NBA Notebook: Steve Kerr sounds the alarm on NBA injuries due to pace increase

As the NBA begins its sixth week, the league's injured list resembles an All-Star team. Trae Young, Anthony Davis, Aaron Gordon, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Ja Morant, OG Anunoby, Victor Wembanyama, Kawhi Leonard, Joel Embiid and Joel Embiid are currently or were recently out, among others, overwhelmingly due to soft tissue injuries. Steve Kerr sounded the alarm on the early-season injury outbreak, speaking to reporters last week, blaming them on an increase in pace around the league. 

"I'm very concerned," Kerr said. "It's dramatic. The pace difference is dramatic. This team tonight has really upped their pace compared to last year. I think across the league, everybody understands now it's just easier to score if you can beat the opponent down the floor, get out in transition, but when everybody's doing that, the games are much higher-paced, faster-paced and then everyone has to cover out to 25 feet, because everybody can shoot threes, so we have all the data. Players are running faster and further than ever before, and we're trying to do the best we can to protect them, but we basically have a game every other night and it's not an easy thing to do." 

Experts typically point to the NBA's crowded and condensed schedule alongside the greater wear-and-tear players receive at a young age through AAU schedules for the modern uptick in injuries. Kerr also mentioned the speed, pace and mileage of the professional game contributed to the influx, according to his medical staff. Players need to guard more possessions now, and make more efforts within them to defend and score inside and out. The NBA tacitly acknowledged Kerr's concerns last week by announcing biometric testing across the league they hope will identify and prevent injuries throughout the season. But in league meetings, Kerr said, he often brings up the clearest solution: shortening the schedule. The revenue decrease that would create for all parties involved makes it a non-starter. 

Magic star Paolo Banchero arrived at TD Garden on Sunday missing his sixth straight game with a groin strain. He's feeling better and approaching a return, getting his legs under him so he can return to an Orlando offense that played as slowly as anyone in 2025 and embraced pace for this season. The Magic hovered around the top-10 through the first two weeks of the season before settling at 21st on Friday, still up from their last-place finish one year ago. Jamahl Mosley said the team wanted to generate more early shot clock attempts and turn defense into offense more efficiently compared to last season, when they finished bottom-10 in offense despite making the playoffs. 

"There's definitely some truth to (Kerr's comments)," Banchero told Boston Sports Journal before Sunday's game. "Like I just mentioned, Indiana, they were the fastest playing team in the league (last year), they played a really unique style, but they also had three major Achilles injuries last year and that's a lot for one team, so I think it is an effective way of playing, but it also is a lot on the body for anybody. Every guy on the floor has to run, so it's not like it's only the guards or it's only the bigs. Everyone has to run in order for it to work, so I do think that does contribute to some of the injuries, soft tissue-wise, like calves and hamstrings." 

Mosley acknowledged the pitfalls to playing fast, and the Magic struggled to stay in control more than with their health through the early portion of their schedule. Banchero became their first significant injury this year, while the Celtics, who also experimented in training camp with playing faster, settled into a slower pace once games began. Whatever metric used to define pace, something Joe Mazzulla often challenges reporters to think about, the Celtics rank relatively low in. Boston doesn't play many possessions per game, and even ranks low in the work they do early in the shot clock. Mazzulla and Jaylen Brown have assessed their offense as slightly faster than last year, and noted that a league-wide increase in pace contributed to their relatively low standing. 

Yet the Celtics might've benefited indirectly from not altering their speed drastically. Until Neemias Queta left Sunday's game with an ankle sprain, Boston only lost one game due to injury when Luka Garza went in concussion protocol through the first 16 games aside from Jayson Tatum's ongoing absence. Brown tweaked his hamstring in the final preseason game, returned for opening night one week later and managed playing with less athletic burst to remain available until he fully recovered earlier this month. Mazzulla, however, credited the Celtics' minutes distribution, shorter bursts played at maximum effort, and deeper rotation this year as greater factors in their perhaps unmatched health to begin this season. 

“I think that’s where the league is headed for sure,” Mazzulla said. “I don’t know the science or the medical data behind that, but I appreciate the wear, tear, the physicality, the things that the guys do to get their bodies ready to play, and the league is playing faster. That’s one of the reasons why not having (substitution) patterns, playing 11-12 guys, keeping guys fresh, that’s huge, because at the end of the day, the way to be successful in this league, especially over the last couple of years, has been with the effort and the toughness and the physicality of 94 feet, and playing fast on both ends of the floor, pushing pace and dictating that. It takes a lot more and I think that’s more of why we’re leaning into anybody on any given night. Who is the freshest physically and mentally and how can we take advantage of everyone’s strengths?"

The NBA injury discussion involves nuance. Last year, Tatum tore his Achilles as part of an unprecedented outbreak of those catastrophic injuries around the NBA, something the league acknowledged and looked into. It's less clear whether what feels like an injury surge into this season is actually abnormal. Zach Lowe mentioned that Jeff Stotts, who studies and tracks injuries, didn't see an unusual uptick in soft tissue injuries to begin this year, but rather saw an annual spike in those ailments between training camp and the beginning of the regular season. The feeling could stem, instead, from the caliber of players missing to begin this year, whether Tatum, Tyrese Haliburton, Damian Lillard, Kyrie Irving, LeBron James, Tyler Herro, Dejounte Murray or Paul George, who all missed the beginning of the season. Yahoo Sports found that star players have missed twice as many games in 2025-26 compared to last year. 

The Celtics dealt with that through Tatum's absence, and benefited from it too, facing the Magic without Banchero, Sixers down Embiid, Pelicans sans Williamson, Grizzlies missing Morant and the Cavs, who courted a limited Donovan Mitchell (hamstring) in their first matchup while Darius Garland recovered from offseason toe surgery. Orlando rested Jalen Suggs, who dealt with numerous injuries over the last year, while Wendell Carter Jr. and Goga Bitadze sat out with ankle injuries. That left a short-handed Magic lineup to recover from a 20-point deficit, pushing within six points into the final minute behind depth players and young prospects, including Jett Howard, rookies Jace Richardson and Noah Penda, along with two-way front court additions Jamal Cain and Orlando Robinson, who started the game. 

"Talent in the past used to just be kind of what it still is, you can just get a bucket whenever you want," Mazzulla observed after the Magic reserves out-scored Boston's starters, 40-28, in the fourth. "But I think talent's being redefined by the effort, the ways you can impact the shot margin, the ways you can impact the game, can you play full court for 40 minutes? Can you be better conditioned? Can you play faster? Can you get to the free-throw line? I think it's slowly being redefined as more than can you just score? And so that's where the league is headed and you're seeing the pace of that today. That whole second half, there were no bigs on the floor, so being able to impact the game in a bunch of different ways and position-less, it's definitely growing in that area." 

The Celtics leaned into that by utilizing their entire roster to begin the season, including swapping Sam Hauser, Jordan Walsh, Josh Minott and Hugo González in the fifth starting lineup and closing spot based on needs and who brings energy on any given night. Chris Boucher, who's played sparingly this season, replaced Queta after he exited, then Minott and Walsh closed the game at center. Boston wants to remain unpredictable, fresh and avoid complacency through that approach, which also potentially kept them healthy to begin the year. But Brown also admitted that exhaustion slowed the Celtics' approach, at times, noting that he found scoring harder than ever to begin this year as he attacks head-on from the mid-range as Boston's primary option with Tatum out. Sometimes they walk the ball up because they have to, he admitted earlier this month at practice. 

Teams and the league track that workload through wearable devices. They know how much distance players cover and at what intensity. They learn which body parts receive extra exertion and could become at risk for injury. Banchero called them high-speed movements that teams receive alerts about, which could potentially lead to injury. Then it comes down to the teams stepping in and exerting caution through a long season. It's a point of frustration for fans, but as we wrote last season, while talking to player union leadership, it's rarely the players who make the decision to sit out games. 

"I think myself and other guys, you try to do as many things as you can right to prevent those things whether it's getting the right amount of sleep, nutrition," Banchero told BSJ. "I know the NBA, we're always chipped, so they're always tracking data, movement, speed and all that. So they try to do some prevention through looking at the numbers, but I think at the end of the day, it's a lot on the body, 82 games, every other night, you don't really go out, or at least I know myself and no one on this team, no one goes out there and plays at 60%. Everyone's trying to go 100% every game. Some people could say, 'oh you guys should pace yourselves or take games off,; but I just don't think that's how a lot of guys think about playing the game. When you're out there and you're available to play, you wanna give it your all every night and have a good showing." 

It hurts also, Kerr added, that teams can't wind down or practice between games. He noted that the league, in an effort to reduce back-to-backs and crowded stretches like four games in five nights, created a more even game distribution that doesn't allow for practices. Kerr guessed that the Warriors probably held three full sessions over the first month of the season. The Celtics played 13 games in 22 days this past month before they received their first layoff that allowed for full practices. 

Kerr's teams around the 1990s also played 82 games and suffered through four games in five nights, he said. The difference then, he believed, came through what followed, often 3-4 days off that allowed for both rest and ramp-up. Some argued for an extended schedule, but that could interfere with offseason international play and other logistical issues like arena availability. Players also feel the increased intensity. Derrick White reflected on how his first Spurs teams played slowly through LaMarcus Aldridge and Jakob Poeltl. Queta called the NBA game nothing like college in terms of how quickly you need to reach your spots and make decisions. 

The two Finals teams last year responded to that speed, shooting and talent spike by playing more physically and intense at the other end, pressing, risking fouls to force turnovers and running in transition. That's only added to the physicality of the NBA game, and Mazzulla sees teams using their entire rosters going forward with little realistic chance of the schedule shortening. 

"I think teams are kinda going by the strategy of the quicker you can get the ball up the floor, the quicker you can score," Banchero said. "They always say it's like a copycat league and I think when the NBA saw Indiana and OKC too, their styles of play and how both of them got to the finals and the playoff runs they had. I think it switched a little bit how teams all around the league are trying to play except for a few, but most of them you see are playing a lot faster, a lot quicker, making quick-decision basketball a priority." 

Here's what else happened around the NBA this week...

Boston (9-8)/Brooklyn (3-13): The Celtics briefly rose above .500 by escaping a close game in Brooklyn with a late run for their third straight win. Then, the Nets punched back in Boston, taking the lead in the second quarter and extending it to 18 points late in the third quarter while Jaylen Brown sat with foul trouble. Brown sounded off after the game about a lackluster effort by the team and challenged the Celtics to come ready to play or don't come at all. Michael Porter Jr. scored 13 points in the final four minutes to slam the door on Boston's comeback attempt. After arriving in Brooklyn in the Cam Johnson trade alongside a future first-rounder, Porter has averaged 24.8 PPG, 7.6 RPG and 3.2 APG on 48.7% shooting to begin this season, including 38.0% from three. Matt Moore reported that the Celtics have been one of the more active teams in trade talks to begin this year, but have preferred not to take on money in deals. Johnson, in an interview with Andscape, looked back at his trade from the Nets and stressed that he never asked out of Brooklyn. 

Charlotte (4-13): LaMelo Ball denied a Yahoo report that he's grown increasingly frustrated with the Hornets franchise and became open to a trade. Ball said he loves being in Charlotte after practice on Friday. He called the information false and said nobody asked him about his stance. Ball has only played in nine games this season while continuing to struggle with ankle injuries, a constant early in his career. Brandon Miller (shoulder) appeared in Charlotte's first two games before going down with his injury. Ball is signed for four-years, $168.8 million through 2028-29 after signing the first max contract in franchise history. He's averaging 21.2 PPG, 6.6 RPG and 9.3 APG on 39.3% FG (28.6% 3PT). 

"I'm glad to hear what he had to say because I would echo a lot of the same things," Lee said. "Our ability to have communication between myself and Melo and [GM Jeff Peterson] is really high, and I think that he's always communicated to us that he wants to build this thing with us." 

Dallas (5-13): Cooper Flagg scored 29 points with seven rebounds and five assists in a battle against fellow top rookie Derik Queen that the Mavs escaped from with a 118-115 win. He missed the team's two-point loss to the Knicks with an illness, his first absence since arriving to the NBA. He's now averaging 16.1 PPG, 6.4 RPG and 3.1 APG on 45.7% shooting (27.7% 3PT). After speculation that the Mavs could look to move Anthony Davis to place the franchise in line with Flagg's timeline, Mark Cuban affirmed that the team has no plans to trade him. Jason Kidd, Michael Finley, Matt Riccardi and Cuban have reportedly formed a GM by committee approach alongside Patrick Dumont in Nico Harrison's place since the executive's firing earlier this month. Kidd said Davis (calf) is doing great in his recovery. Dante Exum (knee) will undergo season-ending surgery. 

Denver (12-4): Aaron Gordon (hamstring) left the second quarter of the Nuggets' win over the Rockets on Friday and did not return. David Adelman said Gordon is expected to miss time with an injury he dealt with earlier in the week on the opposite side from the hamstring that derailed his postseason in May. Gordon seeked a second opinion on the injury, only to learn he'll miss 4-6 weeks with the ailment. He joins Christian Braun (ankle) on the bench for a Denver team that'll start Peyton Watson and Spencer Jones in their place, which led to a loss against Sacramento. Jones joined Denver as an undrafted free agent from Stanford on a two-way deal before the 2024-25 season. He scored one point in 24 minutes in the loss on Saturday. 

Detroit (14-2): Won their 12th straight game on Saturday, 129-116, over the Bucks and built a 3.0 game lead over Toronto atop the Eastern Conference standings. Cade Cunningham dropped 29 points, eight rebounds and 10 assists in the win, shooting 10-for-18 from the field and 3-for-6 from three. He's averaging 30.6 PPG, 5.7 RPG and 10.9 APG on 47.2% shooting during the streak and has emerged on the short list of MVP candidates to begin his fifth NBA season. Jalen Duren emerged as a Most Improved Player favorite early in the schedule, posting 20.5 PPG and 11.5 RPG on 67.5% shooting through 14 games, while Jaden Ivey (knee) returned from preseason surgery with 10 points in 15 minutes (4-6 FG). Detroit had 13-game win streaks during their 1990 and 2004 championship seasons, which they can match on Monday at Indiana. They visit Boston on Wednesday at 5 p.m. for the NBA Cup finale, which the Celtics have effectively been eliminated from with two losses. The Pistons can clinch Group B with a large enough win or Magic loss to Philadelphia. 

Golden State (9-9): Lost three straight games and received a defensive rebuke from Jimmy Butler, which followed Draymond Green's criticism of the Warriors' play on that end earlier in the schedule. Jonathan Kuminga (knee) aimed to practice on Sunday as he nears a return from tendinitis, which knocked him out of the last five games. He's struggled since signing the qualifying offer to return to the Warriors, averaging 13.8 PPG and 6.6 RPG with almost as many turnovers as assists, shooting 32.4% from three, despite earning a starting role early in the schedule. Golden State continues to struggle to effectively integrate him, as ESPN documented. 

Clippers (5-12): James Harden broke the Clippers' scoring record with 55 points after he unloaded 27 in the first quarter in a desperately needed win at Charlotte following three straight losses. Harden's scoring efforts hadn't translated into many wins to begin the year, averaging 27.8 PPG, 5.8 RPG and 8.4 APG on 45.3% shooting to begin his 17th season at age 36. Kawhi Leonard (ankle/foot), who's missed the past 10 games with a sprain, will return on Sunday against the Cavaliers as LA tries to put its season back on the rails. Chris Paul, who's played sparingly in his return to LA for a 21st season at age 40, announced he will retire from basketball at the end of the season. That meant last Sunday, barring a Celtics-Clippers Finals, marked his Final appearance at TD Garden. Jordan Walsh described the challenge of guarding Harden earlier this week. 

Lakers (12-4): LeBron James returned against the Jazz on Tuesday for his season debut, scoring 11 points with three rebounds and 12 assists in 30 minutes as the Lakers snuck past Utah in a 140-126 shootout. The fallout from the franchise's sale to Mark Walter in June, which drew a split vote from Jeanie Buss and her siblings, the heirs to the team when Dr. Jerry Buss died in 2013. The Lakers fired Jeanie's siblings Joey Buss and Jesse Buss, who played key scouting roles in the organization. Previously, brothers Johnny and Jim feuded with Jeanie over control of basketball operations when Magic Johnson returned to the organization. LA did not comment on the most recent departures, while Jeanie maintains control over the governor title that Wyc Grousbeck tried to maintain through Boston's similar sale over the summer, which NBA rules thwarted due to his insufficient share. As Walter assumes more control of the Lakers, executives from his Dodgers organization will begin advising on the Lakers side. 

Memphis (6-11): Ja Morant taunted Klay Thompson, calling him a bum in a spat between the Grizzlies and Mavericks on Sunday that led Thompson to issue a massive rebuke of Morant and his recent career disappointments in a post-game undressing. Morant remains more than one week from being evaluated for his calf injury, which the Commercial Appeal consulted a medical expert on for his outlook. Santi Aldama assumed the scoring responsibility while Vince Williams Jr. stepped in at point guard, helping Memphis win 2-of-3 since Morant exited their loss against Cleveland. Ty Jerome (calf) is expected to return in 6-9 weeks. 

Minnesota (10-6): In the play-in mix in the packed west to begin the season with Julius Randle surging and Anthony Edwards slumping, The Athletic noted in an assessment of the Wolves' start. Jalen McDaniels is also thriving in a faster-paced Minnesota attack, with the team ranking sixth in offense and 14th in defense, good for the seventh-best net rating in the league despite their relatively low standing in the west. The Wolves have won 6-of-8, scoring 120+ points in each of the wins. They finish a road trip through Sacramento and Oklahoma City early this week before hosting the Celtics on Saturday in Minneapolis for their first matchup this season at 5 p.m. EST. 

New Orleans (2-15): Worth a watch at the moment with Zion Williamson (hamstring) back in the lineup and Derik Queen emerging as one of the best rookies in the NBA class. Queen, averaging 15.9 PPG, 7.5 RPG and 4.7 APG on 48.8% shooting since entering the Pelicans' rotation. He became their starting center over the past five games, where he posted 17.6 PPG, 8.0 RPG, 5.4 APG, 1.4 SPG and 1.4 BPG on 49.2% shooting. His battle with Cooper Flagg looked like one for Rookie of the Year, while he drew praise from Nikola Jokić after scoring 30 points against Denver. New Orleans received widespread criticism for trading the Bucks' first-round pick rights this year to move up and select Queen.

New York (9-6)/Orlando (10-8): Knicks have lost 3-of-5, two against the Magic, who scored 124+ in each of the games. Landry Shamet (shoulder) exited Saturday's loss following a collision with Wendell Carter Jr. Shamet emerged as a crucial bench player in his return to New York early this season, averaging 15.2 PPG on 41.4% three-point shooting. He dealt with a dislocated shoulder during the preseason. The Magic lost head coach Jamahl Mosley to lightheadedness that prevented Mosley from even watching the end of the game. He spoke after the game, calling the incident scary, and returned to coach when the Magic visited Boston on a back-to-back on Sunday. Orlando had won 6-of-7 since losing to the Celtics in the second half of a mini series at home, but without Paolo Banchero (groin), who's nearing a return, Wendell Carter Jr. or Goga Bitadze, they fell behind by 20 points late on the back-to-back in Boston before their comeback attempt fell short.

Philadelphia (9-7): Joel Embiid (knee) remained out for an eighth straight game after returning for one, Nick Nurse saying that he expects Embiid back soon as they progress cautiously. Embiid reported knee soreness in the leg opposite of the one that derailed last season and forced him to undergo an offseason scope on. Adem Bona (ankle) also remains out to begin this week and will be evaluated after Tuesday's NBA Cup finale against the Magic. The Sixers are 3-4 since Embiid last played, with Tyrese Maxey producing 32.7 PPG, 4.1 RPG and 7.0 APG on 45.8% shooting across that stretch. He continues to rank second behind Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in total scoring to begin this season.  

Phoenix (11-6): Have won 9-of-11 in a surprising start to the post-Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal era, their most recent win coming in the final 50 seconds, where the Suns erased an eight-point lead when Collin Gillespie hit a game-winning jump shot. Phoenix ranks 11th in offense and 12th in defense under first-year head coach Jordan Ott. Devin Booker is averaging 26.9 PPG despite a slow start from three and Dillon Brooks added 21.4 PPG coming back in the Durant trade from Houston while Grayson Allen, Royce O'Neale and Gillespie have all hit 40% of their three-point attempts. Mark Williams, who arrived from Charlotte over the summer, is averaging 12.3 PPG and 8.4 RPG on 64.0% FG.

Portland (7-10): Jrue Holiday (calf) will miss 1-2 more weeks, the Blazers announced, after sitting out the previous four games while the Blazers fell into a four-game losing streak. Portland is also without Shaedon Sharpe (calf), Scoot Henderson (hamstring), who's out at least 2-4 more weeks with his strain, Matisse Thybulle (UCL) and Damian Lillard. That left Deni Avdija to lead the group through his continued ascension among the NBA's most improved players, averaging 25.9 PPG, 6.7 RPG and 5.7 APG on 48.2% shooting to begin his sixth NBA season. He broke the team's losing streak against the Warriors with 26 points, 14 assists and six rebounds, the first Blazer with that stat line since 1996. 

Sacramento (4-13): Domantas Sabonis suffered a partially torn left meniscus and will miss at least the next 3-4 weeks, a massive blow to a Kings team already off to one of the worst starts in the league. He already missed time with separate hamstring and rib injuries as uncertainty looms over his future and the rest of the team's following a coaching change and massive roster turnover across the past year. The Kings lost eight straight games before breaking the streak against a banged-up Nuggets team on Saturday. Zach LaVine's camp reportedly pushed for a Trae Young trade over the offseason, something a Monte McNair front office might've explored before his firing. McNair discussed concepts of a De'Aaron Fox-Young swap before Fox went to San Antonio in a different trade. The Kings will now reportedly listen to offers for anyone not named Keegan Murray or Nique Clifford, their first-round pick from June. Sabonis is not expected to ask for a trade at the moment. 

Toronto (12-5): Advanced to the NBA Cup knockout round alongside the Pistons and Bucks, who won last year's Cup in Vegas. The Raptors also rose to the second seed in the east as their surprising start continued. They won six straight games entering Sunday, and ranked fifth in offense and 11th in defense to build the fifth-best net rating in the NBA (+6.4). Brandon Ingram is leading the team with 20.7 PPG on 48.5% shooting, while RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley and Scottie Barnes also hover around 50% shooting, Barnes also hitting 41.4% of his three-pointers. Barrett left Sunday's win over the Nets with a right knee sprain and will receive imaging on Monday.