Bill Simmons takes aim at Adam Silver over NBA injuries: ‘You’re making your sport worse’

Adam Silver didn’t injure the NBA’s stars. But figuring out what the league can do to keep them on the court is very much part of his job.

That’s where Bill Simmons has a point. Whether the commissioner deserves to be accused of not caring is another matter.

Speaking on The Bill Simmons Podcast, Simmons called for a 70-game regular season and took direct aim at Silver over the league’s growing list of unavailable players, via Matt Yoder of Awful Announcing.

“This is just inexcusable and semi-reprehensible, that whoever is in charge of the league, which I think is Adam Silver these days, that he doesn’t care,” Simmons said.

That’s a pretty strong accusation. So was what followed.

“You’re ruining your players, and you’re making your sport worse, and you’re hurting careers, and you’re shortening careers,” Simmons said. “This should be a 70-game season.”

He wasn’t finished.

“And if you don’t do it at this point, I just think it’s negligent. I really do. I think it’s like actual negligence and greed. And those are the two words.”

The frustration is understandable. Anthony Edwards, Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren, Paolo Banchero and Ja Morant are among the players sidelined early in the season. Fans are buying tickets and subscriptions to watch stars, then finding out those stars won’t be available.

The NBA’s injury era is becoming an awfully difficult sell.

Still, cutting 12 games wouldn’t guarantee healthier players. These injuries have different circumstances, and it’s a considerable leap to pin all of them on the commissioner or the schedule. Simmons’ argument is stronger when he’s demanding action than when he’s assigning motives.

But Silver doesn’t get a pass simply because the problem is complicated, either. He’s the commissioner. Getting owners, players and broadcast partners to seriously consider changes is part of the responsibility.

There may already be some interest. Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix recently said Silver likes the idea of 40-minute games, though that’s a different proposal from shortening the season. Mannix also questioned whether shorter games would actually reduce stars’ minutes or mostly squeeze the bench.

That’s worth sorting out before declaring either idea the answer.

Fewer games would mean fewer dates to sell. Nobody should pretend that’s a small obstacle. But the NBA also has to consider what it’s selling when so many of its best players can’t participate.

Silver doesn’t have to agree with Simmons on 70 games. He does need a convincing response to the problem behind the criticism.