The NBA’s 65-Game Rule Is Doing Its Job — Stop Trying to Save Stars

Nikola Jokic goes down with a knee injury — and suddenly the volume spikes to kill the NBA’s 65-game minimum for MVP and All-NBA eligibility. Coincidence? Or the latest example of the league (and its loudest voices) trying to rewrite the definition of greatness in real time? In the first On The Ball episode of 2026 , Ric Bucher explains why the 65-game rule shouldn’t be rescinded just because a superstar might miss out. Awards aren’t about who we think should win based on peak moments, reputation, or “what he’d do if healthy.” They’re about who actually delivered over a full season — and availability has always been part of the job . Ric revisits why the rule was created (hello, load management), why voters needed a clear benchmark, and why removing it would encourage exactly what fans hate: rewarding partial seasons while pretending it’s the same as dominance over 82 games. He also calls out the shifting standards in NBA media, the growing subjectivity of awards voting, and the obsession with making everything “perfect” — even when perfection creates new injustices. Plus: Ric makes the case that we should be expanding eligibility rules, creating one to deem who is eligible to be an All-Star . Timestamps 00:00 — Intro: “Cooking with gas” / welcome to On The Ball 00:31 — Ric’s platforms + book tease: the value of being coachable 01:32 — First pod of 2026: thank you + what’s changing the show today 02:03 — The new flashpoint: NBA’s 65-game rule + Jokic injury fallout 02:55 — Jokic vs SGA: how the MVP race shifts 03:16 — Why Ric disagrees with eliminating the rule 04:12 — Why the NBA instituted 65 games: load management + voter clarity 05:07 — The voting problem: who has ballots now (and why it matters) 06:35 — Why 65 games is “etched in stone” 07:23 — The old standard: playing 82 used to be the flex 08:03 — “Perfect” officiating vs reality: the replay obsession analogy 09:20 — The hard truth: injustice happens — that’s sports (and life) 10:08 — Injuries, modern training, and why the real issue isn’t awards 11:07 — Why changing awards rules dodges the real problem 12:32 — Supermax + health: should durability matter? 14:02 — Awards aren’t for “who we think”: they’re for who proved it 14:40 — The Bill Walton precedent: MVP with 58 games (and the controversy) 16:45 — The fear: rewarding stars for half-seasons 17:26 — Standards eroding: media, mentorship, and the “old head” dilemma 20:28 — Social media pedestal culture + rule changes for entertainment 21:25 — Why removing 65 games diminishes awards 22:12 — Ric’s counter: eligibility rules for All-Star voting instead 22:52 — LeBron + All-Star weekend: honor him, don’t gift him a spot 25:05 — Emotional policy-making is bad policy 25:47 — What’s next: boosting competition, addressing tanking 26:54 — Outro Support this show . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

You can listen to The NBA’s 65-Game Rule Is Doing Its Job — Stop Trying to Save Stars online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

The NBA’s 65-Game Rule Is Doing Its Job — Stop Trying to Save Stars is an episode from On The Ball with Ric Bucher by Ric Bucher.

This episode is 27:12 long.

This episode was published on Jan 2, 2026.

Yes. Use the heart button on the episode page to add it to your favorite episodes list.

Yes. This page shows related episodes from On The Ball with Ric Bucher when more episodes are available from the podcast feed.