Bill Simmons has called for the NBA to reconsider its 82-game regular-season schedule amid a growing number of injuries to star players early in the 2026-27 campaign, questioning whether the league's financial success has prevented meaningful changes.

Speaking during a recent episode of The Bill Simmons Podcast, Simmons criticized the demands placed on players and coaches, arguing that the lengthy schedule has negatively affected the quality of basketball.

“If you talk to different coaches and people who run the teams. They all complain about the same stuff and they all say it makes the sport worse: the schedule is too long, they don’t have time to practice, they don’t have enough of a training camp to actually prepare the team, guys get hurt early in the season because they’re not in shape or came in a little bit hurt. And they just seem fine not doing anything about it because of the 82-games thing.”

Simmons questioned whether reducing the schedule to 70 games would create a significant financial burden for a league experiencing substantial growth.

“One of the things that I said on the pod yesterday, ‘everybody is making so much money from the league, right? It’s like aw man, we can’t lose six game home games each.’ I don’t know, can you? Cause we just saw the media money that came in, the values of the team are skyrocketing and when you talk about a 70 game season vs. an 82 game season – How many guys play more than 70 games anyway anymore?”

“How many guys play more than seventy games anyway anymore?”@BillSimmons on the conversation surrounding the NBA’s 82-game regular season.https://t.co/ZqMaVtcgLJ@TermineRadio | @JumpShot8 pic.twitter.com/DD0oDdyVoq

— SiriusXM NBA Radio (@SiriusXMNBA) November 5, 2026

NBA star injuries fuel schedule debate amid Adam Silver's 40-minute game idea

The concerns come as several prominent players face extended absences. Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards is sidelined following right knee surgery, while the Oklahoma City Thunder are without Jalen Williams after a fractured fibula and dislocated ankle. Chet Holmgren is also sidelined with a patellar tendon injury.

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Toronto Raptors forward Kawhi Leonard, Orlando Magic star Paolo Banchero and Portland Trail Blazers guard Ja Morant are among other notable players dealing with injuries early in the season.

Earlier this week, Sports Illustrated's Chris Mannix revealed that NBA commissioner Adam Silver reportedly favors shortening games from 48 minutes to 40, although the financial implications remain a significant obstacle.

“What I’ve heard, he likes the idea of 40-minute games,” Mannix said during a recent segment alongside NBA reporter Rachel Nichols. “I just don’t see financially how it’s feasible. Like I said, it’s not going to affect the minutes of stars. We’re just going to see bench guys get more and more marginalized to the point where teams are gonna be like, ‘we don’t need a 15 man rotation, we just need like 10 guys, we’ll keep a bunch of roster spots open.’”

While Silver's reported interest focuses on reducing game length, Simmons is advocating for fewer games altogether. Neither approach guarantees fewer injuries, but both have renewed discussions about player availability, competitive quality and the NBA's traditional regular-season format.