How many more games can LeBron James miss and still be eligible for postseason awards?
When we all look back on LeBron James' career one day, there will be moments that stand out. The block of Andre Iguodala. His emotion-laced "Cleveland, this is for you!" The iconic alley-oop photo with Dwyane Wade — and many more.
These signature moments will accompany a First Take segment about LeBron's legacy, and they'll be among the highlights one day when he's inducted into the Hall of Fame. One of the most incredible things about LeBron's career is his longevity. Not only has he been playing for over two decades, he's been consistently excellent for that entire time.
LeBron's name is all over the NBA record book. Most fans would point to his title as the all-time scoring leader as his most notable record, but perhaps equally impressive is that LeBron has played 21 full seasons in the NBA, and he's made an All-NBA team in 20 of them. Thirteen times, he's been First Team. It's difficult to imagine someone breaking that anytime soon.
The only instance of LeBron not making All-NBA was his rookie season — even then, he won Rookie of the Year over Carmelo Anthony and Dwyane Wade and finished ninth in the MVP voting.
Subscribe to The Whiteboard, FanSided’s daily email newsletter on everything basketball. If you like The Whiteboard, share it with a friend! If you don’t like it, share it with an enemy.
Even in his geriatric (for NBA standards) years, LeBron has still maintained his grip on the All-NBA team, even if he hasn't been able to get back to the First Team since 2020.
LeBron has made Third Team All-NBA the last three years, which means he's still ostensibly one of the top 15 players in the league. This year is going to be a battle though, as his points are down, his turnovers are up and his plus/minus has taken a nosedive.
LeBron also has to contend with the rule that the NBA instituted last year to combat load management, which states that players must play at least 65 games to be eligible for end-of-season awards. That includes MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, Most Improved Player and yes, All-NBA.
Through most of his career, 65 games would have been a small ask for the Chosen One, but in recent years, that number has been a bit harder to reach. Only once in the past four seasons has LeBron made it to 65 games, and in the other three seasons, his max was 56. LeBron takes legendary care of his body, but Father Time comes for us all sooner or later.
How many games can LeBron miss and still be eligible to make All-NBA?
LeBron said at the outset of the season that his goal was to play in all 82 games. For anyone else, that would sound crazy, but betting against LeBron throughout his career has been a good way to go broke.
The 22-year vet did make it through 24 games before left foot soreness forced him to miss some time, but still, 33 games out of 36 ain't too shabby, and it means he's well on the pace to hit that 65-game benchmark. The Lakers have 46 games remaining, and LeBron can miss 14 of them and still be eligible to keep his streak alive.
Ironically, the 65-game rule may actually help LeBron make All-NBA, because so much of his competition has already spent major time on the shelf. Kawhi Leonard, Zion Williamson, Paolo Banchero, Chet Holmgren, Luka Doncic and Ja Morant are just a few of the stars already ineligible, or perilously close.
LeBron could also benefit from the NBA's directive that the All-NBA teams be positionless. This change was instituted at the same time as the 65-game rule, and it means that LeBron no longer has to be one of the six best forwards, now he just has to be one of the 15 best players.
As mentioned earlier, LeBron's game has regressed slightly, but he's still putting up 23.8 points, 7.7 rebounds and 8.8 assists for a team that's sixth in the West. There's a long way to go, but don't count the King out yet.