The NBA board of governors unanimously approved a new rule on Wednesday that will crack down on star players resting for games.
The rule states that no more than one star player can be unavailable for any given game, and that star players must be available for all nationally televised and in-season tournament games. Teams will also be required to maintain a balance between the number of one-game absences for a star player in home games and road games.
The NBA is defining a star player as someone who has made the All-Star or All-NBA teams in any of the three previous seasons.
Teams that violate the rule will be fined, with the amount of the fine increasing for each subsequent offense. The first offense will result in a $100,000 fine, the second offense will result in a $250,000 fine, and the third offense will result in a fine of $1 million.
The NBA is also giving itself the authority to investigate teams that it believes are violating the rule, and to impose additional penalties if necessary.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver said the new rule is an effort to address the concerns of fans who are tired of seeing star players sit out games.
“We’re trying to deal with some of the most egregious examples,” Silver said. “Where multiple star players, for example, healthy, healthy all out on the same night. We’re letting down the fans, we’re letting down our partners by doing that.”
The new rule is likely to have a significant impact on how teams manage their rosters. In the past, teams have been able to rest star players for games without any repercussions. However, the new rule will make it much more difficult for teams to do so.
The rule is also likely to be met with some resistance from players. Some players believe that they have the right to rest their bodies when they need to, and that the NBA should not be able to dictate when they play.
However, the NBA is hoping that the new rule will be met with a positive reception from fans. The league is facing increasing competition from other sports leagues, and it is important for the NBA to keep its fans engaged. The new rule is seen as a way to do that by ensuring that fans have the opportunity to see the best players play every night.
The new rule will go into effect for the 2023-2024 season.
Here are some of the exceptions to the rule:
- Players who are 35 years old on opening night or have career workloads of 34,000 regular-season minutes or 1,000 regular-season and playoff games combined can be preapproved to miss back-to-back games.
- Teams can seek approval for a star player to be unavailable for one end of a back-to-back based on the player’s prior or unusual injury history.
- Other exceptions include multigame absences for a bona fide injury, personal reasons, rare and unusual circumstances, roster management of unavailable star players, and end-of-season flexibility.
