LeBron James' remarkable 21-year run of All-NBA selections is officially coming to an end this season.
The Lakers announced Tuesday that James will sit out against the San Antonio Spurs due to arthritis in his left foot. It’s his 18th missed game of the year-enough to disqualify him from end-of-season honors under the NBA’s 65-game minimum rule, which applies to awards like MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, and All-NBA team selections.
That rule change, implemented to curb load management and keep stars on the floor, has now sidelined one of the most consistent names in league history from the All-NBA conversation. And that’s no small thing-LeBron has been on an All-NBA team every year since his second season in the league.
That’s 21 straight years of being recognized as one of the best in the game. No one else has done that.
Not Jordan. Not Kareem.
Not Kobe. Just LeBron.
This season, the streak was already on shaky ground. James missed the first 14 games of the 2025-26 campaign while recovering from sciatica.
That absence immediately put his eligibility in jeopardy. Even after returning, he had little margin for error.
He managed to string together 17 straight appearances before being ruled out again on Tuesday.
At 41 years old, James is still producing at a level most players would dream of. Through 35 games, he’s averaging 21.8 points, 6.9 assists, 5.7 rebounds, and 1.1 steals.
Those aren’t just solid numbers-they’re a testament to his longevity and ability to adapt his game as the years go by. He’s not the high-flying 20-year-old who took the league by storm, but he’s still a force, still a problem for defenses, and still capable of taking over when it matters.
Over the course of his 23-year career, James has racked up an NBA-record 13 All-NBA First Team selections. He’s also made the Second and Third Teams four times each. That kind of sustained excellence is virtually unheard of, especially in a league where the talent pool gets deeper every year.
While the All-NBA streak ends here, James did extend another incredible run earlier this month-his All-Star streak. He was selected for his 22nd consecutive All-Star appearance, though for the first time in his career, he’ll enter the game as a reserve. And that didn’t seem to bother him one bit.
“I just wanted to get back to playing the game at a high level I knew I was capable of,” James told reporters after being voted in. “I didn’t think about the All-Star Game, to be honest.”
That quote says a lot about where LeBron is at this stage of his career. It’s not about accolades anymore. It’s about competing, contributing, and continuing to defy the expectations of age and time.
The All-NBA streak may be over, but the legacy? That’s still growing.