Power Puff Kawhi is out again - Load Management Folks, Folk You!

[Pharmcat]

You can't be in the best player in league discussion when you are taking games off and others aren't

[JellosJigglin]

Good. Hopefully their bench burns out by the end of the season

[madmaxmedia]

All you got to do is rest all the way till the playoffs and then you have an immense advantage compared to others carrying their teams into the playoffs. Start fining playoff games once you've taken games off for load management in the regular season. 2 games off for load management = 1 playoff game and so on.

A star can’t literally rest ALL the way, many teams will miss the playoffs that way.

But essentially we are seeing game theory in effect here- what’s the optimum number of games to play to maximize your chances at a title? What’s the optimal balance of 3’s and 2’s for an offense?

Teams are all playing by the rules, if the league and fans don’t like the strategies chosen then they have to change the rules.

Ideally they would shorten the season to 60 games to give players more rest, and make each individual game more meaningful. But that ain’t gonna happen...

[old skool]

The NBA should establish a non-biased system for determining when load management is valid or not. They could create a centralized "Load Management Review Center", where teams would submit their game rosters and all medical data (charts, diagnosis, x-rays, MRI's , etc.). The LM Review Center, located in Secaucus, NJ, would be staffed by expert doctors or team trainers who would decide if a DNP-LM is legitimate. Most cases would be considered Common DNP-LM's, but abuses would be designated Flagrant 1's (player must attend a G-League team practice) or Flagrant 2's (player must attend one week of Tom Thibodeau's Summer Basketball Camp), depending on the the opponent, TV schedule, and current standings. All DNP-LM's in the playoffs would automatically be Flagrant 2. If this system becomes too confusing, the networks could hire retired team trainers who could be consulted during NBA broadcasts to explain the rulings.

[Danny1616]

I hate how Kawhi left great organizations like the Spurs and Raptors, but got to give him a pass here.

He has a quad condition that requires more rest than others.

He will likely only be able to play at a high level until his early 30s.

That's just what it is, can't really fault him or the Clippers for that. This isn't like when the Spurs would sit the big 3 just for rest when none of them had any injuries or conditions.

The Clippers have to give him sufficient rest periods to keep him at peak level physically, especially when the playoffs roll around.

[Greyhound]

The face of the league. The “best player on the planet” needs to be playing National TV matchups when healthy. He owns it to the fans and the business.

Heavy is the head who wears the crown.

He is getting the praise and the recognition, he can’t just skip out on the grunt work.

Yes he can, and he will. Just how entitled are you? So because fans pay money to see him he's required to play every game? Maybe he should also come to their houses and sign their jerseys too? Lmao

He can do anything he wants, but we can and will call his candy ass out for it.

———-

You amuse me with your little attempt at condescension, guy.

Who do you think you are?

You have no control over my thoughts or opinions on any matter. Do yourself a favor and waddle back to your little corner of the internet and plug it up, guy.

[Danny1616]

All you got to do is rest all the way till the playoffs and then you have an immense advantage compared to others carrying their teams into the playoffs. Start fining playoff games once you've taken games off for load management in the regular season. 2 games off for load management = 1 playoff game and so on.

A star can’t literally rest ALL the way, many teams will miss the playoffs that way.

But essentially we are seeing game theory in effect here- what’s the optimum number of games to play to maximize your chances at a title? What’s the optimal balance of 3’s and 2’s for an offense?

Teams are all playing by the rules, if the league and fans don’t like the strategies chosen then they have to change the rules.

Ideally they would shorten the season to 60 games to give players more rest, and make each individual game more meaningful. But that ain’t gonna happen...

Kawhi's has a long-lasting quad condition.

We all saw in the playoffs by the Bucks series he could barely walk without limping.

Some players like Lebron, Kobe, Rodman, Jordan etc. could play 82 games and a long playoffs for 10-15 seasons without missing games. Other players struggle to stay on a court for majority of a season. That's how it will always be regardless of whether the season is 60 games or 80 games.

[CeltsfanSinceBirth]

Kind of makes you wonder why Kawhi only took a 2 year deal if his leg is still bothering him. Go figure.

[Jabroni Lames]

Blame the NBA for giving the Clippers 3 straight weeks of having b2b games. Most teams haven't even had 1 to this point. The schedule is ridiculous to start the year. The fact we are only a month into the season and the Clippers will play their third b2b next week is dumb.

No, blame the Clippers. They have been trying so desperately hard to get into the NBA spotlight. They badly wanted this level of attention from the sports media.

So the Clippers finally get all that attention they've been craving and then what? The diva disappears. lol.

[pwrshft99]

Suppose you have a son that is 10-15 years old maybe. He loves the NBA and Kawhi is his favorite player. You live in Chicago. Your son's favorite player comes to town once a year. Decent tickets, even just two, will run you atleast a couple of hundred bucks by the time you commute and park, etc.
The day before the game, it is announced that Kawhi is going to be out. Not because of injury, no !! He is just saving himself for more important games.

How pissed off are you going to be? What will be the impression left on your child??

"Won't someone please think of the children? "

You mean the future ticket buyers? It's not a plea for the children, it is simply bad business to disappoint the next generation of fans.

Let's be honest, families are a big part of NBA revenue. Single people like me would rather get **** up at home and illegally stream the game

[Forte IV]

Blame the NBA for giving the Clippers 3 straight weeks of having b2b games. Most teams haven't even had 1 to this point. The schedule is ridiculous to start the year. The fact we are only a month into the season and the Clippers will play their third b2b next week is dumb.

No, blame the Clippers. They have been trying so desperately hard to get into the NBA spotlight. They badly wanted this level of attention from the sports media.

So the Clippers finally get all that attention they've been craving and then what? The diva disappears. lol.

I mean thats not it but I guess nice try

[SparksAC]

Honestly, it just ain't fair for the other players and fans. They need to start handing out fines. They are getting paid millions to do this.

[Benedict_Boozer]

Suppose you have a son that is 10-15 years old maybe. He loves the NBA and Kawhi is his favorite player. You live in Chicago. Your son's favorite player comes to town once a year. Decent tickets, even just two, will run you atleast a couple of hundred bucks by the time you commute and park, etc.
The day before the game, it is announced that Kawhi is going to be out. Not because of injury, no !! He is just saving himself for more important games.

How pissed off are you going to be? What will be the impression left on your child??

This hits the nail on the head. The NBA markets it's STARS, not teams - this isn't the NFL.

I can't even imagine if Lebron just randomly started sitting 25% of the games for example, the TV partners would go ballistic.

[ATLTimekeeper]

I think Doc said they wouldn't use the same plan for Kawhi that the Raptors' did, but the Raptors sat him in every back-to-back situation, and then he missed some games due to injury. So far the Clippers have sat Kawhi in every back-to-back situation and it's looking like the exact same formula. No matter what, he's going to say he's never felt better until he signs that max extension.

[madmaxmedia]

All you got to do is rest all the way till the playoffs and then you have an immense advantage compared to others carrying their teams into the playoffs. Start fining playoff games once you've taken games off for load management in the regular season. 2 games off for load management = 1 playoff game and so on.

A star can’t literally rest ALL the way, many teams will miss the playoffs that way.

But essentially we are seeing game theory in effect here- what’s the optimum number of games to play to maximize your chances at a title? What’s the optimal balance of 3’s and 2’s for an offense?

Teams are all playing by the rules, if the league and fans don’t like the strategies chosen then they have to change the rules.

Ideally they would shorten the season to 60 games to give players more rest, and make each individual game more meaningful. But that ain’t gonna happen...

Kawhi's has a long-lasting quad condition.

We all saw in the playoffs by the Bucks series he could barely walk without limping.

Some players like Lebron, Kobe, Rodman, Jordan etc. could play 82 games and a long playoffs for 10-15 seasons without missing games. Other players struggle to stay on a court for majority of a season. That's how it will always be regardless of whether the season is 60 games or 80 games.

Yes you’re right. But it would require less rest games. I think it’s not just cumulative load but not enough rest between games that hurts.

Your post is a good example why the NBA can’t just start handing out fines left and right for missed games. If a team decides a player is worth a certain contract even assuming he’s going to miss 10-15 games a season, that is their decision. There are plenty of players who chronically miss just as many games due to actual injuries every season, should they be fined too?

[Jabroni Lames]

So why don't the Clippers and Kawhi come clean publicly and say that Kawhi has "a serious life long progressively getting worse injury"?

Because that will hurt ticket sales and sponsorship dollars. This is a bait & switch scam.

Exactly. The problem is that Kawhi and the clippers came out and said no load management this season. 8 games in and he has already missed two of eight games. It's dishonest.

Stop spewing falsehoods. They never said there will be no load management. They said it would be game to game basis. They said Kawhi was healthy but never once said "oh no load management". You can be perfectly healthy and rest games. Yes it sucks he isn't playing but they didn't lie about it. The only dishonest person in this conversation is you.

At the introductory press conference, when Kawhi was asked if he would continue load management with the Clippers, the first word out of his mouth was "No". And yet here we are, not even one month into the season... managing his load. Clippers and Kawhi just need to come clean on this.

When asked whether or not he would continue with the same load management plan he operated with last season with the Toronto Raptors, Leonard said the following, per a video shared by the LA Times’ Andrew Greif:

“No. I mean, I was injured last year coming in, so that was the only way I could play the schedule and not really affect the team and the outcomes. So this year will be a lot different.”

Leonard has hinted at his improved health a few times since joining the Clippers, but this is the first time he’s given a definitive answer as to whether or not he’ll be on a load management plan this season.

https://clipperholics.com/2019/10/18/la-clippers-kawhi-leonard-load-manage/

[RalphWiggum]

The whole structure of the season must change to reduce stars missing prime time games.

4 pre season games
66 game regular season that starts on Christmas and ends mid July.
4 games against every team in your division
2 games against every other team in the league
Only play back to backs at home and only twice per season

Best of 5 for the first two rounds of the playoffs
Best of 7 for the last two rounds of the playoffs
Eliminate three days off between games in playoffs

Less can more if done properly. The 67 game NCAA tournament brings in more money than the entire NBA regular season. Make each game more important and viewership will go up and teams will be less likely to throw away games by sitting stars.

Starting on Christmas means you're only going up against the NFL for 5 weeks instead of 13 weeks. Of lesser importance the playoffs won't be matched up in sync with the Stanley Cup playoffs. While I don't think the NBA loses many eyes to the NHL it is definitely losing some. There would also be fewer arena conflicts.

I know many people here think everything is just fine how it is but that's because you're die hard basketball fans. Not to be insulting but many of you act like Trump supporters who refuse to face that there's things wrong with the NBA. The facts are that stuff like this doesn't endear itself to casual sports fan.

[thebigbird]

Exactly. The problem is that Kawhi and the clippers came out and said no load management this season. 8 games in and he has already missed two of eight games. It's dishonest.

Stop spewing falsehoods. They never said there will be no load management. They said it would be game to game basis. They said Kawhi was healthy but never once said "oh no load management". You can be perfectly healthy and rest games. Yes it sucks he isn't playing but they didn't lie about it. The only dishonest person in this conversation is you.

At the introductory press conference, when Kawhi was asked if he would continue load management with the Clippers, the first word out of his mouth was "No". And yet here we are, not even one month into the season... managing his load. Clippers and Kawhi just need to come clean on this.

When asked whether or not he would continue with the same load management plan he operated with last season with the Toronto Raptors, Leonard said the following, per a video shared by the LA Times’ Andrew Greif:

“No. I mean, I was injured last year coming in, so that was the only way I could play the schedule and not really affect the team and the outcomes. So this year will be a lot different.”

Leonard has hinted at his improved health a few times since joining the Clippers, but this is the first time he’s given a definitive answer as to whether or not he’ll be on a load management plan this season.

https://clipperholics.com/2019/10/18/la-clippers-kawhi-leonard-load-manage/

Shhh stop being dishonest

[Mos_Heat]

Don't really care personally. But if a guy doesn't bother about the regular szn, he should be punished in MVP/All NBA votings in the end

[Phish Tank]

fine the Clips $500,000 and Kawhi $100,000