For any team in any sport, injuries are always the biggest enemy. Sometimes they’re unavoidable, and sometimes they’re the result of the energy and intensity of the game. While professional rosters are built with contingencies in mind – including injuries – we all know there are players who simply cannot be replaced. A recent example is the Los Angeles Lakers and their superstar LeBron James. Since his injury last week against Boston, the Lakers have lost their last three games, even with Doncic playing in two of them. Before LeBron’s injury, the Lakers were in second place in the West and on a six-game winning streak. Now they’ve lost four in a row and have fallen to fifth place, just two games ahead of the Warriors-a team that, unlike the Lakers, is fully healthy and heating up at the right time with Jimmy Butler and Stephen Curry.
Injuries Have Doomed the Mavs and 76ers’ Season
The Lakers are not the only team dealing with injuries. That’s why complaining doesn’t really help; the only solution is the “next man up” approach and seeing how things play out. But when injuries linger throughout the season, it’s even worse because you never know what could have been if the team had stayed healthy. A prime example this year is the Philadelphia 76ers, a team that is still mathematically alive, but has had a disastrous season filled with injuries to their key players. A recent post on “X” illustrated this perfectly, showing a chart where the Sixers had an incredible 96% of their payroll sidelined for their last game. It sounds like a joke, but it’s real.
Joel Embiid (36.6%), who has been out for the season since last month, Paul George (35%) – arguably the biggest disappointment of the year – and Tyrese Maxey (25%) are responsible for this alarming percentage. Maxey, last season’s Most Improved Player, could still return this season, as could George, but their morale must be at rock bottom. To put things in perspective, in their last loss to the Pacers, the highest paid available player for the Sixers was Guerschon Yabusele, who only takes up 1.5% of the cap space. Winning under these circumstances is nearly impossible, and the franchise knows it – that’s why Sixers tickets are selling for as little as a dollar. As a result, the Sixers will see their streak of eight consecutive playoff appearances come to an end, and Joel Embiid will have to wait until his 10th season next year to play in a conference finals.
Top Highest-Paid Injured Players
The six highest paid injured players this season are from just three teams. The first two are the aforementioned Embiid and George, followed by LeBron James (3rd) and Luka Doncic (5th) of the Lakers, and Anthony Davis (4th) and Kyrie Irving (6th) of the Mavericks. Of those six, only LeBron and Doncic are expected to return for the playoffs, making their recovery crucial in this tight Western Conference race. So as you can see it’s not just the Sixers who are dealing with a high injury-related payroll. The Lakers, with the temporary injuries to LeBron and Doncic, along with Rui Hachimura, have nearly 80% of their cap space on the sidelines. This explains their recent slump, dropping four games in a row.
The third injury-riddled team is the Dallas Mavericks, who seem cursed this season despite playing the Celtics in the NBA Finals less than a year ago. First there was the Luka trade, which had nothing to do with injuries but added fuel to the fire. Then came Kyrie Irving’s season-ending setback and Anthony Davis going down after just three quarters with the team. Those injuries, along with others to key players, have left Dallas with fewer than 10 active players in the rotation as of last week, making it nearly impossible to compete.
For now, the Mavericks are still in play-in position, but I don’t think they can withstand the pressure from the Suns, who are only 1.5 games back and fully healthy. So, just like the Sixers, I’d say their season will end on April 13th – the last day of the regular season.
