About this Episode
In this episode of Podcasty NBA, hosts Niko and Stella explore the alarming rise of serious injuries among NBA stars during recent postseasons, focusing on Jayson Tatum's catastrophic Achilles tear and its parallels with Klay Thompson's ACL injury in 2019. They analyze detailed workload statistics showing unprecedented minutes played by key players alongside evolving game dynamics such as expanded defensive roles against versatile big men and increased physicality allowed by referees—all contributing factors highlighted by recent research indicating more frequent severe falls compared to past decades. This episode offers an insightful discussion grounded entirely in Tom Haberstroh's May 2025 analysis published at sports.yahoo.com about how today's pace-and-space era may be exacting a heavy toll on even the toughest athletes.
Article Discussed: "Is Jayson Tatum’s Achilles injury the cost of the modern game and increasing physicality?"
Author: Tom Haberstroh
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Episode Transcript
Niko: Welcome back to Podcasty NBA! Today, we're diving into a tough topic that's been shaking the league: the rise of serious injuries among NBA stars, especially during the postseason. We’re focusing on recent events like Jayson Tatum's devastating Achilles tear and how it echoes past injuries, like Klay Thompson's ACL rupture back in 2019.
Stella: Absolutely, Niko. These injuries aren't just isolated incidents; they reflect a deeper shift in the NBA’s physical demands. Tatum was having one of his best playoff performances before going down unexpectedly, and that suddenness has everyone wondering if the modern game itself is taking a toll on even its most durable players.
Niko: Right, Stella. Let’s break down what happened with Klay Thompson first since his injury kind of set the tone for this conversation. In Game 6 of the 2019 NBA Finals against Toronto, Thompson went up for a dunk and landed awkwardly, tearing his ACL. That injury sidelined him for a long time and was followed by another major setback when he ruptured his Achilles during rehab.
Stella: And what's striking is that before those injuries, Thompson was known as an iron man—never missing significant time due to injury over seven seasons. Similarly, Jayson Tatum had been remarkably durable through eight seasons with nearly 25,000 minutes played across more than 700 games. He was Boston’s rock and rarely missed postseason action until this season.
Niko: Exactly. Tatum’s workload was peerless—he averaged about 35 minutes per game over eight seasons and even guarded bigger players like Karl-Anthony Towns for significant stretches this postseason. But then that sudden Achilles tear happened in Game 4 against the Knicks, abruptly ending his run.
Stella: And Tatum isn’t alone this year either. He’s actually the sixth player to suffer an Achilles tear this season alone—including stars like Damian Lillard and Dejounte Murray. This spike in star injuries during playoffs seems unprecedented compared to previous decades.
Niko: Yeah, when you look back at the ’90s, star absences due to injury in playoffs were rare—only four injured All-Stars combined from 1994 to 2000 compared to multiple every postseason now. The five-season rolling average shows a massive increase: from less than one per season back then to around seven injured All-Stars recently.
Stella: And these aren’t minor injuries either; many are severe enough to be career-altering or cause players to miss multiple playoff games. For example, Stephen Curry has missed four straight games with a hamstring strain this postseason alongside Tatum and Lillard’s serious setbacks.
Niko: So what’s driving this? The article points toward changes in the game itself—the expanding geometry where positions blur and players cover more ground than ever before. Take Tatum guarding Towns: a wing defending a seven-footer who shoots from deep is emblematic of how versatile—and demanding—the roles have become.
Stella: "Stretch fives" like Towns or Nikola Jokić force defenders into unfamiliar territory physically. Plus, according to research cited here from Sportico's Lev Akabas, players are running about nine percent more distance per minute than they did ten years ago—which naturally increases wear and tear on their bodies.
Niko: "Physicality" also comes up as a major factor this postseason. Players and coaches have noted referees letting more contact slide—almost resembling football at times with wrestling for position all over the court. Jaylen Brown even warned that it felt less like basketball because of how loose calls have been.
Stella: "The Timberwolves’ coach Chris Finch echoed that sentiment saying 'they’ve gone way too far on physicality.' This increased contact comes with consequences: mid-air collisions leading to injuries like those suffered by Tatum, Jimmy Butler, and Ja Morant—all crashing hard onto hardwood floors."
Niko: "What’s fascinating is Roland Beech’s research tracking over 40 types of contact during playoffs shows not only more falls but more severe falls now compared to the ’90s era—even though many assumed ’90s basketball was rougher overall."
Stella: "Beech found about 39 falls per game in the 2024 playoffs—nearly four more than what he saw in sample games from the ’90s—and flopping isn’t new either; it existed back then too. His work suggests physicality might be an underappreciated factor shaping both player health risks and game outcomes today."
Niko: "So summing up: we have longer minutes played by stars like Tatum who take on expanded defensive roles against bigger opponents; rising player movement intensity; increased physicality allowed by referees; all combining into higher injury rates among top players especially in playoffs."
Stella: "Exactly—and while some fans may enjoy tougher play as part of basketball's evolution, there's clearly a cost being paid by athletes’ bodies. The article highlights how these factors together might explain why stars once considered iron men are now sidelined suddenly by devastating injuries."
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