two seasons – missed an average of 10.4 games per season. In the 1990s, that number was 10.6 games.
It has been steadily increasing since: 13.9 games in the 2000s; 17.5 games in the 2010s; 23.9 games missed per season this decade.
“Of course, there is a significant impact on business and fans, as well as competitive integrity. [of missed games]”, Evan Wasch, the NBA's executive vice president of basketball strategy and analytics, told ESPN. “So we talked about how we could potentially reverse that trend.”
PLAYERS selected to all three All-NBA teams last season, five of them: Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (63 games played), Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (56), Miami forward Jimmy Butler (64), Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (55) and then-Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (58) would not have been eligible for honors under the new rule.
The rule would therefore also have had an impact on the financial future of several elite players.
Toronto Raptors forward Pascal Siakam, for example, finished ninth in All-NBA voting among forwards, behind a list that included Antetokounmpo, Butler and James. If the 65-game rule had been in effect last season, Siakam would have been one of six qualifying forwards. This would have come with eligibility for a supermax contract extension last summer. (Siakam will enter the offseason without a new deal, and his name appeared in trade reports ahead of the Feb. 8 deadline.)
Several other players could be affected this season. Nuggets guard Jamal Murray (missed 14 games), Heat center Bam Adebayo (10 games) and Sacramento Kings guard De'Aaron Fox (six games) would each be eligible for the supermax if they make the All- NBA this season.
“Me, honestly, it doesn’t affect the way I look at basketball,” Adebayo told ESPN. “I love playing basketball. I love this game. So, for me, I'm going to play anyway.
“I think it's crazy that we have to have a rule that you have to play games, just because in my mind, I feel like everyone loves basketball like I do.
“At the end of the day, if guys want to win prizes, they’re going to play.”
There is a lot at stake in these decisions. Adebayo and Fox could see a $93 million difference in their upcoming contracts based on the All-NBA vote. Both will be eligible to sign three-year, $152 million extensions with the Heat and Kings, respectively, if they fail to make the All-NBA roster for too many missed games. If they do, they are both eligible for four-year, $245 million supermax extensions.
Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton, one of the league's brightest young stars, is out for several weeks with a hamstring injury and has already missed seven games this season. Upon his return, he would have already missed more than 17 games, making him ineligible for awards. That would prevent him from getting the contract amount that comes with making an All-NBA team in a fourth NBA season: a difference of $41 million.
For his part, Adebayo said he wasn't going to waste time worrying about what happens in the second half of the season.
“[An injury] It is what it is,” Adebayo said. “You can't stop injuries from happening.”
He then turned around and knocked on the wooden locker behind him.
“God forbid, but you can't [prevent] injury,” he said. “I think it's crazy that we even have the rule. It's one of those things where you just accept the rule. …
“I assume you will use your 17 games as wisely as possible.”
FOR PLAYERS WHO If players do not reach the 65-game threshold, procedures are in place to attempt to regain their eligibility for awards.
The path to get there, however, is narrow.
Once a player has officially not reached 65 matches played, the rule states that they will have two days to file a complaint. An arbitration hearing between the player, team, league and players' union will follow.
To file a grievance, a player must have clear and convincing evidence that the team limited that player's minutes or games played with the intent of depriving him of eligibility for one or more awards.
There is also an injury clause: If players suffer a season-ending injury just before reaching the 65-game threshold, they could remain eligible for awards. This player must have played at least 62 regular season games, suffered a season-ending injury, and played in at least 85% of his team's games before being injured.
There is also an “extraordinary circumstances” clause. However, league and players' union sources don't expect injuries to be enough, as that essentially defeats the purpose of the rule.
“We've never seen a player who played 40 games, for example, be recognized with [an award impacted by the rule]”, Wasch said. “We saw players between 50 and 50 years old. [in games played] with extraordinary seasons, get these recognitions.
“This is simply to commemorate what the competition committee, the players' association, the league and the teams collectively thought reflected in the overall performance of the season. … And we understand that this means that a player could fail by one match, two, three.
“Then that recognition will go to someone else who, in theory, made a greater overall contribution to their team by playing 65 games or more.”
But even though it could keep him from winning a second straight MVP award, Embiid said his goals are bigger than accolades — and he won't jeopardize the title race to win individual awards.
“The goal is to be ready for the playoffs,” Embiid told reporters after Monday’s win over Houston. “If I can't meet the 65-game criteria… as long as I'm ready to be dominant by that time in April, that's all that matters to me.”
