Los Angeles Lakers superstar Luka Doncic is on pace to make first-team All-NBA for the sixth time in his career after finishing fourth in MVP voting. He and Nikola Jokic will be the 22nd and 23rd players in NBA history to make first-team All-NBA six or more times. Doncic is only 27 years old, but he will enter rarefied air.
He is virtually guaranteed to make All-NBA. Since 2000, just three players who finished fourth in MVP voting weren’t first-team All-NBA. Russell Westbrook was the last one in 2015. Peja Stojakovic and Karl Malone did that in 2004 and 2000. All three players finished on second-team All-NBA. Three times in 25 years is just 12 percent. The safe bet is Doncic being first-team All-NBA again.
Luka only played 64 games, but won an appeal to be eligible for awards because the Lakers superstar missed two games for the birth of his daughter. His incredible play, coupled with that appeal, has Doncic on the verge of joining elite company.
Luka Doncic is on pace to make 1st team All-NBA after MVP voting
Doncic won the scoring title and was comfortably fourth in MVP voting. He wasn’t close to passing Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Nikola Jokic, or Victor Wemyama, but Doncic had 133 more points than Cade Cunningham and 161 more than Jaylen Brown. Those were the only six other players who received more than one MVP vote.
A global media panel of 100 voters selected the winner of the 2025-26 Kia NBA Most Valuable Player Award.
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) May 17, 2026
The complete voting results ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/ki6ZYk5Tq9
That wide gap makes it even more likely that Doncic ends up first-team All-NBA. He and Jokic will join Kevin Durant, James Harden, Hakeem Olajuwon, George Mikan, and Dolph Schayes with six first-team All-NBA honors. Only Wilt Chamberlain and Giannis Antetokounmpo have seven.
Doncic is on pace to finish somewhere near the top ten. There are ten players with ten or more first-team All-NBA honors. LeBron James holds the record with 13. Kobe Bryant and Karl Malone are the only other players with more than ten. Doncic is only 27 and should have at least five years left in his prime.
The Lakers are still not close to title contention after the surprising Luka trade. Dallas gave up an all-time great player who just led the Mavericks to the NBA Finals. Los Angeles certainly benefited, and Mavs fans still haven’t gotten over it.
Luka has only played in the NBA for eight years. He won Rookie of the Year, but earned no other honors in year one. Doncic has been first-team All-NBA every other year but 2025. He only played 50 games that season and was ineligible for awards. Doncic is one of the best players on the planet, and he deserved even more love in the MVP voting. Eight people somehow left Doncic off their ballot entirely.
The Los Angeles Lakers will soon have two of the 23 players in NBA history to earn six first-team All-NBA honors on their roster. LeBron holds the record, and Doncic will earn his sixth in 2026. He was fourth in MVP voting by far. Fans should expect him to be first-team All-NBA.
Luka Doncic is special, and he has years left of his prime. Expect plenty more accolades, but this one makes him an all-time great. Lakers fans aren’t surprised at all.
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