LeBron has lashed out at media members advocating for the NBA rest rule after it was revealed that Joel Embiid had suffered a torn meniscus. “Where are all the media outlets, tv media personalities, hot takes that talked so much about Joel Embiid about missing those games when he knew what he was dealing with. Now he’s out with an injury because of it. Not 1 person has went back on tv or their dumbass podcast and apologized to that MAN!! No accountability ,” LeBron wrote in a series of posts on X.
Embiid, the MVP frontrunner, is out indefinitely with a torn meniscus in his left knee. Given the razor-thin margin he was already working with the NBA rest rule, this will likely end the Sixer’s chance to repeat as MVP. Furthermore, LeBron’s comments come just a day after Stephen A. Smith essentially told players to suck it up when it comes to the Rest Rule.
Meanwhile, there has been a lot of news about LeBron to end the week. The biggest story came from his agent on Friday, with Rich Paul putting any trade rumors to bed. “LeBron won’t be traded, and we aren’t asking to be,” Paul said in response to growing speculation that LeBron might be leaving the Lakers midseason. Of course, LeBron hasn’t helped quiet the rumors. Following a loss to the Lakers earlier this week, LeBron posted an hourglass emoji to social media.
However, Paul’s comments about his biggest client haven’t stopped people from making their trade pitches regardless. Stephen A. Smith has caused a stir after using a segment on First Take to pitch a deadline trade between his Knicks and the Lakers to acquire LeBron James. Smith’s pitch is more based on the vibes of “LeBron at MSG” rather than how LeBron would actually make the Knicks a better team. Smith’s Knicks are currently in the East and are riding a six-game winstreak. However, they recently lost the team’s second scorer, Julius Randle, until at least after the All-Star Game.
After seeing Kyrie Irving and Luka Dončić sit out the Dallas Mavericks’ 2022/23 regular-season finale with the playoffs still attainable for the team, the NBA decided to do something about load management. Baked into the new CBA ratified during the offseason was a revision to the player participation policy. These clauses were designed to keep the league’s best players on the court for as much of the season as possible. These rules revolved around the use of “star players” (defined as an All-Star or All-NBAer from the past three seasons).
Teams can only rest one “star player” per game.
Teams cannot rest any “star player” for nationally televised games or in-season tournament games.
Players must play at least 20 minutes in at least 65 games to be eligible for postseason awards such as MVP and All-NBA teams.
However, the NBA’s plan to create a better TV product has created a worse basketball product. The players are unhappy, the fans are unhappy. And when the biggest players in the league, such as presumptive MVP Joel Embiid and rising star Tyrese Haliburton, are openly criticizing league policies, it might be a sign to re-evaluate said policies.
If asked, most players will say they that don’t prioritize postseason awards over their long-term health and season-long contributions to their team. However, the league has now forced them into a situation where those awards, nice bonuses to a season well-played, are dependent on an arbitrary participation percentage. Joel Embiid is having one of the greatest seasons in NBA history. But if he will be ruled ineligible for the MVP award if he misses six more games this season. What meaning does the MVP award actually have if the league’s best player is ineligible because he played 64 games and not 65?
Furthermore, the rule can have major financial impacts for players. Tyrese Haliburton is having the best season of his young career. However, the Rest Rule means that the Pacers star could lose out on $40 million if he is ruled ineligible for All-NBA team selection. Earning an All-NBA selection would see him fulfill a rookie contract clause that would raise the ceiling of his max contract extension by the aforementioned $40 million. However, Haliburton has struggled with a spate of midseason injuries. As a result, Haliburton will need to play in 30 of the Pacers’ remaining 34 games to be eligible. Haliburton has been particularly vocal about the rule, calling it “stupid” and “something that the owners want”.
The end result is further disincentivizing players from pursuing postseason awards. If the eligibility criteria are this strict, why would any player play with the awards in mind over prioritizing their career longevity? It’s a sentiment that Embiid himself has already acknowledged. “The goal is to be ready for the playoffs. If I can’t meet the criteria of 65 games … as long as I’m ready to be dominant in that time in April, that’s all I care about,” Embiid told reporters in January.
Meanwhile, the rule ignores a crucial reality about professional sport – player rotation is vital to long-term success. The NBA season is 82 games long with multiple games for each team in a given week. And given the ebbs and floes of a typical season, every game is not made equal. Take Embiid’s Sixers – between February 23 and March 3, four of their five games are nationally televised. According to the NBA’s Rest Rule, that means that Embiid must played all of four of those games for at least 20 minutes. Howeer, he could be rested for the one non-televised game against Charlotte. Sounds reasonable right? But things immediately fall apart when a team has more than one “star player”. The Timberwolves only have two televised games over that same span but they have 4 “star players” as well as four games against playoff teams.
What this leads to is 82-game seasons becoming a war of attrition. The end of the season should be the most exciting time of the year. Games often decide divisional battles and playoff seedings. But if players are being forced to play as much as they can physically handle, fans get treated to season-ending slogfests between guys trying to fill league-mandated quotas while also trying to converse something for the playoffs. While not a 1:1 comparison – no one bats an eye at rotation in a sport like soccer. This is despite soccer teams playing vastily shorter seasons. Manchester City won three trophies across five competitions last season and still only played 61 games.
As a result of the Rest Rule, the NBA is attempting to turn every player into an ironman. Furthermore, this is done for no other reason than the owners wanting players to “earn” every cent of their contract.
Barring an U-turn from the league, the Rest Rule is likely here to stay. But that doesn’t mean it has to remain the same. A more lenient eligibility cap would go a long way to reduce the ironman mentality that many players are currently facing. A more drastic solution would be to expand the size of NBA rosters to reduce the level of attrition imposed on squads.
But do you think – are you a fan of the rest rule? Are you siding with the players and want it gone next season? Let us know in the comments.
Joel Embiid can miss no more than seven of the Sixers’ remaining 43 games in order to be eligible for MVP this season. Due to a spate of injuries, Embiid has played 29 of the Sixers’ 39 games this season. However, due to load management rules implemented in the offseason, Embiid needs to play in 65 games to be eligible for all major awards. This means that Embiid must play in at least 36 of the team’s remaining games to be eligible for the award he is currently the frontrunner for.
“The goal is to be ready for the playoffs. If I can’t meet the criteria of 65 games … as long as I’m ready to be dominant in that time in April, that’s all I care about,” Embii told reporters following the Sixers win over Houston on January 15. The 65-game rule was implemented as the NBA looked to curb the amount of big-game talent missing games due to “load management”. As part of continued efforts to tackle load management, the league recently released a report indicating that the practice did not actually lower the likelihood of long-term injuries.
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA – JANUARY 16: Joel Embiid #21 of the Philadelphia 76ers reacts during the fourth quarter against the Denver Nuggets at the Wells Fargo Center on January 16, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images)
Meanwhile, Giannis Antetokounmpo and LeBron James remained the top vote-getters in the final round of publicly released fan voting for the NBA All-Star Game. Giannis led overall, the only player to have surpassed four million votes at the time of writing. However, LeBron wasn’t too far behind at 3.93 million. The next closest player to four million is Embiid, who sits at 3.72 million voters.
Voting closes this weekend and the All-Star starters will be announced on January 25. If trends stay as they are, LeBron, Nikola Jokic, Kevin Durant, Luka Doncic, and Steph Curry would start in the West. Meanwhile, Giannis, Embiid, Jayson Tatum, Tyrese Haliburton, and Trae Young would start in the East. The All-Star Game itself takes place on February 18 in Indianapolis.
about Joel Embiid about missing those games when he knew what he was dealing with. Now he’s out with an injury because of it. Not 1 person has went back on tv or their dumbass podcast and apologized to that MAN!! No accountability 
