Houston Rockets newcomer Kevin Durant and Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James are two of the longest tenured players in the NBA right now, and they each have more than 1,100 regular-season games under their belts. James has played 22 seasons in the NBA while Durant has logged 17 seasons (excluding the full season he missed with an Achilles injury).
However, for all of the years Durant and James have played in the NBA, they have each had just one season in which they appeared in 82 of a possible 82 games. Durant played 82 games with the Oklahoma City Thunder in the 2009-10 season, and James pulled off the feat when he was well into his 30s with the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2017-18 campaign.
One X user pointed out that Durant and James don’t have many combined 82-game seasons compared to some players from past generations, and Durant responded with a post and explained that’s the case because the game of basketball has evolved over the years.
The games faster nowadays, more running, more stress on your ligaments. It’s called evolution, the fans of the nba have yet to grasp that concept
— Kevin Durant (@KDTrey5) July 10, 2025
For some possible evidence regarding just how much the style of play in today’s NBA takes a toll on the bodies of players, one only needs to rewind back to the 2025 NBA Playoffs and recognize all the star players who went down with serious Achilles injuries.
Tyrese Haliburton, Damian Lillard and Jayson Tatum all suffered such injuries in the playoffs and are expected to miss extended periods of time. Haliburton’s injury was particularly devastating because it came during Game 7 of the NBA Finals, and perhaps the Indiana Pacers would be the champions right now if not for his poor injury luck.
While there’s a lot to like about how the game is played now from a fan’s standpoint, it’s possible that it has come at a cost to the health of players around the league.
Of course, there are other factors at play as well, and it wouldn’t be wise to blindly attribute today’s style of play to every injury, but with so many big names now on the shelf, the league may want to take a look at how to avoid something similar this coming season.
