In twist of irony, Spurs don't have to worry about ramifications of rest... yet

San Antonio, a pioneer of the Load Management Era, will not be affected by the league's new participation policy to start the season. But things could change sooner rather than later.

It’s been nearly 11 years since Gregg Popovich decided to send Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, Tony Parker and Danny Green home on a Southwest Airlines flight without warning or consent ahead of a nationally televised game in Miami against the then-superteam Heat on Nov. 29, 2012 — a move the late David Stern deemed unacceptable enough to warrant a $250,000 fine.

The Spurs had reached the end of a six-game, nine-day road trip and were about to play their fourth contest in five nights, and while they’d never publicly admit it, being thrown in front of a national audience at the end of such a grueling stretch against a Heat team that had been off the previous four days did not sit well internally.

But it wasn’t about the competition or even the schedule itself — though Pop had always been vocal about his disdain for those four-in-five stretches, which have since been eliminated completely — it was about the idea the league would put San Antonio in that position at the end of a brutal road trip with the underlying expectation the team would showcase its stars in a high-profile game against a well-rested defending champion. It was an understandably frustrating scenario, especially if you consider it may have been a scheduled day off for the old guys anyway.

Given all the attention it received, this whole saga marked the unofficial beginning of the Load Management Era in the NBA. Most discussions you hear about the topic these days will harken back to the Spurs of old and credit them for implementing a rest schedule that not only impacted players’ performances over the course of an individual season, but also lengthened their careers. Even after the fine was levied against San Antonio for its actions prior to that game in Miami, an apologetic Popovich would go on to say in so many words he was simply looking out for his team’s best interests.

These practices weren’t brand new in San Antonio by that point, but it was not a leaguewide issue in 2012, and it had never before been done in such a seemingly defiant manner on a big stage. Thus, the reaction.

Over the years, more and more teams would take the same approach. Whether it was rotation players being more careful about small injuries, or front offices electing to sit their most important players when either a playoff spot was secured or the postseason was out of reach, all involved realized the importance of finding places to rest when they could during an impossibly demanding 82-game season. Players wanted their careers to last as long as possible, and franchises wanted the same for their prized assets. It was a sort of win-win, until the cornerstone of the league’s framework began to erode.

What about the customer? What about the parent who coughs up an entire paycheck to take his or her family to watch their favorite player only to find out 90 minutes prior to tip-off that guy isn’t playing? And even more importantly, and without being too cynical, what about the companies paying billions of dollars for television rights that have to worry about whether or not LeBron James will play on the second night of a back-to-back? At what point does all the rest begin to affect the bottom line?

Since 2020, NBA All Stars have missed 14.4 games per season on average, up from 9.7 during the previous decade, per The Wall Street Journal. It’s become a real issue, and on Wednesday, the NBA’s Board of Governors addressed it further by approving a “Player Participation Policy” that will take effect this season. For all intents and purposes, its aim is to drastically limit “rest days” and implement a set of guidelines under which healthy “star” players (defined as any player who has played in an All-Star Game or been named to an All-NBA Team in the last three seasons) must operate on a night-to-night basis — particularly when it comes to nationally televised games.

Here’s a quick rundown, per a memo from the league:

Under the policy, unless a team demonstrates an approved reason for a star player not to participate in a game, then, among other things, the team must:

• Manage its roster to ensure that no more than one star player is unavailable for the same game.

• Ensure that star players are available for all national television and NBA In-Season Tournament games.

• Maintain a balance between the number of one-game absences for a star player in home and road games.

• Refrain from any long-term “shutdowns” in which a star player stops playing games.

• If resting a healthy player, ensure that the player is present at the games and visible to fans.

The policy includes exceptions for injuries, personal reasons and pre-approved back-to-back restrictions based on a player’s age, career workload or serious injury history.

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The irony in all of this is San Antonio, a load-management pioneer, won’t be affected at all by the new rules at the start. It’ll have an opportunity to sit back and better understand the way the policy is managed before it eventually has to mind the rules.

It does not carry an All Star on the roster, and despite his already intergalactic level of fame, there is no clause that will restrict rookie Victor Wembanyama’s ability to rest if he or the team deems it necessary. But that could all be temporary should he be voted into the All-Star game this season, a scenario that’s entirely plausible.

Without even considering his potential statistical output, it’s probable Wemby will at least be in the running based solely on his popularity and the weight of the fan vote for the February showcase. If Andrew Wiggins can be named a starter, it’s not crazy to believe a prospect with this much hype would have a chance. But while playing in the game would be a major achievement, it would also come with ramifications.

It’s all hypothetical at this point, but should he participate, Wemby would immediately qualify as a “star” in the eyes of the league, and the Spurs would have to adhere to the new policy beginning with the very first game following the All-Star break. Which means, should the team find itself out of playoff contention down the stretch of the season, San Antonio would not have the ability to shut him down at any point ahead of summertime workouts the way it did with Jeremy Sochan, Keldon Johnson and Devin Vassell last year — unless Peter J. Holt is willing to cough up some dough. This is a real dive into the mud many may not want to read or consider, and that bridge can be crossed in the future if it’s ever approached, but it could become an issue worth tracking given there are potentially millions of dollars in fines on the line. Not to mention the physical health of San Antonio’s newest superstar.

It’s a strange predicament: During a season in which the Spurs are going to be figuring out how this 7’4 kid’s body works, the benefits of carefully monitoring Wemby’s workload as he transitions into a more physically demanding league are obvious. But on the flip side, both parties want him to play and play often so long as he’s healthy, and being selected as an All Star would be a massive accomplishment, even if it came with a legitimate drawback.

And still there’s more to take into account.

The Spurs have 11 games on TNT and ESPN, all of which come in the first half of the season. Make no mistake, Wemby is THE reason for that massive jump in national television appearances, and even though he is not yet officially categorized as a “star,” the league wouldn’t have awarded San Antonio the additional exposure without the expectation of this dude playing when the broadcast partners are in town.

But let’s say San Antonio eases its prized rookie through the initial adjustment period, and the league isn’t a fan of the way the team is handling the situation around high-profile games. Would the NBA amend the language of the policy to include top lottery picks as “stars” in the future? And from a team and player perspective, would it be fair for these unproven commodities to be looped in that way?

This isn’t to say Wembanyama and the Spurs are interested in throttling back his minutes in an over-the-top kind of way, but the reality is they’re still going to be faced with decisions regarding what is best for the team and its future on any given night, much like they were during the Big 3 Era. Now, as the NBA implements this participation policy on top of the newly introduced 65-game requirement for all non-rookie player awards ahead of a new television-rights deal, that decision-making process is going to be more difficult to navigate.

Still, there’s little doubt teams and players will eventually adjust to these new rules as time passes. But taking away some of the agency they have still feels messy, and the battle between athletes striving for career longevity and a league doing what it can to protect the business side of the equation certainly won’t end here. So it will be interesting to watch for any loopholes and subsequent tweaking of the guidelines, owners who are willing to take cash hits should players’ rest schedules truly be a prioritized (guessing not many), and just how thoroughly the NBA will investigate questionable injury designations. Team doctors are gonna have a hell of a workload moving forward.

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Hanging over all of this like an annoying cloud, however, is the lingering frustration that there seems to be a logical answer to the ‘rest problem’ sitting right under our governors’ noses: a shorter season with more days off in between games, not these stringent policies. Matchups would immediately become more important on a nightly basis, and players would have more time to recover. Flatly, it would go a long way in addressing the issue organically.

But we’re likely never going to see that kind of scheduling utopia, because it’s a solution that would come attached with arguably worse stipulations. Fewer games would mean less money for the owners, which would lead to either a spike in ticket prices, players making less money, or some combination of both. Nobody in this equation would be on board with that resulting financial sacrifice unless somehow cash magically stops being the most important thing on the planet.

Regardless, despite the messy, complicated nature of these new rules, it should be a win for the fans who want to see the stars play — especially for the most observant, who will actually be able to map out players’ schedules to a degree. Paying customers gaining a little more control over the proceedings is a good thing, even if the construct of the whole situation feels questionable.

As for Spurs loyalists, the new participation guidelines and the increased number of nationally televised games all but guarantee you won’t have to endure another season like last year’s for a very long time.

So long as Wemby is around and healthy, of course.

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