With three stars possibly lost for next season due to torn tendons in the playoffs, and the title game potentially turning on a major injury, the topic of reducing the 82-game per club regular season was set for the spotlight once again.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver spoke upon the issue earlier this month after Tatum and Golden State’s Stephen Curry suffered major playoff injuries.
Silver said the NBA provides more playoff rest days than in prior seasons and said there is “no data” to suggest fewer regular-season games would produce fewer injuries.
“I’m not sure it’s a function of the regular season,” Silver said. “There’s a certain cadence to the playoffs. If anything, there’s more space in the playoff games than when you and I grew up in the NBA. We used to frequently play playoff games back-to-back on the weekends.
“Having said that, we, of course, look at it very closely.”
Silver said the NBA competition committee will next meet in July at Las Vegas.
Denver Nuggets star Aaron Gordon spoke up about what some players call “fatigue-based injuries” in the playoffs after the load of a full season.
“Part of what we do is look at every form of data that we can get our hands on. That includes minutes played, injuries, and whatever impact we see that back-to-backs are having on players — not just measured by injuries, but also measured by production on the floor,” Silver said.
“We’re going to continue to look at it. I don’t think there are any magic bullets here. In fact, injuries are considered down this playoffs from what has been historically.”
The NBA starts a new 11-year media rights deal worth $76 billion next season.
“Money is part of it, there’s no question about it. We’re a business,” Silver said. “But having said that, I don’t really see the benefit to reducing the number of games.
“People used to say you should reduce the number of games because it will lead to reduction in the number of injuries. There’s absolutely no data to suggest that.”
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