Over 50% of NBA players suffered an injury last season, yet the NBA regular season is still 82 games long. Fans question if the players are overworked and if the season should be shortened. We saw a major spike in injuries last season with the most Achilles tendon injuries seen in a single season; the question can no longer be ignored.
In the 2024-25 season, the NBA saw seven different Achilles injuries, the most in history. Compared to last season where we had zero injuries and the previous record high of four. Commissioner Adam Silver himself acknowledged the concern, saying “we’re taking it very seriously” (AP News, June 2025). Star players such as Tyrese Haliburton, Jayson Tatum and Damian Lillard were forced to sit out due to their injuries.
Among these severe injuries players also missed massive amounts of time. The Brooklyn Nets missed 536 games total to injuries, while Philadelphia (519), Atlanta (508), Charlotte (508), and New Orleans (508) followed suit with similar numbers (Rotowire, 2025). According to Statathlon, the percent of players missing games because of injuries had gone up by 13% since the 2023-24 season, even after they had added the new “Player Participation Policy” that wanted to reduce the rest times and increase star availability (Statathlon, 2025)
These numbers hint at higher systematic issues in the NBA. Studies have shown that higher fatigue and game loads leads to higher risks of injury. An analysis done in 2018 by the Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine found that “greater fatigue, higher game load, and more years of NBA experience were associated with higher injury incidence” (PMC, 2018). When players are forced through 82 games of the regular season to then jump into playoffs and then international tournaments with little rest days, the risks continue to stack up higher.
In September 2023, the NBA did a study that claimed there was no correlation between the amount of work load and injury. Studies like these support critics who argue that injuries can come from many other factors such as foot wear, court surfaces, even chance not just overworking. But the increase in Achilles ruptures this year cannot be simply dismissed as bad luck. These injuries often come from built up stress, not just accidents. If seven star players suffer injuries like an achilles rupture it is right to question if the NBA is overworking them.
How can we solve this? We can start by revisiting the schedule structure. Reducing games played back to back, allowing more recovery days to reduce the wear on our players. Better monitoring of stress, like reducing practice intensity and travel fatigue could also help teams intervene earlier. NBA Commissioner, Adam Silver has already announced plans of research on shoe design court surfaces and training routines.
