As the second half of the 2022-2023 season begins, one huge problem the NBA still faces is load management. According to the news outlet Slate, load management is defined as “the practice of teams resting healthy players to preserve them for the balance of an 82-game season.” This problem has been a huge debate in the prior NBA seasons. 

During the 2023 All-Star Weekend, Minnesota Timberwolves guard, Anthony Edwards spoke about the current state the NBA is facing due to load management.

“All the guys sitting, resting. That’s the only thing I probably don’t like…If you are 80 or 70 percent, you gotta play. I don’t like all the sitting, missing games stuff. These people might have enough money to come to one game, and that might be the game they come to see you and you sit out,” Edwards shared with reporters.

Load Management not only affects the ratings of NBA games, but also the fans that traveled thousands of miles away to see them play. Sports Illustrated reports that this season a 12-year-old kid, Felipe traveled to Miami to watch his favorite player, Jimmy Butler, forward for the Miami Heat,  play a game against the Boston Celtics.    

Felipe was disappointed when he found out that Butler was inactive, but wasn’t put on the injury list. The team later announced that Jimmy Butler had a bad back. Felipe traveled four thousand miles to be let down.

Another example, when 13-year-old Noam Dorfman celebrated his birthday with his father by traveling five thousand miles to visit a Dallas Mavericks game. Noam’s favorite player, Luka Doncic, was not even in the building. 

CBS Sports suggested that the NBA should use awards to force more players to participate in more regular season games. NBA star Demar Derozan was asked about the minimum games a player should play before being considered to win the MVP award. 

He responded with “All 82. The Minimum? 78.” Load management is hurting fans’ experiences. This is a problem that needs to be addressed before it hurts the sport and fan bases even more.