Injury Report at the Midway Point of the 2019-20 NBA Season
- Post By: Jeff Stotts
- Date:
- Category: Injury Report, NBA
The 2019-20 NBA season has reached the midway point with each team logging 41 games played. Unfortunately, injuries have once again been an unwelcome subplot to an otherwise entertaining season. The problems actually started last summer when All-Stars Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson suffered injuries that are expected to sideline them for the entirety of the new season. The hits kept coming with DeMarcus Cousins tearing his ACL in offseason workouts and Zion Williamson, one on the most highly anticipated rookies in years, tearing his meniscus during the preseason. New injuries surfaced in the regular season with Kyrie Irving missing 26 games with bursitis in his shoulder, Blake Griffin undergoing another knee scope, and Stephen Curry breaking his hand after just four games played.
The total number of games lost to injury or illness for the first half of the 2019-20 season sits at just over 2,600, a lofty total on par with the record-breaking 2017-2018 campaign in which the league finished with just over 5,500 total games lost. The injuries to Thompson and Durant were influential, along with the other nine players that missed the entire first half of the season recovering from injury. Fortunately, Williamson was able to make his professional debut earlier this week and Indiana’s Victor Oladipo is expected back in the near future.
The San Antonio Spurs were the healthiest team of the first half, surrendering just eight total games to injury or illness. The Denver Nuggets finished second with just 18 games lost with the Charlotte Hornets, Memphis Grizzlies, and Dallas Mavericks rounding out the top five for fewest games lost.
On the opposite end of the spectrum sit the Golden State Warriors, a team that suddenly finds itself an unfamiliar place in the standings. Already elevated by the injuries to Curry and Thompson, the Warriors’ total was further boosted by ankle and thumb injuries to newcomer D’Angelo Russell and lingering issues for players like Kevon Looney and Jacob Evans. As a result, Golden State lost nearly 200 total games to injury or illness. The Wizards sit narrowly behind the Warriors, largely in part to John Wall’s recovery from Achilles surgery and extended absences from Thomas Bryant, Jordan McRae, and rookie Rui Hachimura. The Toronto Raptors, Portland Trail Blazers, and Detroit Pistons round out the five franchises most decimated by injury so far this season.
The initial response to elevated injury totals often involves blaming an inherent factor like the schedule or poor preparation but a deeper look into the specifics suggest it’s not quite that easy. This year the number of games lost due to hand and wrist fractures is three times higher than it was last season at the same point and higher than the previous three seasons combined. Hand and finger fractures are difficult to predict and nearly impossible to prevent, regardless of the schedule, opponent, or pre-game routine. Simply put, Curry suffering a broken metacarpal after Aron Baynes fell on his hand was likely unavoidable.
Still there is an alarming trend that has begun to develop. Since the 2005-06 season, there have been 30 cases of Achilles tears among NBA players. Of these documented cases, eight (26 percent) have occurred since January 2019, including the recent injury to Mavericks big man Dwight Powell. Additional names on the list include Wall, Durant, and Portland’s Rodney Hood. As of January 20, calf and Achilles related problems accounted for nearly one-third of all muscle-related absences so far this season.
Pinpointing any underlying factors influencing these types of injuries may help curtail the sudden spike in Achilles-related problems but could prove difficult given the number of variables in play. The mechanism of injury for many of the cases is similar, a disproportionate loading pattern during an attempted acceleration, but other intrinsic factors vary, including time of the season, time of the game, and varying shoe wear.
The return of Williamson, Oladipo and eventually Curry should provide a boost of star power to the second half of the NBA season. Still, injuries will continue to make an impact on a wide-open race for the 2019-20 title and, unfortunately, may do so at an unprecedented pace.
