Paid $70 to see Embiid and the Sixers play Jokic and the Nuggets. I’ve always believed Embiid is overrated and soft, and that game proved it. He sat out, I think to not get absolutely yammed on by a real MVP right before voting. Embiid winning MVP cemented in my mind that the NBA cares more about their image more than recognizing real talent. Shameful.

This is one of the reasons Kobe stated why he plays through injuries, is that he wants to make sure fans that pay tickets to see him play, will get their money's worth esp. kids that go to live games to inspire the next gen.

I remember apologizing to my coach and teammates when I got injured. It hurt more not being able to go out with them than any injury.

Some people say it is easier to find a 4 leaf clover than to see Kawhi Leonard play on game night

If I had to work 4 hours a day, 82 days a year I would be ashamed if I took off 25% of those shifts.

Michael Jordan played 82 games at 40 years old. Keep that in mind.

The science you brought up at the end I 100% agree with. I know it’s a different sport but in baseball when the Angels staff gave shohei ohtani breaks between his pitching and hitting games he was very injury prone, and since they started giving him a heavier work load he’s produced at a higher level AND has received far less injuries than he used to.

We like to get on Pop for starting this, however what needs to be remembered is that even with load management, they not only won, they showed up when needed.

The NBA has really been mid to garbage for the past 10 years... definitely last 5 for sure. Even when I've attended some games the energy often feels dead. And this just isnt basketball (but mostly).

Like you with the flopping situation, the load management drives me up the wall.

Adam Silver has to tighten up this ship. There are a lot of little problems sprouting in this league that will severely harm the product soon if he just sits back and let's the players/coaches do whatever they want.

When I first heard of a player sitting due to "load management", I thought it was a slick word for the bubble-guts.

The load management is BS. Players are more pampered and better taken care of today then any other time in the history of the NBA. So my question is, how did players of the past seem to manage a full 82 games year after year. Load management is making us soft and lazy.

A lot of those superstars in 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, 2000s played 80-82 games and another 20 games in the playoffs. And some of the physicalities of the league back then. Not to mention some players back in the 70s, 80s had off the court demons they were battling. Now you have better techniques for recovery after games, better nutrition, top of the line trainers, and top of the line weight training and facilities. No reason for this type of load management for $100M plus players.

Zion and PJ Washington could've used some damn load management

The Social Media era has destroyed the meaning of being a celebrity (the allure is gone)/ NBA athlete and diminishing the quality of basketball itself! NBA basketball (the North American version of basketball) promotes individual stars and in turn stars focus moreso on their brands and less on the team aspect of basketball and playing basketball itself. There is far seldom now teammate commradarie in the NBA than ever before And that's what kills the product itself and allows star players to load manage or request trades during their contracts at will! The NBA is not true basketball anymore. Hopefully the new CBA changes that

If they wanna load manage, fine. Have a fixed, and I mean *fixed* schedule of games where the player does and does not play. Just schedule it for the entire 82-game stretch. Don't add some more days out the whim, unless the player's injured of course or if they're competing for a playoff spot, just plan this crap out entirely. And when it's planned out, go public with it. That way, the entire team can expect to adjust their game plan once the star player decides to rest, and fans won't be ripped off.

Special Forces training is all stress inoculation. Car owners of the fastest machines have to routinely drive them hard or else hoses and seals dry-rot from neglect. These are both forms of stress cycling. Without it, our bodies and minds begin to lose resilience. If you try to push harder after a long break, injuries become more likely. But NBA players found a way to stay hurt, on the bench, and get paid even more. Ridiculous to us peasants paying their wages.

Kawhi my favorite player but It definitely doesn't work. 98% of injuries are freak accidents that were unavoidable

I LOVE that you take the bottom up approach which favors the working man and the common when referencing and referring to instances in the NBA. Keep up this amazing commentary.

Load management saved us from having to potentially watch the Clippers in the finals 😂

Load management in my opinion is great, get these guy on court 12-20mins in game. But the idea of sitting for multiple games every season will hurt player and fans

I remember Coach Pop resting his players 😂. People were PISSSSSSSSED💀

No work, no pay. Won't be an immediate fix but will probably improve the situation going forward.

Yeah I agree, for me I see playing as a form of conditioning, like sure you condition throughout the week but it is nothing like the games and even playoffs. You need to get game time on the court so you can experience that uptick in physicality and “wear and tear” that isn’t as readily available when in practice.

Agreed with load management, but I have to ask, isnt Kawhi's case unique with a degenerative knee issue? I'm no doctor but everything I have heard is that there is no "cure for it" you can only manage it

How this channel doesnt have more subscribers is fckin wild. Dude is funny as hell and has solid takes.

Same thing here, bought tickets in advance three years ago in anticipation to see Luca, Kawhi and Kyrie....none of them showed up 😢

😂OMG!!! Bro, You so Right....How you gonna Pay them more for Less.... During my day you played, Period!...And get side-eyed if you claimed to be hurt....

Yea this is all true. Load management is a very stupid idea/concept but I do think if a player gets injured than yea sit out a couple of games but if there’s nothing wrong then get on the court

The best way to train for physical strain is to put yourself under that physical strain. Overtraining in the gym or in rehab can hurt you more than playing the sport itself.

The ticket prices are wild. Hell everything cost too much anymore.

'Load management' is absolutely pathetic. More like lazy. I miss the old NBA when players would dislocate their finger (Kobe) and still play the game. Or players driving to the hoop would get their legs taken out and they would hop right back on their feet and keep playing.

The problem with so many of these young guys is that they've been paying aau ball year round everyday and already have a lot of miles on their body, making them fragile.

Part-time work deserves part-time pay.

Oh yeah I been waiting for this. Also, I saw your most recent video. I'm sorry to hear about all the shit your going through. But just know, it will pass. God will always be on your side, and you will always have people who support and love your content. May He bless you, and stay safe brother 💪🏾💪🏾💪🏾🙏🙏🙏

Paid $700 for 4th row tix for blazers and lakers this last yr. A week before, LeBron twisted his ankle. $700 to watch LeBron shoot form shots during timeouts

This frustrates me to no end. If it were a day here or there that would be one thing but 30-40 games a season is retarded. Like say, maybe once or twice a season a player were to say, "Look, I just really needed to take a day off and not be around anyone (especially the media) and just clear my head and get myself together, I'll be right back at it tomorrow." I wouldn't care, hell I don't think 99% of fans would care. We get it. Being a pro athlete is stressful (maybe not as stressful as other jobs in certain respects but it is stressful). However, at this point the entire association is completely out of balance. Particularly for the money they're making. Then you have the players basically acting like fans are disposable and their complaints are invalid. What that ignores is fans are not fans, they're paying customers, and you ignore or antagonize them at your own risk. I don't know what the solution is, other than to say the NBA needs to ditch Adam Silver and get some stronger leadership. I think back on David Stern, who was a vicious, meddlesome, relentless and mercurial tyrant, and G-d almighty do I miss him. The one thing Stern never took from the players was any crap. He made things stick, and that's what you need in a situation like that. I'm sure he overreacted to certain things, and I'm sure there were plenty of points when the players hated him. However, that was exactly what the situation called for. Silver's problem is he wants the players to like him, and to be the best leader in an organization like that there are going to be points when people don't like you, and you have to be okay with that. I taught middle and high school math for a couple of years, there were plenty of times the kids didn't like me, that's what the situation called for.

Most of my jobs have been very physical.. Where your constantly pushing past whats comfortable. With every say off you feel yourself getting weaker, and its harder to push through. Its EASIER to just make sure you dont miss days..keeps you conditioned better. ALL of us have a 'natural' body...as in this is the point you maintain your mass or strength.. flexibility ect. Then theres peak conditon...wich cant be maintained if you take breaks. You mentioned movong furniture , was last job I did. .. and every day off you are losing that "peak condition" for that job. You really need to go every day...or sometimes you lack the strength physically AND mentally. Ive watched as sincw 90s we started concentrating on "mental heatlh". Yet NOW, it seems to be MORE of a problem.. People today are mentally weaker and more of population crazy than ever. Probsbly because we MAKE EXCUSES now for people instead of EXPECT BETTER.

People have so many different opinions, but this is true right here. Kids shouldn’t play year round from an early age like they do these days. It’s ridiculous, and load management is merely based on speculation of wear and tear, not actual. But I tend to agree with this assessment….if you don’t work a certain muscle, it’s gonna get messed up when you do start working it. Plain and simple

Load management = The thing that keeps players signing checks when they should be retired…….

I think you have the situation of Davis and Kawhi reversed respectfully. I think Kawhi in his case is brittle, and truly prone to injury. And when he gets hurt it makes sense how he got hurt. It’s also commonly known he has degenerative arthritis and he’s likely going to retire early. Davis literally gets touched and he’s writhing in pain like he got shot. Kawhi blew his Acl in the Jazz game and walked off the court without it a fuss.

Good points overall except load management actually worked for the Spurs and only the Spurs. Pop started to load manage Duncan Parker and Ginobili when they were already accomplished with multiple championships, old and at the end of their careers mid to late 30s. And guess what? They still won championships after that. The difference is these teams today fail and don't know how to do it the Spurs way so at this point they're doing it to rob the fans.

I agree with the last thing you said about not exposing your body to the stress enough. Now I’m not a world class athlete or whatever, but as someone that worked intensive manual labour and had one job that worked 5 days a week consistently vs one that worked 2-4 days a week with sometimes weeks off at a time I was getting significantly more injured and sore working less than working more. yeah working 5 days a week 9-12 hours a day sucked and I was sore the first couple weeks, starting But after that I was fine.

Just watched another video reminding me age 40 MJ played all 82 games his 2nd Wizards season, with a bad knee. He was 10th in the league in scoring. Age 40. LeBron never played 82 games after age 32

Well said Commish !!

Glad you took on this topic. Excellent commentary!

Load Management is like FMLA 😂. They are literally in L.A enjoying pay and family time

Congratulations on 15k commissioner hope all the best for you

Keep up the great content bro!

1. Make a stipulation where they have to play a specific game minimum unless there is a directly diagnosed injury that stops them from playing. They should also not be appearing in games (this’ll lead into my 2nd point). I think this will lead to proper recovery management, where players will be forced to actually sit out if they actually have issues going on of whatever variety. 2. If players aren’t in the game at all but aren’t diagnosed with an injury, they should be participating in some outside basketball event, such as coaching a local high school game. If they are in the game but aren’t wanting play, they should be doing other activities with fans before or after the game, such as playing HORSE/PIG or talking basketball with them (this potentially during the game). 3. Load management seems to just involve too much sitting out when it’s not necessary, and it’s not even just that it’s bad for business and entertainment and whatnot, but it’s that it legitimately can derail you. You need to be warming up and CONDITIONING your body in order to be able to play, and frankly too many players don’t do that

The moment load management will affect their salaries, they will start the play.

SAID principle (Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demands) states that the body will change to meet the stresses it's put through so if you stop stressing those systems they regress and don't adapt to meet the required output. Off-season you train hard to improve physical conditioning, in-season you enter a maintenance phase to keep at that established level. if they're out of a game for load management they should still be in the warm-ups and should still be doing workouts at say, 75-80% intensity to keep in touch. I don't believe this is happening in the NBA today

Thank you for speaking on this for real ❤

Some dudes are like a sports car, you have to take them to high gear in order to function correctly. Others have to lean into it. Until the wheels are spinning and is on fire, or slow and steady.

You’re spot on dude, as someone who’s irresponsibly taken numerous physical layoffs in my 20s, whether it be due to work, stress, the weather, etc. it’s always tough to come back. Your body just isn’t the same and if you rush back too quick you’re bound to suffer long term consequences. I would frame NBA load management like this: no problem if a guy is dealing with something minor and decides to sit out the back end of a back to back to avoid making it something serious, but imo that healthy scratch shouldn’t mean “be sedentary all day” (granted I have no idea what players do on load management days, I would hope they’re at least getting a chill workout in). This isn’t necessarily load management, I call it being careful. However, if you are regimenting rest a la AD you are literally conditioning the body to accept that as the new “normal”. NBA doesn’t play everyday anyway. Don’t get me wrong, I hate that back-to-backs still exist in NBA & NHL, but if you’re consistently sitting out games for “load management” you should either be shut down completely and rehabbed or simply restrict a guy’s in-game minutes (wild to me that this compromise is never suggested on the big sports shows). The AAU glue factory makes this problem even worse no doubt, and to me the only way to really solve the issue is to find a way to develop guys coming up without playing so many damn games before players even hit their primes. I hate the discourse around load management because conservative cranks like Whitlock and Cowherd use it to dogwhistle the “NBA players (and thus black people) are lazy” stereotype, when it’s not necessarily the players’ faults. Just a shit situation overall and barely anyone gives it the nuance it deserves. S/O for your content bro, you’re helping me survive the off-season 🙏🏼

If you go 100% once a week, and maybe up to 85% in practice, your body will acclimate to that. If you “load manage” and only play 100% once in a while, then when you do play all-out your body will not be as efficient at handling the stress you’re placing on it. Possibly even leading to more injuries over time. You will probably have a longer career, but a much less consistent one.

You're absolutely right. Anyone that works out regularly can attest to this fact. It's fine to take a week off on occasion, but if not you're consistently pushing yourself, then when you do push yourself you're going to hurt more often. The first workout back is always worse than the workout when you're tired. Now if you're hurt, and achy sore instead of tired sore, by all means, take a day off. Plus the NBA needs to step in, we don't need less games, but the NBA needs to respect its fans and buyers more and put a stop to load management, if you're hurt, sit out otherwise you play or don't get paid. It absolutely hurts the product when fans buy a Lakers ticker only for LeBron to be taking a day off. Why buy a ticket if the stars aren't there. Dad used to buy us tickets to a game near us when Jordan's bulls were in visiting that team, imagine if Jordan load managed....dad would never buy an NBA ticket. Because why would he? And you make a great point, the NBA doesn't even play everyday so like wtf?

Hey Commish, Ahh the load management problem. Yes players need to be protected. But so do fans, maybe even more so. Thoughtful video. 🇯🇲🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

Honestly I think it goes deeper than that, it's the whole AAU system at fault. Overwork is real, and those kids go through it. Wear and tear builds up to the point that by the time they're in their mid 20s their body starts breaking down.

Great take, you make good content!

Bruh! That didn’t work in my house. My mom sent me to school with a full blown Fever. When the nurse called my mom to pick me up. She was like “sure I’ll be picking him up at 3:30pm when I get off work, until then he might as well go back to class”.

I could be wrong but also, load management is a good way to pad stats on the sense of shoot performance. Player 1 has a higher shooting percentage vs player 2 but player 2 played more games. Meaning more shots.

My take is that if you want to load manage you need to earn it. It’s one thing if you’re lebron James who is 38 and has literally spent more than 50% of his life in the nba but ja morant is literally in his 3rd year

As a fan of the NBA that is getting increasingly frustrated with the product I’ll just load-manage my money Not worth paying hundreds of dollars for a ticket to watch players load manage, live and die by the 3-point line and increasingly more interested in iso plays that end with a dunk over a player rather than actual teamwork

Load management is a crock. We have indisputable proof. On most NHL teams the top 6 skaters play 90%+ of an 82 game season, 18+ minutes a night (injuries not withstanding). I played 60 game Jrs hockey seasons without a break, and I'm nowhere near the athletic specimen that is an NBA player. The only reason "load management" can even exist is because of the soft cap. The disparity in talent between the best and worst teams is large enough to where they can justify sitting the best players for most, if not an entire game.

It's funny the more load management the more players get injured

All I gotta say is MJ played 82 at the age of 40

The league needs to penalize load managed players should they make it in the playoffs ...like 1 playoff game suspension for every 3 load managed regular season games

Load management is just a excuse for players to not play . A spit in the face of fans. Kawhi used to be my favorite player when he won in Toronto but since then he’s become an after thought. A what if type player.

Great job Commissioner❤❤

This makes me appreciate Kobe more. If he was physically able to play, he'll lace them up. He said that as a kid in Philly, he was in the cheap seats watching Jordan play and thought every kid deserved that so he pushed himself to be that for them.

Load Management Doesn't Work!! Ultimately lowers the player's durability during the postseason.

IMO if you're not a player with an Injury history like D Rose then i don't wanna hear it when it comes to load management. Rose has been on load management for the last 5yrs because he's shown to fuck up his knee/ankles when he has too much playing time, while a lot of these players that do it are just lazy and sit out for weeks when there's any signs of cramping

The fact that he hasn't played the back end of a back to back in literal years is wild. That's like if I called my boss every other day and said I can't come to work

MJ played 82 w a bad knee at 40 yrs old w the wizards..

I go to work more that 82 times a year, and I have to do 12+hours of manual labor vs 30 minutes of throwing a 5lb basketball 😂 I wish I was 6'8" 😂

i couldn’t imagine working maybe an average of 4-6 hours a day playing a sport and working out for my job and missing half the year or more bc my knee or ankle hurt. being a professional athlete, regardless of all the fame and fortune, has to be one of the easiest jobs in human history. i hate hearing these guys complain about injury and mental health. you have the money for good doctors, lawyers, and therapists that can help you with all these problems. idgaf about these guys problems most of us are out here tryna decide whether we want food or gas.

My problem with load management is they complain that the season is too long and 82 games is too much but the nba has always been 82 games this is the only generation that complains that the season is too grueling I thought this is the best generation of talent ever I thought this is the best the game has ever been back in the day if a player was healthy they had to play every game preseason regular season and postseason especially the stars I think what it really boils down to is these guys aren’t hoopers anymore they’re celebrities they put themselves over the game and the fans

Load management in basketball is bs. Happens in sports like soccer but part of the reason is limited substitutions. If you want to load manage, reduced minutes.

Gilbert Arenas talked about it, the practices too soft on top of all the rest so the body not used to the constant play

I’d love to see data on how effective load management is. Bc there are so many things and biases that could affect the perception that it doesn’t seem to prevent injury. But what those doctors u quoted are saying has been my hypothesis for some time. But that doesn’t make it true. So I’d love someone to get the data together.

Sometimes they have to use load management as just a walk through cause they deserve the accolades. I mean if im working out everyday of course I deserve millions of dollars

MJ’s biggest issue of contention with ownership b4 the last dance season was when he broke his foot in ‘85 and wanted to come back when there was still risk of re-breaking it worse instead of sitting out the entire rest of the season like they wanted him to

For big guys(centers mostly) I understand the bodys isnt made to take all that weight coming down on the feet but if your a guard though powerforward (not all some) and your young you shouldn't need load management

The human body is really weird but when you get momentum your body sometimes heals faster in minor injuries, i play soccer regularly and sometimes the ball hits you and no problem, took 2 weeks off bcs the bad weather and played a game where a shot in my leg that normally the day after is just annoying but nothing serious, it was a 3 day bruise that make walking kinda painfull, its really complex load managment bcs there isnt perfect information but it never is, if Isaia Thomas showed something is that with more games you have more chances of winning, some would retired after that lost when he sprained his ankle badly in 1988, but he kept on playing and had back to back, i think Jokic wouldnt want to lose games just bcs load managment, good video like always :)

Im willing to give the players all the benefit of a doubt as they are human at the end of the day.. IF the NBA becomes transparent with the load management schedule so people know whos playing when they buy their tickets. I have a feeling they'll never do that tho because I KNOW them ticket sells are gonna hurt.

Why did they even introduce this term?? Lol just say tenderness or soreness. Also if you gotta manage your load... Pause... You should have to do a meet and greet or sign autographs for an hour or something.

i think the theory behind it works better than the actual execution. it makes sense that if a player plays less theyre less likely to get injured. but its just not true. injuries can happen at any point no matter what. Kawhi and PG are prime examples. with LeBron its understandable bc of his age tho but everyone else its pointless.

They recently implemented that if you don’t play 65 games you cannot receive awards for that season

Load managing is the equivalent of making plans with the boys, but at the last second, one of them bailed out because they had a medical 'emergency' though they're perfectly fine. They just didn't feel like going out that day. And it sucks because they let the boys down. Which is what these load management players are doing - letting down their fans, who had to salvage some money from their earnings to buy a ticket to the game with the hopes of seeing them play!

MJ played EVERY GAME he could because "the fans paid good money to see me and this might be the only game they can come to, so i gotta be out there" paraphrasing of course. REAL GOAT REAL GOAT REAL GOAT

Ths sad part is Greg Pop started it beause he had older players but he didn't abuse it..and wiuld try and sit players on less marquee games. Now they took it to the next level sit all the time ... imma bout to sound like an old head but 90's 2000's playes played more with less rest... Needing a day off is fine

Load Management Doesn't Work!!!

Load management is a huge issue. It's the reason I don't pay to go to NBA games anymore. 2 Times i paid premium prices to see Joel Embiid and Damian Lillard upwards of 200 dollars a ticket. Both out due to some small injury better known as "Load Management". Unless the NBA does something about this I'm not paying sh*t to go to any games.

You all might disagree, but I got an even harsher punishment idea to stop BS Load Management. Unless it's a legit injury, if you dont play this set amount of games and your team makes the playoffs, you are out and can't play the entire playoffs. Which also means any bonus you would get for the playoffs is also voided.

The early 2010’s there was a stretch of seasons where it seemed every star player had a season ending injury. I feel players should not get paid as much for non-injury related absences. The NBA has gotten better with their scheduling, players don’t have a triple back to back anymore. Note players need to condition themselves for the season.

They need to give him part time player pay.

I think the season should be shortened and also the play-I’m tournament needs done away with. That’s two major changes I’d like to see. Load management isn’t a bad concept, but as you pointed out in this video it just doesn’t work. Also, I think if players are ‘load managing,’ they should still be dressed for the game and available to come off the bench if needed.

I love these rants 😂