Being a Chicago native, Barack Obama has always had his answer ready when the conversation turns to basketball’s greatest era. Michael Jordan. The Bulls. The ’90s. But on a recent appearance on the All the Smoke podcast, Obama wasn’t just reminiscing- he was diagnosing.

The modern NBA is faster, more skilled, and more athletically demanding than anything Jordan’s era produced. Obama sees that clearly. What concerns him is what that evolution is quietly costing.

“And I wonder sometimes whether that accounts for some of these injuries, soft tissue injuries,” said Obama on the recent All the Smoke podcast, while discussing the players moving a lot to defend today.

“Quad, calf, Achilles. For me, the 90s were peak basketball cause I was here in Chicago and Michael and the Bulls. But you watch some of those old classics, they’re tough, and folks are physical, and you know, there weren’t really flagrant fouls like you basically had to fend for yourself.

“But folks just aren’t shooting that many threes. So everything’s kind of packed in the paint. People are coming and bringing it down. And so now the amount of wear and tear just seems a lot, a lot because even the big guys can shoot now.”

That last point is the crux of the structural shift Obama is identifying. In Jordan’s era, the three-point line was a peripheral weapon, defenders could anchor in the paint, protect the rim, and operate largely off two feet.

Star players in the 1990s missed an average of just 10.6 games per season due to injury. The three-point revolution changed everything- and the body is keeping score.

When every player on the floor is a perimeter threat, defenders are forced to cover exponentially more ground, closing out on shooters in explosive, one-footed bursts that place enormous stress on the lower extremities.

The game didn’t just get faster. It got physically unforgiving in a way the ’90s never demanded.

There were 22 hamstring injuries in the first month of this season, up from 15 in the first month of 2021-22, as per Sportico. The 2025 postseason served as perhaps the clearest example yet.

Boston Celtics superstar Jayson Tatum, Damian Lillard, and Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton suffered season-ending Achilles tendon tears or ruptures, dealing with lingering calf strains or pain.

Throughout recent seasons, stars including Joel Embiid, Kawhi Leonard, Zion Williamson, Ja Morant, Jimmy Butler, Luka Doncic, and numerous others have missed extended stretches due to knee, calf, hamstring, quad, or ankle injuries.

During this post-season, hamstring injuries repeatedly interrupted Jalen Williams’ season and affected the Thunder during the playoffs.

Similarly, Donte DiVincenzo tore his Achilles during the playoffs and is expected to miss a significant portion of the following season. So, playing defence and guarding full court takes a toll.

While highlighting the problem, Barack Obama even credited the reigning unanimous DPOY for his display on the hardwood.

Barack Obama praised Victor Wembanyama

Wemby and San Antonio lost the NBA Finals 1-4, but throughout his postseason debut, the Spurs star set records like any other. The season average of 25 points, 11.5 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.0 steals, and 3.1 blocks per game only validates his domination on both sides.

Barack Obama saw Wemby during the All-Star weekend from courtside and was equally in awe.

“The way he was playing, I think Wemby will end up being as good as we’re projecting. I watched him at the All-Star Game. It was the first time I’d seen him live. And I don’t remember somebody that big moving like that,” Obama said on All The Smoke.

“Playing defense today is so much harder because you have to close out everything. So it used to be that you planted yourself in the paint and you were a rim protector. But I’m watching him on defense now. The way they’re using him, he’s in the paint and then trying to close out to a three-pointer.”

Wembanyama’s agility to move on the court despite being a big man proves what Barack Obama saw.

While the evolution of the NBA demands more energy and athleticism, Wemby’s unorthodox and anomalous playstyle perfectly aligns him for more success.