When I fell in love with the game of basketball, I fell hard! I remember getting to the court at sunrise in the summertime, going home only to eat and then running back to the court until sundown! I never, not even for a second, thought about how tired I was or how badly my knees or hands hurt. I mean, we played on concrete, and I hit my hand on that chain net too many times to count when attempting a dunk or blocked shot.
Playing one-on-one, 21 or 5-on-5 was the drug we chased every day, all day long. Nobody ever said, Im tired, and the word fatigue was not in our vocabulary. The goal was to win so we could stay on the court, because if you did not, it might be hours before you could play again. So, although I am not a fan of todays grassroots programs and how they teach and prepare our young players, they will allow the players to play four games in one day if they win. This process tests young players desire to push through fatigue and to develop a desire to enjoy winning.
In high school, I rarely came out of a 36-minute game and after my sophomore season at Illinois, head coach Lou Henson told me to check myself out of games. I never raised my hand in high school, college, or the pros to come out of a game. I played 34 minutes a game for Lou, and the only time I sat was because I got in foul trouble. I am not suggesting that everything I did was right, but what I do know is that Ja Morant played 35 minutes a game in his two seasons at Murray State, and in that program they played fast and furious. And, in his career in Memphis, he’s played 32 minutes a game.
So when I look at Ja Morant, one thing I do see is a player who never appears tired. Yes, he has had injury issues and there should be concern about keeping him out of harms way, but his coach, Tuomas Iisalo, should also be concerned about disrupting rhythm, flow, and connectivity and, most importantly, should make a concerted effort not to upset his star.
Iisalo earned his reputation in Europe as a successful coach, winning titles and Coach of the Year awards. He was also highly regarded for his intensity and creative offensive and defensive strategies, so it is understandable why the Grizzlies did not hesitate in replacing Taylor Jenkins with him 73 games into the 2024-25 season.
Obviously, assistant coaches have a different job description, and Tuomas was in his first season, so I am sure the players were not that familiar with what his philosophy would be. If they had been, I am sure he would have gotten immediate pushback from his star players about being substituted every three to five minutes. I mean, I get it. In a robotic world, one can turn machinery on and off and it will not complain, push back, or lash out. But the players are not robots, and if you mess with their minutes, it becomes a major problem. A player knows more than a monitor, computer, or human sitting behind the bench if he needs rest.
Now, of course, it would be easy to point to Morants past transgressions and say he should just acquiesce to the coachs wishes. I agree there is a time and place for how you approach the situation, and Ja might not be the best at being politically correct, but in this instance, I understand how he feels. Hockey-type substitutions are challenging, especially for superstars. When Iisalo was asked about his philosophy, he said this:
If he said that in the Grizzlies locker room, I can imagine the players looking at each other and wondering, What does that mean?
Like most stars, Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. are accustomed to playing with different units on the floor. But they are also used to having some control over how they are substituted. In Europe, coaches have the most power in the locker room, and its definitive: Its my way or the highway. One thing Iisalo will find out, if he hasnt already, is that the stars control the environment at an elevated level in the NBA and that he will have to reach a happy medium with them. Short bursts can truly disrupt any players rhythm, but a star will rebel if he feels it is affecting his play, especially if he knows he will be criticized for it. This is a recipe for tension between the player and the coach.
In this era of professional basketball, analytics has become a huge part of the game, but I believe that the fear in protecting and overcontrolling players has become excessive. Iisalo has brought the most stringent analytical approach I have seen to date, and I imagine it could get worse if more coaches like Steve Kerr continue to speak out about conserving players energy.
The Golden State Warriors head coach has become an advocate for a shorter NBA season, believing that the 82-game schedule is too long and that players health and the quality of the game suffer. He has argued that a shorter season, consisting of 70-72 games, would reduce injuries, decrease player fatigue, and result in a higher-quality product on the court. Yet we are only 10 games into the season, and numerous players are already out with muscle injuries. So, is shortening the season truly the answer?
I played in the 80s and 90s, arguably the most physical era, and I missed only one game in five years from 1982 to 1987. Thats 409 games, and in 80 of those I played over 40 minutes. During one stretch, I played eight straight games in 1983-84 over a period of 14 days and averaged 45 minutes a game. And with all those minutes, my career still lasted 17 years.
Overall, players (especially star players) value their minutes more than anything, and you have to feed them or face their wrath. Obviously, Tuomas Iisalo is well deserving of his opportunity; he has put in the work, but I believe he will eventually relent and give in to the desires of his star players. If he thinks changing players will solve the problem, he will find that to be a huge mistake, having simply traded for another problem.
Eddie Johnson played 17 years in the NBA and is a longtime analyst/color commentator for the Phoenix Suns.
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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Eddie Johnson: With Tuomas Iisalo, Ja Morant faces a conflict rooted in analytics