LeBron James’ 21-season All-NBA streak officially ends, and his mark will probably never be broken

LeBron James will miss out on making an All-NBA team for the first time since his rookie year, snapping a streak of 21 straight seasons with the Lakers superstar on an All-NBA team. James will miss his 18th game of the season on Tuesday night against the Spurs, as the 41-year-old will not play in a back-to-back due to left foot arthritis. 

That 18th absence for James, who didn’t make his season debut until Nov. 18, means he cannot reach the NBA’s 65-game minimum for awards and All-NBA voting consideration. While it would’ve been questionable whether James would make it this year on merit based on his current production — 21.8 points, 6.9 assists and 5.7 rebounds per game — his regular absences in his 23rd season will prevent even a strong second half of the season from getting him into the conversation. 

His 21-year All-NBA streak seems like it’ll stand the test of time for a variety of reasons. For one, it’s rare to have a player reach All-NBA status as quickly as James did in his career, making his first All-NBA team as a second-year player. It’s even more rare for a player to remain at that level deep into their 30s, much less as a 40-year-old as James did last year. 

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The closest streak to James all-time is Kobe Bryant with 15 straight All-NBA nods, offering a good representation of how incredible LeBron’s run has been. No one has ever sniffed the 20-year mark in NBA history, and it’ll only get more difficult going forward. 

Beyond the requirement of consistent greatness for more than two decades, the same 65-game threshold that officially ended any hopes James had at a 22nd All-NBA selection makes it even more difficult for stars to maintain streaks of their own. Giannis Antetokounmpo has the longest active streak with nine straight selections, but he will also miss out this season due to too many games missed. Nikola Jokić is next with seven straight All-NBA appearances, but is also perilously close to being ineligible for voting this year after missing 16 games already this season. 

Longest All-NBA streaks

LeBron James	21	2005-2025
Kobe Bryant	15	1999-2013
Karl Malone	14	1988-2001
Tim Duncan	13	1998-2010
Shaquille O’Neal	13	1994-2006

Between the rules governing eligibility and the amount of talent across the league, it’s difficult to see anyone coming close to matching James’ mark. Records, as they say, are meant to be broken, but it would take a truly unbelievable career for anyone to top James’ All-NBA streak. That officially comes to an end and is the latest reminder that the end of the James era is nearly upon us. 

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