Deadspin | Luka Doncic, Cade Cunningham now eligible for awards 
Feb 28, 2026; San Francisco, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward/guard Luka Doncic (77) smiles during a break in the action against the Golden State Warriors in the third period at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: David Gonzales-Imagn Images Luka Doncic and Cade Cunningham are eligible for postseason awards after winning their challenges to the 65-game rule, the NBA and the players union announced Thursday.
Both players had filed “extraordinary circumstances” challenges to a rule that requires players to appear in at least 65 games to be eligible for those honors.
Both players are expected to make All-NBA teams and Doncic is a candidate for Most Valuable Player.
An independent arbitrator denied a similar challenge from Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards, who played in 60 games and will not be eligible for award consideration.
Doncic, who finished with 64 games, missed two games in December when he traveled to Slovenia for the birth of his daughter. He also sustained a hamstring strain on April 2 and missed the Los Angeles Lakers’ final five games of the regular season.
Cunningham, who also played 64 contests, missed 11 games for the Detroit Pistons from mid-March to early April with a collapsed lung.
“The NBA and NBPA agreed that, taking into account the totality of the circumstances for Cunningham and Doncic, each player qualified for awards under the extraordinary circumstances provision in the CBA,” the league and union said in a news release.
Doncic, 27, averaged a league-high 33.5 points, 8.3 assists and 7.7 rebounds in his first full season with the Lakers.
Cunningham, 24, averaged 23.9 points, a career-high 9.9 assists and 5.5 rebounds in his fifth season with the Pistons.
Edwards, 24, averaged a career-high 28.8 points, 5.0 boards and 3.7 assists in his sixth season with the Timberwolves.
–Field Level Media
#Deadspin #Luka #Doncic #Cade #Cunningham #eligible #awards
Feb 28, 2026; San Francisco, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward/guard Luka Doncic (77) smiles during a break in the action against the Golden State Warriors in the third period at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: David Gonzales-Imagn Images Luka Doncic and Cade Cunningham are eligible for postseason awards after winning their challenges to the 65-game rule, the NBA and the players union announced Thursday.
Both players had filed “extraordinary circumstances” challenges to a rule that requires players to appear in at least 65 games to be eligible for those honors.
Both players are expected to make All-NBA teams and Doncic is a candidate for Most Valuable Player.
An independent arbitrator denied a similar challenge from Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards, who played in 60 games and will not be eligible for award consideration.
Doncic, who finished with 64 games, missed two games in December when he traveled to Slovenia for the birth of his daughter. He also sustained a hamstring strain on April 2 and missed the Los Angeles Lakers’ final five games of the regular season.
Cunningham, who also played 64 contests, missed 11 games for the Detroit Pistons from mid-March to early April with a collapsed lung.
“The NBA and NBPA agreed that, taking into account the totality of the circumstances for Cunningham and Doncic, each player qualified for awards under the extraordinary circumstances provision in the CBA,” the league and union said in a news release.
Doncic, 27, averaged a league-high 33.5 points, 8.3 assists and 7.7 rebounds in his first full season with the Lakers.
Cunningham, 24, averaged 23.9 points, a career-high 9.9 assists and 5.5 rebounds in his fifth season with the Pistons.
Edwards, 24, averaged a career-high 28.8 points, 5.0 boards and 3.7 assists in his sixth season with the Timberwolves.
–Field Level Media
![Ayush Shetty: Asian Championship run gives me confidence that I can maintain level for longer period Last month, when India’s squad for the Thomas & Uber Cup was announced, Ayush Shetty was a young-and-upcoming 20-year-old who was getting his maiden call up.When India takes to the court in Denmark from April 24, he will be its most in-form player, having made a stirring run to the Badminton Asia Championships (BAC) final in China last week.He has broken into the world’s top-20 and there will be expectations galore. But he is confidence personified, despite 2026 being only his second full year on the senior circuit.“My expectations [from myself] are always high, and I take people’s expectations as a challenge,” Ayush said at the Centre for Badminton Excellence here on Thursday.“When I won the Super 300 [U.S. Open in 2025], I did not see it as a surprise. Even when I got a confirmed medal at the Asian Championship, I believed that I could win the tournament,” the World No. 18 added.This confidence manifested in three straight victories over top-10 players at BAC – the then World No. 1 Kunlavut Vitidsarn, No. 4 Jonatan Christie and No. 7 Li Shi Feng.“I had never beaten three top-10 players,” stated Ayush, who was No. 25 then. “It has always been like one victory [over an elite player] and then a loss. This run gives me the confidence that I can maintain my level for a longer period. Even my second round opponent Chi Yu Jen (No. 20) was a very tricky player.“Going into the All England [in early March], I felt that I was at my 100%. But the results were different (first round defeat). That is why BAC was important – to keep my confidence and belief high.”The one dull moment in an otherwise golden few days for Ayush was the retirement on Tuesday of double Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen, whom he idolises and has even trained with in Dubai.“It’s a bit sad. I always wanted him to retire on the court. He deserved it,” said Ayush about the great Dane who last played competitively in October 2025.“I had told him in 2024 that we will play [competitively] soon. He said ‘sure, I have a couple of more years’. I will always have the regret that I could never play him.”Published on Apr 16, 2026 #Ayush #Shetty #Asian #Championship #run #confidence #maintain #level #longer #period](https://i2.wp.com/ss-i.thgim.com/public/incoming/nuklw5/article70870299.ece/alternates/LANDSCAPE_1200/AFP_A7FV7G8.jpg?ssl=1 "Ayush Shetty: Asian Championship run gives me confidence that I can maintain level for longer period Last month, when India’s squad for the Thomas & Uber Cup was announced, Ayush Shetty was a young-and-upcoming 20-year-old who was getting his maiden call up.When India takes to the court in Denmark from April 24, he will be its most in-form player, having made a stirring run to the Badminton Asia Championships (BAC) final in China last week.He has broken into the world’s top-20 and there will be expectations galore. But he is confidence personified, despite 2026 being only his second full year on the senior circuit.“My expectations [from myself] are always high, and I take people’s expectations as a challenge,” Ayush said at the Centre for Badminton Excellence here on Thursday.“When I won the Super 300 [U.S. Open in 2025], I did not see it as a surprise. Even when I got a confirmed medal at the Asian Championship, I believed that I could win the tournament,” the World No. 18 added.This confidence manifested in three straight victories over top-10 players at BAC – the then World No. 1 Kunlavut Vitidsarn, No. 4 Jonatan Christie and No. 7 Li Shi Feng.“I had never beaten three top-10 players,” stated Ayush, who was No. 25 then. “It has always been like one victory [over an elite player] and then a loss. This run gives me the confidence that I can maintain my level for a longer period. Even my second round opponent Chi Yu Jen (No. 20) was a very tricky player.“Going into the All England [in early March], I felt that I was at my 100%. But the results were different (first round defeat). That is why BAC was important – to keep my confidence and belief high.”The one dull moment in an otherwise golden few days for Ayush was the retirement on Tuesday of double Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen, whom he idolises and has even trained with in Dubai.“It’s a bit sad. I always wanted him to retire on the court. He deserved it,” said Ayush about the great Dane who last played competitively in October 2025.“I had told him in 2024 that we will play [competitively] soon. He said ‘sure, I have a couple of more years’. I will always have the regret that I could never play him.”Published on Apr 16, 2026 #Ayush #Shetty #Asian #Championship #run #confidence #maintain #level #longer #period")
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