Community Shootaround: 82-Game Season

As the NBA marks the 50th anniversary of its first 82-game season, Commissioner Adam Silver is giving indications that a shorter schedule is under consideration.

The league wants to expand its international exposure, possibly with an overseas franchise, which would mean longer flights and a greater physical toll on the players. The tradeoff may be fewer regular-season games to give teams more time to recover from intercontinental travel.

“There’s nothing magical about 82 games,” Silver told Sam Amick of USA Today. “It’s been in place for 50 years, but for the long-term planning of the league, as we learn more about the human body and the wear and tear of travel and the competitive landscape … invariably we’ll look at the regular season. And in looking at the regular season, it may create more opportunities for international franchises.”

Before the formation of the NBA in 1946, professionals used to play a schedule similar to college teams, with a few dozen games each year. The new league started with 11 teams each playing 60 games, explains Stayton Bonner of slate.com, then cut that to seven teams and 48 games in its second season. Eventually the owners settled on 82 for the 1967-68 season because it gave teams three games a week for roughly half the year.

But as Silver says, that number isn’t set in stone. Owners saw it as a level where ticket revenues would cover team salaries without creating too much of an injury risk for the players. The number has endured for five decades, but there’s no reason it can’t be changed if circumstances warrant it.

The last NBA work stoppage in 2011 forced the season to begin on Christmas Day, with each team playing 66 games. Although travel was difficult with so many games condensed into such a short window, some people around the league thought fewer games made for a better product.
What do you think? Does five decades of playing 82 games make it a sacred number? Would all records have to come with asterisks if the season is reduced? Or would the level of play improve with a shorter regular season?
Please share your thoughts in the space below. We look forward to your responses.
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