Bickerstaff says Mitchell is still deserving of All-NBA consideration

Mitchell will be ineligible for individual award consideration after missing his 17th game.

Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell will not be eligible for postseason awards after being ruled out for Monday’s game against the Phoenix Suns. This will be the 18th game he’s missed this season meaning its no longer possible for him to meet the 65-game minimum.

While Mitchell won’t be officially recognized as an All-NBA player, his coach still believes he’s had an All-NBA caliber season.

“He’s obviously deserving,” head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “I understand where the league is coming from as far as trying to get guys to play games.”

Getting star players to participate in more regular season games has been an issue for the past several years. The new 65-game rule that went into effect this season has done a good job of increasing participation which was the entire goal.

“We needed to incentivize players, particularly star players, to play more games,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said last month before the All-Star game. “I can tell you that the number of games that players have participated in is up this season and interestingly enough, injuries are actually down.”

Injuries might not be down anymore given the recent surge since the break. That’s a tradeoff the league is probably fine with. Even so, figuring out where to draw the line in games played could still be an issue.

“I don’t know if the number is the right number,” Suns head coach Frank Vogel said. “But I do think there’s value in having a cut-off.”

The rule was meant to limit the rest days star players took. The maybe unintended consequence has been punishing guys who are missing due to injuries.

“When you see guys like Donovan and [Joel] Embiid now being left out [of All-NBA consideration], that does not feel right,” Vogel said. “It’s just one of the things I’m sure the league will look at.”

“I do think there are different consequences and different reasons why [someone misses games],” Bickerstaff said. “In Donovan’s case, these aren’t rest games. If there was a limit or something that the league could come up with, I think it would be better.”

Coming up with an actual solution is where things get tricky. Bickerstaff and Vogel both left a possible solution up to the league office which is pretty much how this conversation always ends. It’s easier to point at the issue than it is to solve it.

Maybe the 65-game rule changes next season. For now, Mitchell will not be eligible for All-NBA consideration. That shouldn’t take away how good of a season he’s put together.

“Everybody knows Donovan Mitchell has had an All-NBA player and has had an All-NBA season,” Bickerstaff said. “I don’t think you should be punished for injuries.”