Two NBA players are able to celebrate an important victory that occurred away from the court. Luka Doncic and Cade Cunningham are both now eligible for league awards.
Videos by FanBuzz
According to ESPN's Shams Charania, both Doncic and Cunningham won their Extraordinary Circumstances Challenge for the 65-game rule. This rule mandates that a player must play in 65 games in a season to be eligible for MVP, All-NBA, and other honors.
Cunningham, the first overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, only played in 64 games this season. He barely missed the threshold required for awards due to a collapsed lung. He initially left a March game against the Washington Wizards with what the Detroit Pistons called back spasms.
However, the team later revealed that he had a left lung pneumothorax and that they would re-evaluate him in two weeks. This meant that he would miss at least eight games, but he had an opportunity to return for the playoffs.
Cunningham ultimately missed 11 games before returning against the Milwaukee Bucks on April 8.
Doncic, who led the NBA in several statistical categories this season, also played in 64 games. He missed time for multiple reasons, the first of which was a trip to Slovenia for the birth of his second child. He missed two games for this milestone moment in his life.
Doncic then sustained a Grade 2 left hamstring strain during an early April game against the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Los Angeles Lakers player had to fly to Europe for treatment while pursuing his goal of returning for the playoffs.
Doncic's agent released a statement after the injury occurred and said that he would file the Extraordinary Circumstances Challenge on behalf of his client.
"This season, Luka Doncic has performed at a historic level, leading the league in scoring, carrying the Lakers to third place in the Western Conference and placing himself in the middle of one of the most tightly contested MVP races in memory," agent Billy Duffy said.
"To ensure that Luka's incredible accomplishments this season are rightly honored and he can be considered for the league's end-of-season awards, we intend to apply for an 'Extraordinary Circumstances Challenge' to the 65-game rule.
"Luka missed two games this season for the birth of his second child in Slovenia. His daughter was born on Dec. 4, on another continent, and yet he was back in the United States competing with his team on Dec. 6. Luka has gone to great lengths to show up for his team and this league this season.
"His record-breaking season deserves to be noted in the history books, despite (April 2's) unfortunate injury and other extraordinary circumstances. We look forward to working with the NBAPA and the league office to ensure a fair outcome in this matter."
