A new NBA season is underway, but an old problem that’s plagued the league in recent seasons is back in the spotlight: injuries.
Heading into Monday’s action, the league had over 90 players on the shelf with injuries. One team, the Indiana Pacers, played just six guys due to their whopping 11 players sidelined. Over a dozen players will be out for potentially another month. Roughly 15% of all rostered players were on the injury report heading into last Wednesday’s games.
The star or superstar players already missing games include Kawhi Leonard, Jalen Johnson, Paul George, Jalen Duren, Tyrese Haliburton, Anthony Edwards, Chet Holmgren, Paolo Banchero, Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. That’s a lot of talent not taking the court.
And the season has only just begun. Most teams are through seven or eight games after Monday, leaving another 70-something left to go.
The bottom line is the NBA must do something.
Will that change happen in the middle of 2026-27? Unlikely. But going forward, the league needs to address what is becoming less of an issue and more of a crisis.
Why the NBA Must Address Its Injury Woes
Two words: player and product. Those remain the most important reasons the NBA must act.
The NBA is only as good as the players available. Protect them as much as possible, and everything else trickles down. That includes game marketability, the fan experience (whether in person or at home), the business side of things and the league’s competitive health.
For these players, it’s more than just playing in the NBA. Injuries lead to financial implications for them, but also other short- and long-term consequences for their lives. On the flip side, injuries don’t just affect individual careers. Too many of them lead to negative implications for the league across the board.
Arguably, recent playoff results have been skewed by big-name or star players being injured entering or during the middle of the postseason.
For example, the Western Conference Finals between the Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs last season. The Thunder reached Game 7 despite missing one of their top three players, Jalen Williams, and another key contributor, Ajay Mitchell. Anthony Edwards also went down mid-playoffs during the Minnesota Timberwolves’ most recent run when he hyperextended his knee against the Nuggets in the first round.
The 2026 playoffs aren’t an outlier. The same thing happened in 2025.
Negative Impact on Fans
The outbreak of NBA injuries is also a detriment to the league’s product and public image. And as the number of injuries rises, the cost to attend games also climbs.
Fans are shelling out hundreds of dollars to even be in the same vicinity as these teams. Fans watching on TV are also experiencing higher prices as the NBA pushes streaming instead of cable. More injuries create a worse on-court product, but that product is getting more expensive. That’s a tricky trend for the league to justify.
All of this has even impacted team building. Roster depth is becoming a bigger priority. Injuries are a big reason why.
For the record: injuries are a part of the game, or any sport for that matter. But there comes a point where it becomes too much, especially when moves can be made to at least reduce them.
What Can the NBA Do To Reduce Injuries?
Whether small or big, something needs to be done. So what options does the NBA have?
As the league has evolved, it’s become faster, more physically demanding and tougher for players to play 82 games, not including playoffs.
First, the NBA should cut down the number of regular-season games. Each regular season has featured 82 games since 1967-68. As it stands, the season is too long for players to play and for fans to track on a daily basis. For a team making a deep playoff run, 100 games now versus decades ago is like comparing apples and oranges.
The NBA should also consider eliminating back-to-backs. Just like with the length of the season, when players are playing a very physical style too often, they are more likely to get hurt. Playing back-to-back nights is the pinnacle of that.
When the league has taken action to get players to be on the court, it puts the onus on them, like a 65-game requirement to be eligible for awards. That doesn’t solve the NBA injury issue. It probably makes it worse. The league must make decisions where players aren’t shouldering the weight.
Pushing Depth
Second, as depth becomes more important, the NBA should incentivize teams to prioritize it even more.
Teams are navigating the dreaded second apron and stricter penalties for spending more. Teams should be rewarded for making correct team-building choices. For example, homegrown players should count less toward the salary cap. Or the NBA should expand rosters from 15 to a slightly higher number.
The aforementioned proposals are off the court. The NBA should discuss on-court changes too.
The pace of games is escalating. Is there a way the league can slow down the fast, twitchy movements that increase the likelihood of someone getting hurt? How about changing the rules for charges, or just eliminating them?
Regardless of the solution, inaction will only create a bigger problem. When players get injured, everyone gets affected.
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