The NBA has made its ruling on Luka Doncic and Cade Cunningham's respective Extraordinary Circumstances Challenges to the 65-game rule for award consideration. The Los Angeles Lakers and Detroit Pistons superstars each played 64 games, but missed time due to the birth of a child and a collapsed lung—what they considered to be extenuating circumstances.
Thankfully for their respective accolades and perhaps even their legacies, the NBA approved their appeals and declared them eligible for award consideration.
Just in: The NBA and NBPA have ruled in favor of Lakers' Luka Doncic and Pistons' Cade Cunningham on their Extraordinary Circumstances Challenge for the 65-game award rule, making both eligible for all 2025-26 season honors such as MVP and All-NBA teams, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/gUYdUn1q4k
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 16, 2026
Having been declared eligible for the NBA"s post-season awards, Doncic is a virtual lock for the All-NBA First Team. He's not only an MVP candidate, but has a powerful combination of winning the scoring title, leading Los Angeles to a top-four seed in the Western Conference, and ranking third in assists per game.
In the event that Doncic is named to the All-NBA First Team, it would mark his sixth career selection—thus tying him with the likes of Kevin Durant and Hakeem Olajuwon.
Doncic has also officially secured the 2025-26 scoring title at an absurd 33.5 points per game. It's the second time in his already illustrious career that he's led the Association in scoring, which makes him just the 17th player in NBA history to win multiple scoring titles.
Combine the two accolades and Doncic would become the 10th player in NBA history with at least two scoring titles and six All-NBA First Team selections.
Luka Doncic eligible to become 10th player in NBA history with multiple scoring titles, 6+ All-NBA First Teams
The list of players whom Doncic would be joining in that regard are nothing short of iconic. The group begins with early-era icons Paul Arizin, Wilt Chamberlain, George Mikan, and Bob Pettit, and continues with the incomparable Kareem Abdul-Jabbar achieving the feat in 1977.
It wasn't until 1992 when another name, the unrivaled Michael Jordan, was added to that list—and it took another 12 years until Shaquille O'Neal joined those titans in 2004.
Just four years later, another Lakers legend added their name to the history books when Kobe Bryant secured his sixth career All-NBA First Team nod in 2008. In the 18 years since, only two players have managed to achieve the same: Kevin Durant in 2018 and James Harden in 2020.
Barring a bizarre twist of fate in the 2025-26 voting, it appears as though Doncic will join his fellow legends in that same decorated arena.
Doncic received his first five All-NBA First Team selections as a member of the Dallas Mavericks. This would be his first with the Lakers, but there's reason to believe it wouldn't be his last. Above all else, he's still just 27 years of age and appears to be ascending.
Even if he never adds another All-NBA First Team selection or scoring title to his résumé, however, Doncic could soon be safe in history as one of just 10 players to achieve a remarkable feat.
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