Tracy McGrady and Carmelo Anthony push NBA to grant Luka Dončić award eligibility

Regardless of whether Luka Dončić plays another game during this regular season, Tracy McGrady and Carmelo Anthony are calling on the NBA to make him eligible for end-of-season awards.

Dončić suffered a left hamstring injury during the Los Angeles Lakers’ blowout loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder last Thursday night. And while Stephen A. Smith might not believe it, the Lakers later diagnosed Dončić with a Grade 2 hamstring strain, ruling him out for the remainder of the regular season, even putting his status for the playoffs in doubt.

The timing of the injury is terrible for the Lakers, who were starting to show their big three of Luka, LeBron James, and Austin Reaves might be enough to make a run in the playoffs. The timing is especially terrible for Dončić, because after playing just 64 games this season, it could bar him from being considered for the MVP and other awards.

NBA rules require players to appear in a minimum of 65 regular-season games to qualify for league awards. And that’s where Tracy McGrady and Carmelo Anthony both called on the league to make an exception Sunday night during the NBA on NBC broadcast. McGrady and Anthony pointed specifically to Dončić missing two games earlier this season for the birth of his second child in Slovenia, believing those absences shouldn’t preclude him from being eligible for awards.

“It’s a birth of his child, it’s not an injury, it’s not load management. This is the birth of his child. Where you gotta fly to another country. I’m sure the league is gonna do right by that” – Tracy McGrady

“This is the international players. If they need to get back to go… pic.twitter.com/dsmDPvCRIt

— Luka Updates (@LukaUpdates) April 5, 2026

“It’s the birth of his child, it’s not an injury, it’s not load management,” McGrady said. “This is the birth of his child where you gotta fly to another country. I’m sure the league is gonna do right by that.”

“This is the international players, we want them over here” Anthony added. “If they need to get back to go take care of family matters and they miss a game, they shouldn’t be penalized for that.”

Dončić’s agent, Bill Duffy, already told ESPN he will be applying for an “Extraordinary Circumstances Challenge” to the 65-game rule, citing the absence for the birth of his daughter on another continent. The 65-game rule was implemented to combat load management and a mounting number of healthy scratches. But had it not been for those missed games for the birth of his daughter or what is undoubtedly a legitimate hamstring injury, Dončić would have already surpassed the 65-game minimum.

The MVP award might seem out of reach for Dončić at this point, but there are still other awards and honors he could attain. Dončić is certainly deserving of All-NBA honors, which has financial benefits and could even impact his future supermax eligibility.