Event Around the 2025 NBA Playoff Madness!

Seriously though, you're right. Tatum and Haliburton will very likely get back to where they were before this terrible injury but Dame will be lucky to get back to a point where he's playable. I honestly think both Haliburton and Tatum's best ball is ahead of them and the most likely outcome for Dame's injury is a number of setbacks followed by a medical retirement.

 

I don't see any medical retirement. I mean Dame's the same age Kobe was. I think Dame's days as a highly effective NBA player are over. But I'd think he can get on the court for a number of years like Kobe did.

 

I think shortening the season is a pipe dream. I doubt we see the games shortened but maybe we do and with it adopt all of the FIBA rules. I don't think 40 minute games fix this problem though because I think our most competitive superstars would start to try and play every competitive minute of every game.

Maybe it just takes an adjustment to the minutes guys play... not a rule change but a culture change where 32 minutes is a lot and we see rotations of 11 or 12 guys all logging 20 or more minutes, instead of 8 to 1o man rotations we're used to.

 

Seems to me like medical staff need to get a better handle on symptoms leading up to Achilles ruptures. In the cases of Dame and Haliburton, both guys had been trying to play through what they perceived to be calf strains, but ended up with Achilles ruptures. If they can learn to recognize the symptoms of these types of more serious injuries and find ways to diagnose them with better imaging, maybe they can shut some of these guys down before a major tear occurs.

 

I've always wanted to see something where free throws were speed up. The Gleague had some idea of 1 FT for either 1/2/3 points. Not sure I like that - but just something so we don't have all these stoppages of play. Way more exciting when the game quickly flows back and forth. Guys would get really tired and would need to have more breaks too.

 

Yeah - Wes was playing through injuries when he ruptured his - Durant too. Certainly seems like there could be a better way to prevent this.

People also underappreciate how physical and intense the game has become today. Guys are lanky and thin so it's just doesn't seem as physically intense to fans as the old school muscular PF types. But its way more active now, nearly every player has to be guarded out to the 3pt line. It's nothing like the 80s/90s where guys were resting on D, and pounding the ball for 24 second every offensive rebound.

 

I think if we all need to be a little more honest about Dame specifically, the writing was on the wall. There were articles where writers were openly worrying about him rupturing his Achilles coming off of that strain and then the prolonged time out with the blood clot and his very quick come back from it. Hali was shocking but shouldn't have been either.

You're right, these medical staffs have to be more on top of this shit or maybe the players are getting good advice, not taking it and they're the ones who need to wake up. It's a perplexing situation but I hope these three very high profile post season injuries are enough of a wakeup call to see less of these devastating injuries. Hopefully it doesn't have to get worse before it gets better.

 

Dude if you listen to that video from Austin Rivers, I don't think an adjustment like that would make these dudes like Dame, Hali and Tatum who have insane cardio any safer. It has to be less PT to cut down on wear and tear. I don't think cutting down on stoppages in the game would do it... but it does have me wondering and confused, so who knows maybe you are onto something.

 

One thing I’ve wondered about relative to Dame’s injury is whether the insane jump he made to block Siakim’s shot had any impact on his Achilles finally letting go.

 

Yeah, it could have been that but again there were multiple articles worrying about his quick comeback from and injury and then a blood clot in his lower leg risking his Achilles, so with him especially even if you can isolate a play, the culprit was more so bad judgement. Dame should have sat the rest of the season and lived to play next season.

 

Halliburton took a calculated risk. He knew it was the last game of the year. Had it been Game 5 he might have sat out. Unfortunately it didn't work for him.

 

And, be honest. At least he doesn't live in Indiana...

 

Now that the finals are over my reflection of the 2025 playoffs is this: 3 superstars suffer Achilles injuries which changed the landscape of the series. I can’t remember a year where anything has happened to this magnitude during the playoffs; Dame, Tatum and now Haliburton. Is it a coincidence or is there more to the story?

 

If they all wear same style sneakers could be looked at, but I think just shit luck.

 

watching haliburtons ankle pop like that made me gag, that shit looked painful as fuck

 

I don't think the rise in achilles injuries is just shit luck. It has to do with pace of play, it has to do with amount of play and it definitely has to do with injury management. I can agree that Tatum seemed like shit luck. Dame and Hali though, both of those guys were trying to muscle through calf injuries Hali after a grueling season and playoffs, Dame after rushing back from a blood clot caused a calf injury.

The NBA training staffs have to do a better job of explaining the risks of playing through calf injuries and/or achilles tendonitis or possibly not clearing guys to play that are dealing with those injuries and the players have to be more realistic about their limitations.

 

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id...-victory-most-watched-nba-finals-game-6-years

 

Game7 most watched finals game in 6 years. Apparently this is why the NBA had a massive decade long conspiracy to get small market OKC and Indy in the finals. Shame on the NBA.