When you hear people debating who the best players in the league are, they usually point to the All-Star game. It’s the flashy mid-season showcase with the jerseys and the dunks. But honestly? If you ask an actual NBA player what they care about on their resume, it’s not the All-Star nod. It’s the All NBA Team.
This is the big one. It's the "official" record of who truly owned the season. While the All-Star game is half-popularity contest and half-marketing, All-NBA is a brutal, high-stakes meritocracy that determines legacies—and, more importantly for the players, massive amounts of money.
So, what is an All NBA Team exactly?
Basically, it's an end-of-season honor given to the best 15 players in the league. It isn't just one team; it’s actually three. You have the All-NBA First Team, the Second Team, and the Third Team. Each team has five players.
For decades, these teams were built like a traditional lineup: two guards, two forwards, and one center. But the league finally got tired of the "Jokic vs. Embiid" problem. For years, you had the two best players in the world both playing center, which meant one of them was forced onto the Second Team just because of a label.
Everything changed recently. Starting with the 2023-24 season, the NBA went positionless. Now, the 15 best players get in, regardless of whether they’re a 7-foot-1 center or a 6-foot-2 point guard. It’s much fairer, but it also makes the competition way more cutthroat.
The 65-Game Rule: The New Reality
You can't just be great for a month and make the cut. You've gotta be available. Under the current Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), a player must appear in at least 65 games to be eligible for an All-NBA spot.
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There are some tiny loopholes—like if a player has a season-ending injury but played 62 games—but for the most part, 65 is the magic number. If you’re at 64 games and the season ends, you’re out. Period. This rule was designed to kill "load management," and it has completely flipped the script on how voters look at the season.
Why All-NBA is a massive deal for bank accounts
This isn't just about a trophy for the mantel. It's about "Supermax" eligibility. In the NBA, there’s a thing called the Designated Veteran Extension. Most people just call it the Supermax.
If a player makes an All-NBA team, they can suddenly become eligible to sign a contract worth 35% of the team’s total salary cap instead of the usual 30%. We are talking about a difference of $50 million to $70 million over the life of a contract.
Imagine losing $60 million because a group of sportswriters decided you were the 16th best player instead of the 15th. That’s why you’ll see players get legitimately upset when they’re "snubbed." It’s not just ego; it’s generational wealth.
The Voting Process: Who decides?
The league doesn't pick these teams. The coaches don't either. It’s actually a panel of 100 sportswriters and broadcasters from across the United States and Canada.
Each voter fills out a ballot with five players for each of the three teams. The points are weighted:
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- First Team vote: 5 points
- Second Team vote: 3 points
- Third Team vote: 1 point
When the votes are tallied, the five guys with the most points make the First Team, and so on. Because the voting is made public after the season, fans (and players) can see exactly who voted for whom. It leads to some pretty spicy Twitter drama when a local reporter leaves a superstar off their ballot.
The Evolution of "Positionless" Basketball
The shift to positionless voting is a huge deal. For years, we saw legendary "snubs" because the forward or guard spots were too crowded.
Think back to the mid-90s. Patrick Ewing was an absolute monster, but he had to compete with Hakeem Olajuwon, David Robinson, and a young Shaquille O’Neal for one center spot on the First Team. One of those legends was always going to look "worse" on paper because they were bumped to the Second or Third team by default.
Now? If the five best players in the world are all centers, they can all be First Team. It’s a better reflection of the modern game where guys like Giannis Antetokounmpo or Victor Wembanyama don't really fit into a single box anyway.
Notable Snubs and Historical Oddities
History is full of weird All-NBA moments. In 2016, James Harden averaged 29 points, 7 assists, and 6 rebounds. Those are MVP-caliber numbers. Yet, he didn’t make any of the three All-NBA teams. Not even the Third Team.
Why? Most people think it was because the Rockets were a mess that year and his defensive effort was... let’s say "minimal." It remains one of the most statistically baffling omissions in the history of the award.
Then you have guys like Klay Thompson, who famously missed out on All-NBA in 2019. By missing that nod, he lost out on an extra $30 million in his next contract. He was visibly frustrated when the news broke, and honestly, you can’t blame him.
How to use All-NBA stats for your own debates
If you’re trying to settle a "Who is better?" argument with a friend, All-NBA selections are your best weapon. All-Star appearances are fine, but All-NBA is the gold standard for peak performance.
- Check the First Team count: This tells you how many years a player was arguably the absolute best at what they do. LeBron James holds the record here, which is a huge part of his GOAT case.
- Look at the era: Making All-NBA in the early 2000s as a shooting guard was nearly impossible because you were fighting Kobe, Iverson, T-Mac, and Vince Carter.
- Factor in the 65-game rule: When comparing players from 2024 onwards to guys from the 90s, remember that modern stars have a much harder time qualifying if they take nights off.
What’s next for the All-NBA Team?
As we move deeper into the 2020s, the "positionless" era is going to make these teams look very different. We might see years where the First Team is just five wings who can all pass and shoot.
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The financial stakes are also going up. With the new TV deal kicking in, salary caps are skyrocketing. We are heading toward an era where an All-NBA selection could be the difference between a $300 million contract and a $400 million contract.
Actionable Insights for Fans
- Track the 65-game count: Keep an eye on player availability throughout the season. If your favorite star hits game 18 of "rest," their All-NBA chances (and their team's ability to keep them long-term) are in serious jeopardy.
- Analyze "Winning" vs. "Stats": Voters are increasingly favoring players on winning teams. A guy averaging 30 points on a 30-win team is now less likely to make it than a guy averaging 22 points on a 60-win team.
- Watch the Supermax clock: If a young star is entering a contract year, their performance in the All-NBA race will dictate their team's entire salary cap strategy for the next half-decade.
The All-NBA Team is the ultimate stamp of approval. It’s the difference between being a "great player" and being a "legend of the game." Next time the ballots come out, look past the names and look at the contracts—that's where the real story is.
Next Steps for Deepening Your Knowledge
To truly understand how this impacts your favorite team’s future, look up the "Years of Service" for your team's best player. If they have between 7 and 9 years in the league and make an All-NBA team this year, they’ll be eligible for that 35% Supermax. This often forces front offices to make "all-in" trades or, conversely, difficult decisions to trade a star they can no longer afford.
Check the official NBA communications or the latest CBA explainers to see if any adjustments have been made to the "near miss" game-count rules for the current season, as these small technicalities often decide who qualifies for the ballot.