NBA

Charles Barkley Goes Off On Load Management In Today’s NBA, Insisting That Team Are ‘Paying Bums’ $300 Million

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The league has had a real problem in recent years with “load management” and it’s become a highly controversial topic. Players have came out and said that others in the league are absolutely not playing as much as they should and it’s because the NBA has become lackadaisical with their polices around the issue. NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley went on ESPN’s First Take with Stephen A. Smith and expressed his displeasure with how the league handles “load management” in today’s NBA. 

Barkley said that teams are “paying bums” $300 million and he’s got a point in certain aspect. Players salaries have drastically increased and even rotation players are earning multi-million dollar checks. He went on to say how “load management” is a huge issue for the NBA and he thinks that the league has went overboard trying to take care of players.

Charles Barkley thinks certain NBA players are being payed far too much for the output they give each night

Stephen A. Smith and Barkley had a discussion on load management and what it’s doing to the league. Chuck went on to explain how it’s perfectly find for players to make $30, $40, or even $50 million a year as long as they are playing every night. That is where the issue lies.

Players in today’s NBA are signing massive contracts and then they sit out for “load management”. It’s one thing to miss time because of an injury, but Barkley says it’s disrespectful to the game and to the fans that pay to see the players each night.

He also went on to share his frustrations with how much players are getting paid. He said that teams are “paying bums” $200-$300 million like it’s candy. He’s not wrong. However, he says the deep-rooted issue is in the load management aspect. Everyone around the league is getting paid, but players missing time when they’re not seriously injured is a big issue the NBA needs to fix.