NBA stars missed an average of 28 games

Why are stars not playing?

BY HENRY ABBOTT

Zion Williamson spent most of last season away from the New Orleans Pelicans. Ben Simmons missed a lot of games for a lot of reasons. Kyrie Irving played, and then barely played, for the Nets.

NBA stars are missing a ton of games. I looked at everyone who has played in an All-Star game over the past three years—48 players in total—and then added the NBA’s current high-earners to beef up this sample to a decent enough chunk of players that it would be possible to approach a trend. By my count:

• The average NBA star from this list missed 28 games last season. 

• Zero of those 48 players checked into even 80 of the 82 games last season.

• Five top players—Williamson, Simmons, John Wall, Kawhi Leonard, and Jamal Murray—missed the entire season. 

It’s a trend that includes many of the league’s biggest names and practically all the MVP candidates. Over the …