This is a rarity, but it could be the reality of this season. The list of star players who will not be eligible for awards this season continues to grow, with Luka Dončić, the Los Angeles Lakers guard and MVP candidate, now sidelined due to a left leg posterior thigh injury. Minnesota guard Anthony Edwards will definitely not reach the 65-game threshold required for award eligibility after missing Thursday's game due to illness. Dončić has played 64 games, so he would remain just below the cutoff if the thigh issue keeps him out for the remainder of the regular season, which has just over a week left. Notably, sportsbook BetMGM, among others, removed Dončić from its MVP candidate list following his injury on Thursday. "Health is wealth... We'll see what happens," said LeBron James. Edwards can now only reach a maximum of 64 games as well, so he will not be on the ballot for most major NBA awards. The rule is the result of a collective bargaining agreement. Thus, the league and the players' union agreed on the terms, and this is the third season under this part of the NBA regulations. It applies to players' eligibility for five awards: MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, Most Improved Player, All-NBA Team, and All-Defensive Team. Players must play 65 games in the regular season (with certain minimum minute requirements) or at least 62 games before suffering a "season-ending injury." However, even if Dončić's posterior thigh injury means he plays no more games in the regular season, it would not be classified as "season-ending" unless a doctor jointly selected by the NBA and the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) determines he could not play until May 31. There is an appeals process, as well as the possibility of challenging the rule based on extraordinary circumstances, but neither option can be easily utilized. Five of the league's six highest-paid players this season—Stephen Curry of Golden State, Jimmy Butler, Joel Embiid of Philadelphia, Giannis Antetokounmpo of Milwaukee, and Jayson Tatum of Boston—have not met the award eligibility criteria. Denver's Nikola Jokić is the exception among the highest-paid, but he would likely also become ineligible if he misses one more game. Last season, there were 23 players who won MVP, MIP, DPOY, All-NBA, and All-Defense honors. At least 10 of them have already fallen out of award contention this season: Antetokounmpo, Curry, Edwards, James, Tatum, Detroit's Cade Cunningham, Indiana teammates Tyrese Haliburton and Ivica Zubac, Utah's Jaren Jackson Jr., and Oklahoma City's Jalen Williams. Four other previous winners—Jokić, Oklahoma City's Lu Dort, Golden State's Draymond Green, and Cleveland's Evan Mobley—have not yet reached 65 games this season but, at least for now, appear on track to hit that number.