Back-to-back games have always been contentious for teams and fans alike. Teams worry about player injuries, while fans are disappointed when their favorites sit out. Over the past decade, load management has emerged as a strategy to address back-to-backs.
But who gets the short and long end of the stick when it comes to the NBA scheduling those games?
We looked up all regular season games since 2004-05 (when the league expanded to 30 teams) to find out. The main takeaway: The Lakers score a major win with the fewest back-to-backs in the league in the last 20 years at just 336. (For context, the Clippers had 382, which amounts to 2.3 more per season on average.)
Here’s the overall ranking:
David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports
Most back-to-backs: 23 (2005-06, 2011-12)
Sam Sharpe-USA TODAY Sports
Most back-to-backs: 23 (2011-12)
Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports
Most back-to-backs: 23 (2005-06, 2012-13)
Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports
Most back-to-backs: 23 (2010-11, 2011-12)
Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Most back-to-backs: 23 (2004-05, 2010-11)
Mike Lawrie/Getty Images
Most back-to-backs: 22 (2007-08, 2011-12)
Streeter Lecka/Getty Images
Most back-to-backs: 23 (2004-05)
Gregory Shamus/Getty Images
Most back-to-backs: 23 (2005-06)
Elsa/Getty Images
Most back-to-backs: 23 (2005-06)
Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
Most back-to-backs: 23 (2012-13)
Gregory Shamus/Getty Images
Most back-to-backs: 22 (2007-08, 2008-09)
Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images
Most back-to-backs: 23 (2005-06, 2010-11)
Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports
Most back-to-backs: 22 (2012-13)
Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports
Most back-to-backs: 22 (2007-08, 2009-10)
Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images
Most back-to-backs: 22 (2004-05, 2007-08)
Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
Most back-to-backs: 23 (2012-13)
Marilyn Indahl-USA TODAY Sports
Most back-to-backs: 22 (2009-10, 2013-14)
Chris Graythen/Getty Images
Most back-to-backs: 23 (2005-06, 2007-08)
Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports
Most back-to-backs: 22 (2011-12)
Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports
Most back-to-backs: 21 (2012-13, 2013-14)
Eliot J. Schechter/Getty Images
Most back-to-backs: 21 (2005-06, 2006-07)
Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Most back-to-backs: 21 (2005-06, 2011-12)
Brian Bahr/Getty Images
Most back-to-backs: 23 (2004-05)
Lisa Blumenfeld/Getty Images
Most back-to-backs: 22 (2005-06)
Ezra Shaw/Getty Images
Most back-to-backs: 21 (2010-11)
Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports
Most back-to-backs: 21 (2012-13, 2015-16)
Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports
Most back-to-backs: 22 (2012-13)
Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images
Most back-to-backs: 23 (2004-05)
Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images
Most back-to-backs: 23 (2004-05)
Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
Most back-to-backs: 20 (2010-11)