NBA Prepared To Change Criteria For End Of Season Awards

With the NBA and NBPA close to finalizing a new collective bargaining agreement, the two sides are close to agreeing on a change in the criteria for the end of season awards such as Most Valuable Player,

The NBA and NBPA have been negotiating a new collective bargaining agreement over the last several months and after mutually agreeing to extend the deadline to opt out of the CBA from February 8, 2023 to March 31, 2023, the two sides are getting closer to a new deal.

As the two sides continue to work out a new agreement, new rules and stipulations will be added to the league, one of which could pertain to the end of season awards. According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, the NBA and NBPA is getting close to agreeing on a change which would require a player to play in a minimum number of regular season games in order to be eligible for major awards such as Most Valuable Player.

This is a change that has been brought up in recent months, as the league continues to search for ways to limit the whole “load management” situation that has popped up recently with many teams over the course of the regular season.

Whether it is a certain amount of games or minutes played, it does appear that a change is coming in order to incentivize players to play the full 82-game season, that is assuming they are not seriously injured.

“That’s a tough question because I mean, a guy could play 75 percent of the season and have ridiculous numbers,” Houston Rockets forward K.J. Martin told The Athletic recently when asked how many games a player should have to play in order to be MVP. “It just depends. You have to play at least more than half the season. If you play less than half the season, you shouldn’t be in the conversation.”

On the other side of things, Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo said he does not think a lot of games are necessary, stating that, “If a guy plays 50 games, but he’s the best player in those 50, it’s kind of hard to justify not giving it to him.”

As for Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton, he does not feel the need for a requirement. “I don’t think there should be a requirement. I think it’s overblown,” Haliburton said. “I think the idea of having to set a game minimum, amount or whatever, I think is dumb.”

Assuming there is an agreement on a new stipulation in the new collective bargaining agreement, this would create a minimum games threshold for awards such as Most Valuable Player, Rookie of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year.

It is worth noting that the NBA already has a rule in place that players must appear in at least 58 games to be eligible for statistical honors such as the scoring title and assists leader.

In the history of the NBA, only six times has a player been awarded the MVP award without playing in at least 70 games and two of which were before the league adopted the 82-game schedule in 1968, as Bill Russell won the award during the 1957-58 season after playing in 69 games for the Boston Celtics and Bob Cousy won the award during the 1956-57 season after playing in just 64 games for the Celtics.

Bill Walton holds the record for the fewest games played in a MVP season, playing in just 58 games for the Portland Trail Blazers during the 1977-78 season, not including shortened seasons.

Voting on who should win the end of season awards can be very tricky for NBA media members around the country, especially when there are plenty of worthy candidates like there are in this year’s MVP race with Nikola Jokic, Joel Embiid and Giannis Antetokounmpo all having MVP-like years.

However, should this new rule be put in place for future years, it would make things a little easier, as just looking at this season, Jokic has played in 60 games, Embiid has played in 54 games and Giannis has played in 52 games thus far.

Whether or not this change happens is yet to be determined, but it does appear likely at this point in the CBA negotiations. 

---

Be sure to catch up on the newest episode of The Fast Break Podcast hosted by Fastbreak's own Brett Siegel!

Streaming on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, The Fast Break Podcast takes you inside the league with the latest news, intel, rumors and interviews from those close to the action for all 30 teams. Be on the lookout for a new episodes every Friday.