There has been an early season explosion of injuries across the NBA. Listen to our latest podcast as Dr. Nirav Pandya breaks down the potential reasons for this trend looking at the inter-play of how the game is played, youth sports, and the NBA schedule.
6 to 8 Weeks: Perspectives in Sports Medicine
Why Are So Many NBA Players Getting Hurt?
The NBA season is barely underway, and injury reports already cover the league. In this solo episode, Dr. Nirav Pandya looks at the rise in NBA injuries, especially soft-tissue injuries like hamstring strains and Achilles ruptures. He asks whether the cause is the players, the game, the schedule, or all three. He draws on published research on sport specialization and NBA workload, and he’s clear about the limits: without the league’s full data, these are correlations, not proof of cause.
In this episode:
[00:00] Intro: a solo episode while Drs. Feeley and Lansdown recover from Halloween
[01:00] The injury wave: why it seems like every team has several players out
[03:00] Traumatic vs. chronic injuries: contact injuries like ankle fractures and ligament tears happen in every sport. The bigger concern is the cluster of chronic soft-tissue injuries (hamstrings, calves, patellar tendons, Achilles)
[04:30] The early-season spike: you can’t fully recreate game intensity in the offseason or a short preseason, so load jumps sharply once the season starts
[05:30] Factor 1, the game itself: faster pace, more possessions, more distance covered, and seven-footers now handling the ball on the perimeter. Today’s game is physical in a soft-tissue way rather than the contact-heavy way of the ’90s
[08:00] Factor 2, the athletes coming into the league: year-round single-sport play from age 8 or 9 means players reach the NBA at 19 or 20 with heavy mileage already on their bodies. That may help explain Achilles ruptures in players in their early to mid-20s
[10:00] The research on sport specialization: Dr. Pandya and Dr. Feeley’s studies of NBA first-round picks found that multi-sport athletes in high school had fewer major injuries, played more games, and had longer careers. A follow-up study over about 10 years supported the same protective effect
[12:00] The Achilles workload study: a descriptive epidemiologic study of NBA Achilles ruptures found that sharp increases in minutes (the “delta”) were linked to rupture. The jump in workload matters as much as the total
[13:00] Factor 3, the schedule: the league still runs on a schedule built for the game of 15 to 20 years ago. Options include fewer games, no back-to-backs, more rest between games, and spreading the season out
[15:00] What can change: in the short term, the schedule and how minutes are managed. In the long term, encouraging multi-sport participation at the grassroots level so players arrive in the league healthier
[16:00] The bottom line: “You have to be healthy to be available,” for NBA stars and for youth athletes alike
Key takeaways:
The rise in soft-tissue injuries likely comes from several factors together: a faster, more explosive game, athletes who arrive with more wear and tear, and a schedule that hasn’t kept up.
Sudden spikes in workload, like preseason to regular season or a jump in minutes, are a key risk window.
Multi-sport participation in youth is linked to fewer injuries and longer careers in the NBA.
Mentioned in this episode:
Dr. Pandya and Dr. Feeley’s research on sport specialization and injury in NBA players
Descriptive epidemiologic study of Achilles tendon ruptures and workload in the NBA
This podcast is for informational purposes only and is not medical advice. Please consult a licensed medical professional with any questions about your health.
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