Load management is a phrase that won’t go away anytime soon.
That said, coaches use different approaches to decide when and how to give players rest. And yes, some coaches aren’t very fond of the aforementioned phrase that’s become part of the sport’s vernacular.
A post-game news conference in Bloomington, Indiana, on Saturday illustrates this point.
Indiana University head coach Archie Miller delivered this view after the Hoosiers’ 85-71 win over visiting Portland State.
A reporter asked him about forward De’Ron Davis’ limited time on the court in IU’s second game of the season.
Reporter: “De’Ron only played four minutes. Is that just due to load management?”
Miller responded by saying, “Load management? What is that?”
As a follow-up point, the reporter stated, “Coming back from injury.”
Miller: “Load management? Load management, is that something they got going on in the NBA or something like that?”
Reporter: “Correct.”
That prompted a brief dissertation on the subject, courtesy of the Hoosiers mentor.
Miller said, “I think (Los Angeles Clippers coach) Doc Rivers got fined $50,000 for talking about load management. I don’t think I should talk about load management.
“There’s no load management in college basketball. You play every minute you can play. In De’Ron’s case I thought his minutes in the game were pretty good. I told him after the game, he should have got a little bit more run there. The way our team is built now, you have to find a way on the floor with your opportunities and cash in. He’ll do that.
“Load management?”
For basketball purists, load management is a concept as foreign as rock formations on the moon.
