Can of worms: resting uninjured stars causes playoff angst

by Hawk42 on Apr 9, 2010 7:18 AM MST

This time of year is when teams begin gearing up for the playoffs. One thing that invariably happens, is as teams clinch, they begin resting players, adjusting their rotations, and generally playing havoc with betting line s and causing angst fantasy owners.

Not to mention fans of teams affected by the holding out of an uninjured star.

Such was the case last night when Cleveland held LeBron James out of a game against the Bulls. The Bulls won by one, begging the question, did LeBron really need a night off, or do the Cavs actually prefer the Bulls in the first round, as opposed to the Raptors (I would think they would prefer the Raps, since Bosh is out).

In another game with playoff implications, the Lakers hold Kobe out of a game which Suns, Mavs, and Jazz fans dearly needed the Nuggets to lose. Without Kobe to deal with, Denver survived, 98-96, and now hold the #2 seed. Could it be the Fakers want the Nuggets to finish second?

Cleveland also has an opportunity to affect the #3 or #4 seeding in their final regular season game against Atlanta. LA has a chance to throw a monkey wrench in the works, playing Portland on Sunday, which could affect the West seeding.

Like the title says, this is a can of worms, and some say what’s the big deal. But what if the Suns miss a seeding with Denver, and this game swung it? How would you feel? We have a well earned tie breaker with them, but the Fakers may have just messed it up by not playing Kobe.

In general, how do you feel about how resting stars affects playoff seeding this time of year?

Poll

How do you feel about the trend to rest uninjured stars which inadvertantly affect playoff seeding?

Don't like it, but I don't see what can be done about it

21 votes

The commish should investigate the individual cases

1 votes

The coach should be fined for resting an uninjured star against a team in the playoff mix

3 votes

This is how you play the Popovich rules, live with it

22 votes

The uninjured star should miss one playoff game

3 votes

50 votes | Poll has closed

Tweet Comment 12 comments | 0 recs |

Do you like this story?

Comments

i was bummed that Kobe sat out

basically, giving that game away to Denver. I don’t think its that LA wants Denver in the #2. I think it’s more that LA didn’t want to give Denver anything to chew on. If LA wins, Denver is crushed. If Denver wins, so what (from LA-Denver rivalry perspective). The Spurs have been doing that to late-season rivals for years.

As the one option says: its Pop’s world. We just live in it.

Twitter: @dahking
Too late to change the stupid twitter name. Did it as a joke to my teenager, but now I'm hooked on the news-feed aspect of twitter.

by Alex Laugan on Apr 9, 2010 7:32 AM MST reply actions

But why sit out against the Nuggets and not Minnesota tonight?

I’m not sure if Kobe’s playing tonight but tonight’s game seems more like a “let Kobe rest” game rather than last night. Last night could’ve been a statement game if they had beaten the Nuggets. Now the Nuggets have swagger again.

by NashMV3 on Apr 9, 2010 1:00 PM MST up reply actions

i understand and agree with it

if we were the number one seed with a +4 game lead, you bet we’d be resting nash and hill. They’d either be playing 5-15 min or not at all. I think there’s a bigger question to ask than whether or not it changes seeding and how we feel about it.

That question is this, for a team with such a rhythm going right now (Suns) would it be better to keep that rhythm and just play Nash/Hill 25-28 minutes instead of giving them a game or two off?

My thought is simple, if they’re injuries which they play with (back,legs, etc) are bad enough, I advocate taking a game off here and there. But otherwise I think Nash/Hill hypothetically should keep playing 25-30 min a game.

Back to l.a., since they have been hurting the last so many games, I don’t think it matters what they do, they’re not likely going to win a title this year. So, the question quickly becomes who are the next top 2-3 teams. Forget about standings in the west, I’m talking about the last 20-25 games. Whose at the top?

For me (because of the Dallas trade and the suns streak), I’d put Dallas and the Suns at the top.

by be-the-ball on Apr 9, 2010 8:01 AM MST reply actions

Personally, I think that it's a fact of live..

Seems like 3 or 4 teams in the NBA tank every year from the All-Star break on…Hard to prove (No one comes right out and says that they are tanking…). Who is to say that Kobe is really hurting or not….? We just have to take care of the issues that we can address…Liking winning ball games!

"I especially liked the part where I dunked on the McDonalds All-American dude..."

Anonymous high-school player after a Virginia basketball state championship game...

by Daryl Ray on Apr 9, 2010 10:33 AM MST reply actions

We can't complain, because we would have done the exact same thing

we have a 36 year old point guard and a 37 year old small-forward, you don’t think Gentry is itching to sit those guys a couple of games before the playoffs start. Hell, we already have, we played Dragic the entire 4th quater against the spurs while Nash sat.

by DaveJD on Apr 9, 2010 1:14 PM MST reply actions

See the thing is

That if you start fining teams/players for sitting their stars when they’re not injured, you’re just going to get things like “DNP – Lower Back Strain” or “DNP – Flu Like Symptoms”.

And that almost makes me more annoyed that the team is making up fake injuries to get the league off their collective back.

Bright Side of the Sun, for all things Phoenix Suns. Twitter: @iamtrevorpaxton

by Trevor Paxton on Apr 9, 2010 1:48 PM MST reply actions

Kobe might actually be sore

but James is not injured in the least. Did you see him jumping around celebrating Mo William’s 3 pointers on SportCenter?

April 29, 2008 Total Eclipse of the Sun. Is the sky falling?

by Hawk42 on Apr 9, 2010 1:52 PM MST up reply actions

Seriously.

I used to love LeBron. But this season, he’s just dropping further in my respect books.

I love watching him play. I hate watching him complain about calls and do his ridiculous celebrations.

Bright Side of the Sun, for all things Phoenix Suns. Twitter: @iamtrevorpaxton

by Trevor Paxton on Apr 9, 2010 3:55 PM MST up reply actions

I wonder how would a guys like Rasheed (hot tempered) and Perkins (always with the angry face)

would react to Lebron game opening rituals such as the phantom-camera-picture-taking and the “powder flare”.

"I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore!" - Howard Beale, Network (1976)

by Spit_Fire on Apr 10, 2010 12:18 AM MST up reply actions

I think it's natural

It’s stupid to risk a late-season injury

by perep on Apr 9, 2010 2:55 PM MST reply actions

Regarding the Lakers/Nuggets game...

I don’t think the Lakers sat Kobe with intent to lose that game. I could be wrong, but I don’t know… Keep in mind that there’s a very good chance they’ll play Orlando again in the finals, and right now they’re neck and neck for home court advantage in that potential series. Losing on purpose to manipulate West seeding would not seem like a good idea to me.

by iwasneveryoung on Apr 9, 2010 7:58 PM MST reply actions

Lakers/Kobe

Many people forget that right around the All-Star break the Lakers went on like a 5 or 6 game winning streak without Kobe in the lineup. I think that was actually the best they looked all season ! They beat the Blazers (in Portand) and the Spurs and they absolutely crushed the Jazz in Utah — all without Kobe. I think they play as more of a team without Kobe in the lineup; I think it is clear to see for those who watch that team frequently. Who knows, if Kobe played maybe they would have lost to Denver by 10 or 12 pts instead of by only two pts?

by Jack Frost on Apr 10, 2010 12:04 AM MST up reply actions