This content is taken from an article by Mac Pham for The Lead SMtranslated into Italian by Marco Marchese for Around the Game.
The NBA is experiencing an unprecedented number of injuries and physical problems. Overall, 35% of the league has already suffered an injury. The NBA’s Player Participation Policy criterion is valid for every player who has participated in at least one All-Star Game or has been selected to an All-NBA Team in the last 3 years. Last year at this point in the season, the number of games missed by players who met the Player Participation Policy criteria was 67, while this year it stands at 83, an increase of 23%.
All-Stars are increasingly affected by injuries
In other words, in 1 out of 4 NBA games players who fall within the definition of “star” for the Player Participation Policy are absent. This season, 49 players who fit these criteria have already missed at least one Regular Season match, including Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant e Zion Williamson. Other players from the same circle have made up this list since the first day of the 2024/25 season, including Joel Embiid, Kawhi Leonard e Paul George. And the list goes on and on. Here are some players who will miss several weeks of play:
- Kevin Durant (calf strain);
- Ja Morant (right hip subluxation);
- Paolo Banchero (torn right oblique muscle);
- Tyrese Maxey (right hamstring injury);
Other players who do not yet fit the above criteria have also had to deal with physical problems:
- Kristaps Porzingis (right foot problem);
- Aaron Gordon (right calf strain);
- Malik Monk (sprained right ankle);
- Chet Holmgren (fractured right hip);
- Khris Middleton (right ankle problem);
- Lonzo Ball (recovering from right wrist injury);
This list includes picks #1 and #2 Draft 2022that is to say Paolo Banchero e Chet Holmgrenand #1 and #2 of Draft 2019, Zion Williamson e Ja Morant.
Problems in the Playoffs: Eastern Conference
Since the NBA talent exploded definitively there has not been a season in which the stars have all remained fully fit and intact for the Playoffs. Just look at the last 5 editions of the Eastern Conference Finals – in which the Boston Celtics2 times i Miami Heat ed i Milwaukee Bucks. In 2020 the teams were all in good shape and health apart Giannis Antetokounmpo who missed the last 2 matches of the Semifinals against the Heat. In 2021 Jaylen Brown missed the entire postseason, while Jimmy Butler he was injured during the Playoffs. For a moment it also seemed that Giannis had suffered a bad knee injury during the Eastern Conference Finals. In 2022 Khris Middleton he was injured in the First Round, and missed the next round against the Celtics. In 2023 Antetokounmpo was injured in Game 1 of the First Round, and then missed 2 more games against the Heat. Jayson Tatum he suffered an injury in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals against Miami. Finally, in 2024 Damian Lillard and Giannis missed most of the games in the series loss to the Indiana Pacers. Butler was knocked out by an injury against the Philadelphia 76erswhich put him out of action for the remainder of the postseason. There hasn’t really been a year in the last 5 in which the major franchises in the East – Boston, Milwaukee, Miami – have competed with all the men available.
In the Western Conference the situation is no better
The sheer scale of the Western Conference carnage has dashed the postseason hopes of franchises like the Los Angeles Clippersi New Orleans Pelicans ed i Memphis Grizzlies. After the Clippers’ first Conference Finals appearance in 2022, Kawhi Leonard he missed the entire Regular Season and Paul George missed the challenge of Play-In Tournament. In 2022 the Pelicans reached the Playoffs after defeating the Clippers in the Play-In. In the following season they were the main candidates for the 1st seed until December. But then Zion Williamson suffered a hamstring injury in January, missing the rest of the season. And NOLA has dropped out of the Playoffs talk. In 2022 the Grizzlies and the Sacramento Kings they were 2nd and 3rd seeds in the Western Conference, respectively. The following year Ja Morant played only 9 games after missing 25 due to suspension and then another 48 due to injury. The Grizzlies did not reach the Playoffs at the end of the season. After returning to the Playoffs after a long absence, the Kings disfigured last post-season. They lost key players like Malik Monk e Kevin Huerter in 9 of the last 14 games between Regular Season and Play-In.
The fans’ frustration
With each new season both conferences feel like a battleground before hostilities begin, with the number of subsequent injuries increasing. Certainly injuries are part of the game. But the amount of injuries to key players is nothing more than a knife stuck in the side of franchises and fans.
The league is more talented than ever, but several key challenges are being deprived of their protagonists, who over time have made events important with their presence on the field. As the season progresses, it would appear that franchises have a large number of games to play without their best players. In a world where fans make millions of dollars in ticket sales during the regular season, their frustration at not being able to witness the best level of world basketball has increased.
There are no culprits. The athletes undergo rigorous routines during the off-season, the medical and coaching staff do their utmost to ensure the players remain in excellent health. But as long as the stars continue to skip the cartel challenges, especially in the post-season, the NBA will have to find alternative solutions.
Some have proposed the idea of shortening the Regular Season. Others have mentioned a better load managementas recent studies have revealed that there is no link between the reduction of the risk of injury and rest. It is hoped that evolving training styles and the medical field will provide answers in the coming years. For now, fans will have to reluctantly accept the reality of the facts: injuries are part of the game and their number is destined to grow.
