NBA news: Boston Celtics superstar Jayson Tatum does not believe in load management. He made his stance abundantly clear in a recent statement that throws shade on anyone and everyone who manages their load. Can we count Milwaukee Bucks talisman Giannis Antetokounmpo as part of that group?
NBA News: Jayson Tatums Slams Load Management in NBA
Tatum recently addressed a bunch of younger players and he took the opportunity to share his unfiltered view on load management. This has, unfortunately, become a common trend in the NBA, and to some extent, it has ruined the game.
Jayson Tatum is having none of it:
“I don’t decide, ‘S**t, we playing the Hornets tonight, I’mma chill,'” Tatum said. “I only get to go to Charlotte two times a year. Somebody paid their money to come watch me play. … And just because we playing Charlotte on NBA League Pass on a Monday that ain’t nobody f**king watching, (I’ll say) ‘Aight, I’m chilling tonight.’ That’s not what the best players do.”
Celtics fans will be pleased to hear Tatum’s unequivocal statement here. He’s obviously not messing around, so we should all expect not to see “load management” on the injury report the next time the Boston star is forced to watch a game from the sidelines.
NBA News: Do Bucks Manage Giannis Antetokounmpo’s Load
If you ask the Bucks, they’re probably going to say that they don’t. The team will also state that their cornerstone superstar only sits out games when he’s dealing with legitimate injuries.
Well, the fact of the matter is that over the past four years, Antetokounmpo has played an average of just 63.5 games per season. During that span, he’s missed a grand total of 65 regular season games. Since 2019, Giannis has missed a total of 20% of his team’s regular season games.
While you can argue that some superstars have missed much more games than Antetokounmpo has for the Bucks, the fact of the matter is that he’s sat out A LOT of games over the past four years. Of course, injuries are the biggest factor, but at the same time, you can’t help but question if there’s a bit of load management involved here as well.
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