What should be the games-played minimum for NBA awards?

Let's have an awards debate.

No, no, notthatone. We'vealready been through enough nonsense, goalpost-moving, half-bakedarguments and general toxicity in that debate. Let's zoom out abit. Let's take a step back.

While most focus on what the criteria should be for winning anaward like MVP — oops, I said it — and what makes one candidatemore valuable than the other, I always find myself going back to amore simple question: what should be the parameters for evenqualifyingfor the award?

Or put another way: how many games should a player have toparticipate in to garner consideration for that award, or anyaward?

There's been an unwritten-rule feel to the question in the past.There are qualifications for stat leaderboards; you must appear inat least 58 games to qualify for the scoring title, for example.But we don't have anything firm for awards — at least not yet.

Per Shams Charania of The Athletic, it would appear the leagueand its players are at least in agreement thatsomething firm should be in place. From Charania:

The NBA and National BasketballPlayers Association arein advanced discussions on a newcollective bargaining agreementand the two sides aregetting closer to agreeing on a stipulation thataplayer must play in a minimum number of regular seasongamesto be eligible for major awards, sourcestellThe Athletic.

Top league and players unionofficials held a Competition Committee meeting on Friday to discussan issue both sides are jointly motivated on: star players playingin more games, and staying healthy enough so that the NBA candisplay its best talent on a night-to-night basis. Both sides arein agreement on tying major awards to games played over the courseof the season, sources said, a possibilityThe Athletic’sMike Vorkunov first reported on Feb. 14.

According to sources with knowledgeof both sides of the discussions, while both sides still need tocome to an agreement on the number of games that players would needto play in order to qualify for awards,the two sides do agreeon the concept.

It makes sense that there's an amount of time you're on thefloor to qualify as the best or most valuablesomethingin the league. Some voters have their owncutoffs, or at least use games played (or minutes played) as atiebreaker. Having a firm number in place gives players clarityand, to a nod of convenience, gives voters an objective measure tohelp trim their lists before sorting through their owncriteria.

Finding that minimum is going to be interesting. There's abalance to be struck between setting the bar high enough to trulyreward players for getting out there, but having it low enough tosafeguard against injuries, team absences due to personal mattersor even season maintenance (we won't use l*** mana****** inhere).

I've landed on 60% of games in recent years — 49 in an 82-gameschedule — as a barometer, but 1) I'm not an official voter (hi,NBA) and 2) even that falls below the scoring title requirement,which is probably a sign to consider raising my personal barhigher.

"I know for me, it's pretty hard to justify voting for someonewho hasn't gotten into at least 50-55 games," Chris Herring ofSports Illustrated told Basketball News.

Some of ESPN's most notable analysts think the bar should behigher.

"I think 65 games is reasonable now. Maybe even 60 if someone isjust overwhelmingly better," ESPN's Zach Lowe told Basketball News."I mean, we should just put 70 games in as the expected number ofgames for a healthy player at this point anyway."

"I want to examine the effects of the schedule, theback-to-backs or the stretches of three-games-in-four-nights,"ESPN's Doris Burke tells Basketball News. "But off the top of myhead, I'd say 65 games, or maybe even 70 to be honest withyou."

Former head coach and current TNT analyst Stan Van Gundy(in)famously sets his bar at 80% of games, which is right in linewith the 65-game suggestion from Lowe and Burke.

When I tossed the question out to socialmedia, specifically in regard to the MVP, the most commonanswers I got were 65 and 70 games.