LeBron James and other star players may not be able to rest as often during nationally-televised games next season. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
The NBA Competition Committee is tired of teams resting star players during nationally-televised games. The NBA Board of Governors will vote Wednesday on a policy that would fine teams that sit star players during nationally-televised contests, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
If the policy is passed, teams would reportedly face a $100,000 fine for a first violation. That figure would jump to $250,000 for the second violation, and would then increase by $1 million for each subsequent violation, per Wojnarowski.
It’s unclear whether teams will face a fine for sitting one star player in a nationally-televised game or if multiple star players need to miss nationally-televised games for a team to receive a fine.
Teams will only be punished for resting “star players,” which will reportedly be defined as any player who made the All-Star team or was named to the All-Pro team in the past three seasons, per Shams Charania of The Athletic.
In an effort to keep players fresh for the playoffs, NBA teams have engaged in load management for some of the biggest names in the sport. Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James and Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard are among the players who have received semi-regular days of rest during recent regular seasons.
The league attempted to crack down on load management in 2020, implementing a $100,000 fine for teams that sat healthy players during nationally-televised games. Those guidelines, however, left teams with wiggle room to rest players for “unusual circumstances,” which included player age, whether a player was coming off an injury and whether a player took part in back-to-back games.
It’s unclear whether those “unusual circumstances” will still apply next season. Wojnarowski used the term “stricter guidelines,” suggesting the league could look to further crack down on teams trying to skirt the load management policy.
The new load management policy will not be official unless it is approved Wednesday by the NBA Board of…
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Author : Yahoo Sports
Publish date : 2023-09-11 17:41:43
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