NBA Player Games Played

A thought struck me on the way home from work recently. Dwayne Wade was sitting out the 4^th of 4 games for the Heat because of an ankle injury and Carmelo Anthony had just announced that he was sitting for a couple of games to rest various and sundry injuries as well. My thought was: Out of the 2003 draft class(Especially the top 5 picks) who is playing the most games, thereby providing the toughness and longevity that teams crave?

The 2003 NBA draft went as follows:

1. Lebron James

2. Darko Milicic

3. Carmelo Anthony

4. Chris Bosh

5. Dwayne Wade

The rest of the draft is not important to us, and neither is the 2^nd pick, although it ultimately changed the course of the Detroit Pistons for a very long time.

Since the 2003 NBA draft, there have been 8 seasons and 656 Regular season games before the 18 or so games that have been played this 2012 season. Here are the amount of games played by each of those top 4 players in that time period:

1. Lebron James: 646/656

2. Carmelo Anthony: 608/656

3. Chris Bosh: 606/656

4. Dwayne Wade: 558/656

Ok, so here is the question. Assuming all of these players had the same amount of skill/leadership/intangibles(Which they obviously do not in real life), which player would you want as a GM? Obviously, the answer is the player that plays in the most games, thereby contributing the most by default. I think it is important for a GM to look at injury history and games played vs possible games. You can have the most talented player in the world, but if they miss 30% of your team’s games every season, he is less valuable than a less skilled player that plays 100% of the time…perhaps.

It is definitely a question worth considering. I think it also points to the added benefit of genetic “freak”ness. Consider Dwight Howard and Lebron James. It can be argued that there are better athletes in the NBA (by a hair. It is debatable), better defenders, better leaders, etc… But one thing that cannot be argued is that their physiques are second to none. The broad shoulder and overall burliness of these tow players, mixed with their obvious athletic and competitive gifts, make them less susceptible to injuries than other players of their generation. These players don’t necessarily play smarter or more conservatively than other players, their bodies are just built to withstand injury and allow them to play through pain.

So, as a GM, we should be careful to give huge contracts to players with a well documented history of missing games. Greg Oden obviously comes to mind, as do Andrew Bynum, Andrew Bogut, Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady. Just be mindful of these players, as the potential value added may be offset by amount of time missed.

Your thoughts?