During Kawhi Leonard 's first season with the LA Clippers, he popularized load management by sitting out games, especially back-to-backs, supposedly to preserve his health and improve the chances that he will be 100% when they need him most - in the playoffs.
That season, SLAM interviewed then-Orlando Magic head coach Steve Clifford and asked him his opinion on the Clippers making load management a part of the game plan in their quest to win their first-ever NBA title. Clifford said he was not a fan of it.
"Our guys aren't used to sitting on the second game of a back-to-back.… We're not sitting guys just to sit," Clifford said . "For me, my background, frankly, it all goes back to expectations. Being with Michael in Charlotte, Michael used to tell them every year, you're paid to play 82 games."
Mike played every game he possibly could
Part of what makes Michael Jordan the greatest of all time is his ridiculous durability. MJ not only averaged 38.3 minutes per game in his career, but he also did not miss a single regular-season game in nine out of his 14 full seasons in the NBA and had three more seasons where he missed no more than four games.
Clifford was an assistant coach for the New York Knicks when MJ played all 82 games of his final NBA season in 2002-03 at the age of 39. Michael averaged 20.0 points per game that year while playing 37.0 minutes per game. But while showing up every day was something players took pride in back then, that's no longer the case in the present era.
"I've been doing this for 20 years, and playing 82 games used to be a badge of courage for a lot of guys," he added. "There were always a lot of guys who didn't want to play. They stood out more."
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Stockton agrees with Mike
Like Jordan, Hall of Famer John Stockton was another player who rarely missed games during the incredibly physical 1980s era. At 6'1" and just 175 pounds, Stockton played all 82 regular-season games in 16 out of his 19 seasons in the league. Overall, he suited up in 1,686 out of a possible 1,708 regular-season and playoff games combined. According to Stockton, he took every game he played as a privilege and honor.
"I have gone to other games and other sports, and the guy I wanted to see was sitting out because it is a rest day, and I just don't get that. I know people that have driven a day just to go and see their favorite player play one single game, and what if that is the game you sit out?" said Stockton.
"I wasn't missing games unless someone was dragging me out of there, so it was really important for me not to let my teammates down. Maybe that is the core of being the athlete; you just don't let your teammates down, which involves being on the court and also how you prepare yourself to be on the court and give your best every night," he concluded.
With the league fighting load management, perhaps players will revert to their "old ways" and try to be available for their teams night and night, like arguably the greatest of all time was.
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