LeBron James' injury news means one of the NBA's most impressive streaks is over

LeBron James is, without a doubt, the best player in NBA history when it comes to dominance over such a long period of time.

James is currently in his 23rd season in the NBA, yet is still a consistent scorer and playmaker despite some drops in production over the past couple of years.

Age and injuries have played their role, and even though he is still putting up top-tier numbers, there's one reason out of his control why one of his greatest streaks is about to come to an end.

What incredible streak of LeBron's is set to end?

Players sitting out in the NBA has become an issue over the last decade, so the NBA finally decided to implement a regular-season game minimum that players must meet to be eligible for postseason awards.

LeBron James has always been able to stay on the court, but in the last seven seasons, he's played 56 or fewer games in four out of those seasons.

If that happened under the new award system rules, he would not have been eligible for postseason awards, since players now need a minimum of 65 games played to receive awards like MVP, All-NBA, All-Defense, etc.

MORE: Jaren Jackson Jr. could be traded due to domino effect if Ja Morant is moved, NBA insider reveals

We're currently halfway through January, and we already know that LeBron James has almost no chance of meeting the 65-game minimum.

He has already missed 17 games this season, which means he cannot miss a single game going forward in the rest of the regular season if he wants to be able to be eligible for postseason awards.

We might not have to wait long to find out when that's official, as he was listed as questionable against the Hawks on Tuesday night.

Even if LeBron does play, it's highly unlikely that he'll play every single game to finish the season with the injuries he's been nursing, as well as the Lakers' cautious approach to when they choose to let the 41-year-old play and not play.

Once he is officially ineligible for these awards, his 21-year streak of being nominated to an All-NBA team will come to an end.

MORE: Cavaliers reveal stance on De'Andre Hunter ahead of upcoming NBA trade deadline

This will be the first and only time since 2003-04 (his rookie season) that LeBron won't be nominated to one of the three All-NBA teams.

He already has a sizeable lead in career All-NBA career nominations, six ahead of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who is in second place all-time with 15 selections.

Through 20 games this season, LeBron is averaging 22.0 points, 5.5 rebounds and 6.8 assists, as the Lakers sit in 5th place in the West with a 23-14 record.

With how well several other players are playing this season, it wasn't a guarantee that LeBron would be named to one of the All-NBA teams, but once he becomes ineligible for the award, his name won't be on voting ballots.

More NBA articles:

• Celtics' Jaylen Brown has sarcastic wish granted, gets hefty fine after latest comments
• Why Knicks fans will have to root for New York villain Trae Young on the Wizards
• Rockets make a decision on Ja Morant ahead of NBA Trade Deadline
• Caitlin Clark gives two-word reaction to Celtics backup center's recent success
• Trading for Ja Morant may be impossible for one key reason
• Raptors' aggressively pursued former 30 PPG all-star before last trade deadline