Adam Silver has dictated that no all-league awards shall be given to players who miss 20% of games, and teams can't freely rest players without incurring fines.
This season may prove how horrid is the awards threshold, since we can all see that Jokic (for example) will likely still lead the league in VORP and maybe WS in <65 games.
The Jazz have resorted to having all their stars get some surgery as an "excused absence", so they can optimize their chances next season and beyond.
What kind of "fans" are more excited to see their team expose their core players to possible injury, rather than see what their "project" players might do? Gamblers maybe?
Don't real/devoted fans want to see playoffs with healthy and rested star players?