A lot of people have talked about the NBA’s diminishing ratings this year.
There have been many claims about why people aren’t tuning into the game like they used to and basketball legend Magic Johnson has an idea.
Speaking with Byron Scott, per NBACentral, Johnson said load management is to blame for the declining ratings.
He claimed that “Michael Jordan played in every game” and said that superstars on the bench are hurting the game.
Magic Johnson thinks that NBA stars sitting out games for load management is negatively impacting the league’s ratings.
"Michael Jordan played in every game."
(🎥 Byron Scott's Fast Break/ h/t @ArtOfDialogue_ )
pic.twitter.com/ofWmUdNGEc
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) March 21, 2025
This is something that many NBA fans and analysts believe.
They say that too much load management is harming basketball and people aren’t watching the game because they aren’t seeing the biggest names of the game enough.
It does seem that more and more players are practicing load management.
Because of injuries and the lengthy season, there are many games when at least one star isn’t suiting up.
Sometimes their reasons are valid and players really do have to rest because of physical problems.
But some people suspect that load management is just being used as an excuse to give stars more time off.
It is hard for fans to get fired up and excited about games when they don’t know if their favorite players will appear.
But Johnson said more changes are needed.
He referenced the All-Star Game and stated that it needs to be overhauled to become more exciting.
Again, this is something that many people are saying and the league is hard at work tweaking the game.
Will it pay off and will ratings go up next year?
Everyone will be paying close attention.
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