Stephen A. & JJ Redick outline PROS & CONS of a shortened NBA season | First Take 

Makes sense. My nephew's had several players on their baseball teams with bad knees at 10 and 12 years old, catchers specifically. They had bad knees because they played club ball year round after the school season, and sometimes within the season and they chose which games to play in.

I never got to super competitive level basketball or sports in general but from 5 years old to now I know that 10+ years of basketball and other sports my ankles and shoulders are both incredibly damaged. Teenagers and younger college athletes go through a much tougher time because they are also going through puberty and growing into their bodies

Yes absolutely some of the best basketball players or baseball players. Played two or more sports especially football players to. But AAU is doing a lot of damage to the sport of basketball.

When I was in little league baseball my dad forbade me from throwing curveballs and certain pitches/styles like submarine and sidearm because of the long-term effect it would have on the arm. He was very adamant about long-term health for kids but a lot of dads didn't care about that they just wanted their son to be the best. I'm thankful that my dad cared about that stuff cuz looking back he was right.

Name the scientist

Exactly

That’s a good point but you could also argue that AAU basketball gets them ready for the rigors of the NBA season.

aau basketball is so brutal of the body, I’ve had weekends where i might play 3-4 games in one day

This is a great point... Never even thought of it.

@@teedee1167 there's a difference between preparation and performance. NBA players do not now nor have they ever played multiple professional games in one day.

Same thats the entire point. But the solution is the NBA should find ways to actually slow the game down (ie hand checking and increased physicality) so that the players arent so tired and at risk from constantly making athletic plays. This happens in the playoffs and the result is usually a lot better to watch

No it wasn't. Modern nutrition, training, elimination of back to back to backs, reduced back to backs, first class travel, first class food, and less physicality makes up for the increased possessions and movement.

@@alananderson7903 doesn’t work that way. Humans are still human.

@@alananderson7903 Lmfaooo, nooo buddy. You think back then they didn’t have first class travel and first class food? The NBA just got better, the players got more skilled. The players today aren’t allowed to be as physical as they want because the rules don’t benefit them (which they are slowly physical. Because if anything, players are much more faster, stronger, smarter and more skilled today than the past. It is also tougher to defend now because offense has taken such a leap. Players are no longer restricted to certain duties, all positions are expected to do more than they ever did.

Possessions are low now cause people just jack up quick 3s. Back then you had to set up your offense before you can attempt to score which takes time

Yeah I was of the mind "whatever the players want, it's them who are playing" but after what RJ said, how can anyone argue against it?

He said what he said 💯

@@TruuJones because it doesn't address the problem of the regular season not mattering. As it stands you can (and the majority of fans do) take a couple months off watching basketball and feel like you miss almost nothing. This is not a problem in the majority of other sports and it's because they have less games so every game matters significantly more. If you shortened the nba season it would be a similar effect. the only legitimate argument there is against it (which rj also brought up) is how it alters history and many records automatically become unbreakable but this has happened many times in the past as a result of rule changes and I don't think it's a good enough reason to stop progress that would help the game overall.

@@joshuayoung7972 yeah but shortening the season isn't the only solution to that and he said that.

@@TruuJones true but it's the most effective and the other solutions like an in season tournament also usually involve shorting or altering the season

But its also disingenuous to the 90s because teams like the Pacers, Warriors, Bulls, Lakers etc ran alot of action for shooters, the Bulls triangle, Showtime. Also, players were more physical back then so yes there was less “movement” there was more physicality which is the tradeoff

Is that why the plumbers and firemen of the 1960s averaged like 120 possessions per game? In the 90s, basketball slowed down. But from the 1950s to 1980s, those players would crush the modern players, they run a lot more and shoot way more, this is recorded numbers. Stop the nonsensical lies.

@@markarmage3776 Because they barely have any developed set plays or even defense lmao. They mostly just run up and down the court to shoot as fast as they can and catch the opponent off guard. If you look up Magic Johnson highlights there are so many fast breaks, it's ridiculous. There's no way those types of play can fly in this era. Stop the delusion.

@@markarmage3776 I don't know if I should cry or laugh with your comment. If by far the most ridiculous basketball related comment I've read in my life. But I will assume it was sarcasm

@@imamfakhruddin1015 That's not how it works, dummy. Look at the highlights. The traditional post up plays was invented far before Chamberlain time with George Mikan. They don't shoot as fast as they can. And Magic Johnson highlights are full of fast breaks because that's his strength only Magic can pass like Magic to create such offense. The reasons Ben Simmons is an all star are the fast breaks. It's much easier to score on breaks now because you can't touch the guy. It just means the quality of basketball is going down. Fast breaks exist today, they're no longer highlights because nobody can pass like Magic. Stop making horrible excuses that don't actually makes no sense logically. When you having to fight through contact every possessions because the defender can push you, that's far more tiresome than doing a dribble handoff. Don't confuse your fantasy with the truth, pal. Go study basketball and some math as well. In basketball today, nobody is always moving. Even if you run a play, only 3 guys are involved, and most of it involves moving only one time. Watching the half court offense of the 1986 Celtics show this quite well. The movement is the same.

Injury is a part of the game

Precisely and less games doesn’t make a player LESS injury prone he was gon to tear that ACL regardless

This also assumes less games means the NBA season spans less of the calendar year which from what I've heard, I'm not sure it will.

@@christian11919 thats the stupidest thing ive heard in a long time

It seems logical to me that shortening the season would also mean spreading out the games, i think the season would start and end around the same time as 82-game seasons.

Kyrie missed game due to the mandate. Ben Simmons missed games because nobody knows why

ben simmons was hurt most of this year and the NBA was who made that silly mandate anyways. the odds of the kyrie situation happening again

Why dont they ever mention all the load management Kawhi and Lebron have done. Ben Simmons and Kyrie are right there. These players are just soft. Jay touched on ever reason why its not needed. Once money gets discussed to change what people get paid you will hear zero talk about a shortened season. The players share the gates and ticket sales.

Kyrie didn’t miss for silly reasons, the NBA took the social justice warrior route and didn’t let him play because they forced their politics on him and didn’t respect his medical freedom.

@@Ellis1993 exactly, it’s crazy how they think kyrie not wanting to take the vaccine is wrong.

If a team starts benching their star players once a week, someone is going to complain, either.

@@rubendacostaesilva8442 never said bench them but they can manage minutes better and actually develop players they already have. I always hear “the bench players will give a causal 50” well show us lol

The real problem is we need make basketball a team sport again instead of running the star players to the ground.

Never end a sentence with lol

@@Vanguardkl changed it just for you bud

There will be injuries ether way it goes. Most of the time it's load management is the reason we don't get to see our players

@@chrispettis1486 u can't load manage in a shorter seasons

@@theman9048 you really think that’s just gonna stop??

So true!

@@theman9048 Nope

Yeah but that's Michael Jordan though, it's like saying Usain Bolt broke the 100m World Record in Beijing while celebrating 10m before the finishing line so what can't everyone else break it

@@DC-YTC A lot of players back then did it. Kareem did it too

Jordan skipped nearly three seasons in the middle of his career! Then he retired for another three & came back fat and suck. He missed almost two entire seasons. Jordan only played 11 full seasons when he wasn’t old and fat.

@@spendsshanks6050Kareem stopped running upcourt on fast breaks ten years before he retired.

You just said you're totally against a 4 point line

@@EduardoOliveira-zx9ju Here is an idea, just don't screw with the game.

Thank you

Cause they are superstars?

Then they won’t get it paid

@@registame2878 Yeah. Go present that option to their speaker, aka Lebron. And watch his response.

@@Hinshu85 losing money! They will change their minds once they realise money is flying of the table

It could be a 50 game season and players would still FAKE injuries aka “ Load Manage “

It’s broke. The regular season is boring and players don’t play as hard to avoid fatigue

Man it is broken, there are like two months of the regular season where only a handful of games a week seem to matter and demand attention. The product can be better and more engaging

It is broken. Players are finding ways not to play, broken

@@Uzum99 Because they are prima donas. Shaq, Hakeem and other bigs played seasons with 82 games and didn't complain. They just wanted to get paid for play. Nowadays, they want to get paid and not play. Ben Simmons for example.

lol but it is broken...quite literally since so many players get "injured" so much and have to sit out.

Look at the pace of the game. Teams in general miss more shots than they make. Look what happens after a miss, the pace is pushed.

@@newrecruit100 Ofc.. however in todays league you should watch on those fast break opportunities that most players aren't pushing the pace , it's really only one or two while the rest stay back or walk up the court.. Alot of players rather not be on someone's highlight reel so they let the player on the fast break go.

Do you remember passing to the post and watching 10 sec back downs?

@@jhowd78 Yup do you remember iso's at the top of the arc for 10s+??

@@sidekickht Honestly more interesting, and it’s not like that hasn’t been a thing since the 80s

Baseball has 162 games , nfl has like what 5 months lol

They actually do load management in soccer. Stars don’t play every game

@@michaelbankole7635 it makes sense to load manage for them cos sometimes a soccer star can have 3 games in the space of a week. and even with that they have less rest than the nba. they only have rest after the first 45 minute half, and then after the next 45 mins when the game ends. they dont just get timeouts (which can be called by either teams), and they only have like 3 or 4 subs. u subbed out u cannot sub back in, so u cant sub neymar out for him to rest and then have him back in again. soccer needs a shorter season, they play too many competitions. not nba

I’m glad someone else said this because I thought nobody else peeped

@Dinokale people get injured in the first month of the season too injuries are not the problem.m and you don’t have to watch every game watch your team and highlights if it’s too much for you.

Facts seems he's actually being himself & not the First Take character hooting & hollering he often does.

@@hardworkingcriminal4873 these basketball players/analyst are really are bringing the best out of him

It’ll = less viewership which means less money. People won’t tune in or buy tix to games to watch bench players

@@realtalkwithjordan8026 I dont mean rest all the starters in the same game.. Mix it up.. Give guys a game off when they need it

@@banksfranks775 i dont understand how this decade suddenly 82 games are tiresome , it sounds like overpriviledged players

@@okdude8215 Facts

Exactly people have been calling for a shorter seasons. But now since they want to talk injury all of a sudden people want to keep it long.

More games = more revenue

@@SundevilRoadrunner not necessarily, less games = more important games = more viewers

@@michiel4190 that sounds nice, but makes no sense because more games = more total viewers

@@michiel4190 more games means more ticket sales, concession, views, parking, etc

Yes but I'd say if the regular season is instead 65 games and you add a midseason tournament in a mini playoff format single elimination for seeding changes plus the play end at the end of the szn it could bring some really fun, chaotic basketball

Lol the players won't take less money, and neither will the owners. Fans will be forced to pay for this.

Don't forget HIGHER TICKET PRICES

Another pro that is vastly underrated: they would not have to compete with the NFL in October and November for ratings if they plan the schedule right.

Teams will make the playoffs every year

Uhh Stephen a has been getting BODIED as of late on espn

SAS didn’t go far enough on his one point. While it is the sins of the few, in basketball, the few is what fills the stadiums. Arenas don’t fill up for JJ or CJ. They fill up for Kyrie, Kawhi, and used to for Ben lol. So while JJ is right that 99% of players are truly professional, it’s the 1-2% too guys who move the needle.

He loses all the time, he's just loud so it makes him seem like he's winning.

It’s not the 90s anymore its a faster pace game now

You’re in the minority of people who think these players should play 82 games but only watch about 25 throughout the duration of the season .. there is no reason to play 82 games .. if a team plays every team in the league twice that would be 62 .. what is the additional 20 for ? Divisions don’t matter in the nba so there’s no excuse that can validate a team playing someone in their division 4 times. You guys don’t make sense

@@jeanraphael60 TO BE 💯% clear. I WATVH EVERY SIXERS GAME!!! Home & away dickhead so miss me

@Dinokale because there’s only 17 regular season games dickhead

"Not demanding too much"? That's easy for you to say. Comparing those NBA guys to us is like comparing an Indy 500 car to a Budget Rent a Car. They are much bigger, have different musculature, and can do super human things with their bodies. Hence, the running game that JJ alluded to puts a great deal of strain on their bodies. They break down. I went to a Lakers game in the1960s. The players were smaller in mass, no weight training, and in general not as fast nor quick. They could handle the strain of 82 games better, because they applied less force to the game, and to themselves. But the main reason is that too many of the 82 games are boring and meaningless in a society dominated by smart phones.

@@ARIZJOE convenient how you mentioned the 60's but not every other decade including most of the 2010's. The pace in the late 80s early 90s was similar to today.

Revenue would cut for owners because of the television deal...less games means less ad revenue from commercials & media takes a hit because the depending on how games are scheduled debate shows have less to talk bout during basketball season

Excellent points, but you miss important key elements of the trade-offs. We've seen injuries skyrocket in the past decade. SOOOOO many teams either missed the playoffs or didn't get far in the playoffs because of numerous injuries to STAR players, let alone various role players. The product on the floor is not as great for the fans as it could be, which I'm sure affects ticket sales/merch sales/brand equity/etc. The players are the most important asset that the leagues have. Without the players, you have nothing. Teams don't enjoy giving massive contracts to players who miss large chunks of seasons or entire seasons. That's already lost revenue. It might actually be more cost-effective to shorten the season than to have a full season with so many players sitting out, missing games, ruining their playoff hopes.

@@TheUltimateRage Injuries will still happen

What; that’s their problem

Who cares about the records if the game is better to watch and games are more important?? Bruh records as a reason is stupid

The NBA as an organization doesn't care or make decisions based on all time players stats 😭

Don't load manage road games

They’ll still find an excuse to “load manage” during the regular season.

@@davyjoneslocker4859 fact no road game cuz I only get too se curry or lebron 2 in New York

Load management with today’s travel quality, therapy, advanced training and dieting is a joke

Even if you reduce the games these players will still make lame excuses for “load management.” How about these players EARN their $100 million paychecks and play every game if they’re healthy.

but the back-to-back-to-back aren't there anymore, its like 10-15 backs in the regular season

I almost agree with everything but I would say 72 instead of 62 so you can play the teams in your division 4 times and not 3

Why do I keep seeing Pat Riley name being brought up? Is he a fitness guru lool

Think about what you said. There's nothing you can say that tell me shortening the schedule by "24" games is going to increase ratings and popularity. Only 8 teams make the playoffs and there are a lot of bad teams out there. So what's next are you in favor of a 3 or 5 game playoff series too? Makes no sense, the NBA is not broken so fans needs to suck it up.

@@djaramillo09 it will increase individual game ratings, coz each game is worth more now and teams might not sit their stars as often so more ppl will watch

I feel that plus a shorter season spreads the games out allows fans to watch more games instead of there being 8 games a night there might be 4 or so much easier to follow for us but to ms 58 seems very low I think 72 seems perfect to me but idk

yea

Exactly😂😂😂😂

Murica!!!!!

hahaha so true

i think your point validates JJ’s argument because even if a possesion is a run down and quick 3, there is less time between transitions. You would sprint the court, your team takes a quick 3 and you have to almost immediately sprint back to defend

@@cris1766 you what, that is a fair point. I was thinking having to play defense, and cover ground, for 24 sec, running threw picks on defense or setting them on offense. All of that doesn’t happen when you run down and take a quick 3. But you do have to run back and forth more and go right back to defense/right back to offense. I wasn’t thinking about it like that

He has a podcast

His podcast is very good

I can't wait

They need to get rid of guaranteed contracts

Sounds like you're regurgitating Stephen A's talking points

Where are you now buddy? The players got everything they wanted again 😂. The players will always hold the EDGE because you have no product without them!

Duke Law School, not Texas High School!

It's not gonna happen but I doubt they would seat out if they reduce it to 35-40 games.