1. A fast pace leads to more blowouts, which will lead to more rest
Everyone is talking about “load management” and how LeBron James seemingly will need a lot of it because of his age, and even more so, the insane mileage he now carries on his 6-foot-8, 250-pound frame.
I personally am opposed to James, or any other player, unilaterally sitting out games for “rest” or “load management” arbitrarily, especially if he just doesn’t feel like playing that night. It must be a consensus decision between said player, the coaching staff and especially the team’s training/medical staff.
On the other hand, the Lakers absolutely need to keep James’ minutes down in order to keep him fresh down the stretch, as well as to extend his prime and overall viability in the coming years.
A great way to do that is by looking to blowout bad and mediocre teams by running them out of the gym. When you do that, you’ll have lots of garbage time in the fourth quarter, during which you can sit James.
On those nights, he’ll likely play fewer than 30 minutes, which will go a long way towards keeping him under 35 minutes per game for the season and “load management” in general.
It’s reasonable to be concerned about James accumulating more wear and tear by playing at a faster pace, but by allowing guys like Bradley, Rajon Rondo, Alex Caruso and even, at times, Davis push the ball whenever possible, you can give James enough of a respite to avoid burning him out when he’s in the game.
It’s a lot harder to have many blowout wins playing slowdown basketball, and all those additional halfcourt possessions mean more contact, which in turn means more wear and tear and a greater possibility of getting hurt or injured.