Trio of NBA stars now eligible for 2023-24 awards

Lakers ahead LeBron James, Spurs massive man Victor Wembanyama, and Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey all reached the 65-game benchmark on Friday, making them eligible to win end-of-season awards, in accordance with ESPN’s Bobby Marks.

James has technically appeared in simply 64 common season video games, however the in-season event ultimate in December counts towards the 65-game requirement regardless of not counting towards the Lakers’ common season document. That can even be the case for gamers like Anthony Davis — who surpassed the 65-game threshold earlier this month — and Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton, who’s three video games away.

James is now not a perennial MVP candidate like he was earlier in his profession, however he has a authentic case for an All-NBA spot. He has averaged 25.2 factors, 8.1 assists, and seven.3 rebounds in 35.2 minutes per recreation throughout his 64 begins, with a taking pictures line (.530/.401/.751) effectively above his profession norm. If LeBron earns a kind of 15 berths this season, he’ll lengthen his document for profession All-NBA nods to twenty, 5 greater than another participant in league historical past.

Reaching the 65-game threshold is maybe much less essential for Wembanyama since qualifying for Rookie of the 12 months or an All-Rookie crew just isn’t required. Nonetheless, it’s essential to earn votes for Defensive Participant of the 12 months, and whereas Rudy Gobert is the frontrunner for that award, Wembanyama has a shot at it. The rookie phenom has averaged a double-double (21.0 PPG, 10.5 RPG) and led the NBA in blocks per recreation (3.4) at age 20.

Wembanyama fell simply in need of the 20-minute minimal in one in all his 65 appearances this season, however he logged over 19 minutes in that contest. A participant can depend as much as two sub-20-minute video games towards his 65-game whole if he performed at the very least quarter-hour in these video games.

As for Maxey, he’s a number one contender for this season’s Most Improved Participant award, having elevated his averages to 25.6 PPG, 6.2 APG, and three.7 RPG in his fourth NBA season. His taking pictures percentages (.445 FG%, .374 3PT%) are down from final 12 months, however he has been tasked with extra offensive obligations in Philadelphia following James Harden‘s departure and Joel Embiid‘s knee harm.

Maxey additionally has a case for All-NBA honors, which may impression his restricted free company this summer time. As Marks notes on X, claiming an All-NBA spot would make the Sixers guard eligible for a Rose Rule contract beginning at as much as 30% of the cap (as a substitute of 25%). Such a deal could be price as much as a projected $245.3M over 5 years as a substitute of $204.5M.