ESPN's lead NBA broadcast crew argues against shortening the 82-game regular season
Three members of ESPN's top NBA broadcast team — analyst Richard Jefferson, analyst Tim Legler, and play-by-play voice Mike Breen — each pushed back against the idea of reducing the NBA's 82-game regular season schedule during a preseason press call. Jefferson argued that players today have far greater resources than their predecessors and questioned why load management remains an issue despite advances in sports science and fewer back-to-backs. Legler contended that a shorter season would not necessarily result in stars playing more games, suggesting rest patterns ahead of the playoffs would simply adjust downward to match whatever the new schedule length became. Breen focused on the financial consequences, pointing out that eliminating even ten games would reduce revenue for players, coaches, owners, arena workers, and surrounding businesses, and flatly stated he does not see a schedule reduction ever happening.
Everyone is going to have to take less money. Ten games away to make it 72. That's a lot of revenue over 10 games, and not just players, coaches, owners.
Why it matters
For brands: Sponsors and arena-adjacent businesses depend on the full 41-home-game slate, and this discussion signals that revenue floor is unlikely to shrink.
For media: Broadcasters holding NBA rights have a financial stake in the number of games played, making the schedule-length debate directly relevant to rights valuations and inventory.
For athletes: NBA players involved in load management debates may see the league continue pursuing alternative solutions — such as fines and back-to-back restrictions — rather than a shorter season.
Read the full story at Yahoo Sports
Sources
- Yahoo Sports: ESPN’s top NBA crew dismisses possibility of NBA shortening regular season
- Awful Announcing · Qwame Skinner: ESPN’s top NBA crew dismisses possibility of NBA shortening regular season