Basketball, especially in the NBA, is extremely hard on the players’ bodies. The pace is faster than ever and the action is non-stop except for free throws, time-outs and the end of quarters and half-time. Injuries, especially to the stars, are more prevalent than ever. Changes are needed immediately or the game will lose its popularity because basketball’s attraction is based mostly on the game’s stars being available to play.
There are just too many games. Eighty two games are not needed in order to decide who deserves to participate in the play-offs. Remember, the play-offs themselves can take as many as another 28 games to decide a champion. No fan, player, team or league official really wants the championship decided by injuries or which team is the healthiest. It should be decided by which team is the best at full strength if at all possible.
The Denver Nuggets are a good example of a very good team that has lost its top players to injury. Three time MVP Nicola Jokic has already missed 16 games, 2 shy of being ineligible for MVP with 21 games left. Aaron Gordon has already missed 23 games, Christian Braun 31 games, Cam Johnson 17 games and Jonas Valanciunas 11 games.
As of March 1, 2026, other stars throughout the NBA who are at the threshold of being ineligible for post season awards are Lauri Markannen, 16 games, Devin Booker, 15, Evan Mobley, 15, Kawhi Leonard, 14, Victor Wembanyama, 14, Deni Avdija,13, Luka Doncic, 12, Shai Gilgeous Alexander, 11, Anthony Edwards 10, and Cooper Flagg, 10. The following star players will not even reach the required 65 games to be eligible: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jimmy Butler, Steph Curry, Anthony Davis, Joel Imbiid, Josh Giddy, LeBron James, Austin Reaves, Domantas Sabonis, Franz Wagner and Jalen Williams.
The players and owners are taking the game of basketball in the wrong direction because of their greed. Why do the players have to make the astronomical salaries they are paid, as high as 60 million per year on multiyear contracts. Since there is a salary cap, which increases with television money every few years, both owners and players will continue to make more in the future.
In my mind, the only solution to the injury problem is to cut the number of games to no more than 72, even if the season has to be extended a week. This way there will be no back to back games and teams will have a better chance to compete at full strength. It is a huge disadvantage for a team that played the night before to have to play a team that did not play the previous night.
For people who argue that individual records will be affected, most individual records are based on averages, not totals. The most important consideration is the health of the players and that every team has its best opportunity to play at its best. The fans and the game of basketball deserves this.
