Although the Phoenix Suns flipped the script in 2025-26 to put themselves in playoff contention a year after finishing 10 games under .500 and missing the playoffs, the season is set to end in a downer for the face of the franchise.
Devin Booker, who was named to his fifth All-Star team in 2026, will be ineligible for the NBA’s end-of-season awards due to one of the league’s most polarizing rules.
Booker will not even be able to be considered for post-season awards—such as All-NBA status that he’s achieved twice previously in his career—because of the NBA’s 65-game threshold rule.
Prior to 2023, there was not a set criteria for any player to be considered for awards at season’s end, save for Sixth Man of the Year Award candidates needing to start fewer than 50 percent of their team’s games. It’s an award to recognize the league’s best contributors off the bench, after all.
But, as The Athletic’s Mike Prada writes (subscription required), the NBA and National Basketball Players Association came together with the new collective bargaining agreement to require players to compete in at least 65 regular-season games to be considered for year-end awards like MVP and All-NBA. It was framed as a way to address “load management,” a tool used more and more by teams to rest stars throughout the 82-game grind to keep them healthy for postseason play.
According to NBA writer Marc Stein (subscription required), Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Doncic intends to appeal that polarizing rule with an “Extraordinary Circumstances Challenge,” since he missed time for the birth of his child earlier this season. Stein reports that the league will delay voting on awards until there’s a resolution of Doncic's impending appeal.
Suns Devin Booker ineligible for regular season awards
Because of that same rule, Booker will not see his name among the end-of-season awards.
If anything, Booker would likely be in the mix for the third All-NBA nod of his illustrious career. However, even if he hit that 65-game threshold, he’d probably be on the bubble looking in at those awards.
Back in January, ESPN’s Kevin Pelton gave his All-NBA predictions for first, second and third team without Booker present. He had a huge collection of guards beating him out: Stephen Curry, Tyrese Maxey, Anthony Edwards, Donovan Mitchell, Jamal Murray, Jalen Brunson, Jaylen Brown, Cade Cunningham, Luka Doncic (who may now also be ineligible) and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Booker is not the type of player to put individual accolades above team success, so not being considered probably isn’t top of mind for the Suns’ star as the team aims to make noise in the playoffs.
Still, it’s a bummer for Suns fans that their team’s best player won’t even be considered thanks to the new rule that Doncic is already looking to appeal under his own extenuating circumstances.
Devin Booker's stats
All things considered, Booker put together another strong season at age 29.
At time of writing, he’s averaging 25.8 points, 6.0 assists, 3.9 rebounds and 0.8 steals per game. After getting out to an ice-cold start shooting from long range, Booker’s 3-point percentage this season of 33 percent sits at one of the lowest marks of his career. In fact, he notched a percentage from beyond the arc worse than where he’s at right now just once: back in 2018-19 at age 22 when he finished at 32.6 percent from downtown for the year.
Team success overrode his relatively poor outside shooting to earn his fifth All-Star nod, but any other awards at season’s end will be out of reach because of that 65-game rule.
For players who get bonuses for those end-of-season awards, staying healthy throughout the 82-game grind is more important than ever before.