Jokic leads All-NBA first team; Doncic, SGA set for supermax - ESPN

After winning his third Most Valuable Player award in four years earlier this month, Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic headlined this year's All-NBA teams by earning his sixth selection in a row and fourth overall on Wednesday.

Jokic, who was supplanted on the first team last season by 2022-23 MVP Joel Embiid of Philadelphia, led the balloting, the first year of the award being positionless — in part because of the annual slugfest between the two for the one first-team All-NBA center spot.

The irony is that Embiid is one of several players this season — along with Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell, New York Knicks forward Julius Randle and Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler — who made All-NBA last season but wasn't eligible this year due to the newly created 65-game rule for top awards.

Despite the rule change, joining Jokic on the first-team are four players besides Embiid who were named first-team All-NBA last year: Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic, Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo and Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum.

It was the sixth straight first-team selection for Antetokounmpo; fifth consecutive selection for Doncic; the third straight for Tatum; and the second in a row for Gilgeous-Alexander. Jokic and Gilgeous-Alexander are the only unanimous first-team picks.

Doncic becomes the third player with five first-team All-NBA selections before turning 26, joining Tim Duncan and Kevin Durant.

For Doncic and Gilgeous-Alexander, the All-NBA nods mean they are poised for supermax extensions that can be signed in 2025, both of which would set records.

Doncic can sign a five-year deal worth about $346 million, starting at nearly $60 million in