Load Management
In 2018, Kawi Leonard played 60 games. If you look at his injury report for that season you will see the word “rest” and “load management” more times then not, 14 times to be exact. Leonard missed 14 games due to resting out of an 82 game season. What did he get for it - a NBA championship. But this wasn't about Kawi missing games. This is about a new strategy for NBA superstars called load management and how it could ruin the league.
Load management is when players (almost exclusively stars) skip regular season games so that they can be fit and healthy during the postseason. Teams measure the amount of stress player are applying to their body during practice, training sessions and, of course, games. Scientists, coaches, players and owners use this data to see when a player might hit his load capacity (e.g. when to sit a game). If a player is going to reach his load capacity, he rests to make sure he can recover and lower the chance of injury. He sits games so he won’t miss longer amounts of time during a period that may be crucial to his team. Take the 2019 finals. In the 2018 - 19 season, Klay Thompson and Kevin Durant both played 78 regular season games, but when the finals came around both suffered injuries. This let a healthy Leonard and the Raptors beat the wounded Warriors and Steph Curry in 6 games. However, this creates a massive problem for the league. The NBA is a league built off of superstars. That's what makes it exciting for fans and financially lucrative for the league. Unlike baseball or football you can recognize players and their impact on the game. But, if your content is based off of a product that doesn't show up, then you don’t have very good content. This becomes a problem when superstars (like Kawi) miss national televised games - games networks like ESPN pay 1.4 billion dollars to televise. This has caused a reduction in attendance. If the guy someone wants to watch isn’t there, why go? This creates another question.
Why aren't players wanting to play? Short answer, their getting hurt. 2021 saw more injuries since 2009 and the rate of injuries among players keeps increasing. The game now is much more athletically demanding that player are just slowly diminishing their bodies through the season. Part of this has to do with the NBA’s grueling schedule. NBA players not only play 82 games but also on back to back nights sometimes in different cities. So, it makes load management look like a really good idea for NBA superstars.
So here are some possible solutions.
No more Back to Backs!
Most players are sitting out back to back games anyway, so why have them at all. Part of the load management problem is the lack of down time for players bodies to rest. No back to backs eliminate the need to sit out those games and will help stars stay on the court with no injuries.
Decrease the number of games
The NBA’s season is one of the longest seasons in sports, with 82 games in just 240 days with a game about every 3 days and sometimes even back to back. Yet basketball is becoming a game that you can’t just play every other day without getting injured, especially not at the speed that the game is played at today. So, decreasing the number of games not only shortens the game load on players but also gives a longer off season. However, this would require everyone, including players, to take a pay cut.
Lengthen the season
Part of the load management problem is that teams are playing 82 games in just 240 days. Why not make it 250 days or 260. Instead of having the finals in June, have it in August or late July. This will keep the revenue the same while also giving players more time to rest.
In the end, it's not just on the players for not playing. Its overly cautious front offices that try to keep their teams fit for when it will matter the most. This is why the solution must fall on the NBA. The value that the NBA has over other leagues is the star recognition beyond its teams. But if the stars stop playing then the product goes away. So if the NBA wants to keep its product, it's going to have to figure out a way to take care of it. I personally think eliminating back to back games is the best starting point (and also the most likely to happen). If the NBA doesn't do something soon it could hurt the league.