In the NBA, 2025 might go down as the year of the injured. Nikola Jokic joined that club at the end

MIAMI (AP) — Indiana's Tyrese Haliburton is going to miss the entire season because of the torn Achilles he suffered in Game 7 of the NBA Finals. Boston's Jayson Tatum — who hopes otherwise — might also miss the whole season after tearing his Achilles in the playoffs last spring. Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Los Angeles Lakers' LeBron James and Oklahoma City's Jalen Williams have all missed big chunks of time this season with various injuries.

And now, Denver's Nikola Jokic is going to miss some time as well.

Nobody — not even those six All-NBA players from last season — is immune from the injury bug this season. The final day of 2025 is Wednesday and from an NBA health perspective, it might be time to say good riddance to these 12 months. Some of the league's biggest names have dealt with significant injury issues in this calendar year, and in many cases those woes are carrying over into 2026.

“It sucks,” Denver coach David Adelman said after Jokic was hurt.

He's not wrong.

Jokic got hurt Monday night in Miami, on a play with about three seconds left in the first half where he would have been better off just doing nothing. It seemed like he was trying to help a teammate defend a drive, got his foot stepped on in the process, hyperextended his left knee and now Nuggets fans — from Denver to Serbia and all points in between — are waiting to hear the team announce the severity of the injury. The best-case scenario probably would be for Jokic to miss only a few weeks, which could be the case if there's no serious structural damage.

But in the NBA, when the games basically come every other day on average, even missing just one month could mean missing 15 or more games.

It feels like a ton of guys are hurt. The NBA says the actual numbers say otherwise.

“The data we have so far this season is we have the lowest number of injuries in the last three years,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said this month. "I’ll stop there and say, regardless where the level of injuries stands versus prior years, of course the soft tissue injuries concern us. All injuries concern us, for that matter. The most frustrating issue right now, and the one that we have seemingly the least control over, is keeping star players on the floor.

“I think we have made progress," he added. "We’ve made adjustments in scheduling. We’ve made adjustments in the sharing of information among teams. We’ve made adjustments in the care of players.”

All that is true. This is also true: The NBA, even with all its power, can't control luck. Sometimes, a guy gets stepped on and his knee doesn't move the way it's supposed to move.

“Next man up,” Nuggets guard Jamal Murray said.

That is the phrase heard in probably every locker room in the world when a player gets injured, but the reality is there's no way the Nuggets can replace Jokic because three-time MVPs aren't exactly easy to find.

Here are only some of the big names, the award-candidate-type names, the All-Star-level names who missed a lot of games in 2025, whether it was this season or last or both: Philadelphia's Joel Embiid and Paul George, Dallas' Kyrie Irving and Anthony Davis, San Antonio's Victor Wembanyama, Sacramento's Domantas Sabonis, Miami's Tyler Herro, the Los Angeles Clippers' Bradley Beal, Denver’s Aaron Gordon, Atlanta's Trae Young and New Orleans' Zion Williamson. And remember, they only get added to the roster of injured that already includes Haliburton, Tatum, James, Williams, Antetokounmpo and now Jokic.

“It’s frustrating," Silver said. “It’s frustrating for our teams. It’s frustrating for our fans. But I do think we have to be true to what the evidence is as opposed to saying there’s a narrative out there that injuries are up or injuries are up because of scheduling. They’re not. But we continue to slice and dice the data in every way we can, plus we look at qualitative information. People who have been around this game for a long time, what are they seeing? Are players training differently? Are there better techniques out there to keep players healthier?”

It'll be a great day when the NBA and other leagues can get some answers. Maybe some clues will come in 2026.

Around The NBA analyzes the biggest topics in the NBA during the season.

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FILE - Milwaukee Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo reacts after suffering an injury during the first half an NBA basketball game against the Detroit Pistons, Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Kylie Bridenhagen, File)

Denver Nuggets forward Cameron Johnson reacts after sustaining an injury during the fourth quarter of an NBA basketball game against the Dallas Mavericks Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Sam Hodde)

Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) walks on the court during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Miami Heat, Monday, Dec. 29, 2025, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) — Alabama's defense is filled with comeback and redemption stories.

There's safety Bray Hubbard, a junior who struggled in a season-opening loss at Florida State and rallied to become a third-team All-America selection.

There's linebacker Deontae Lawson, a senior who tore a ligament in his right knee in November 2024 and worked his way back in time for the opener. He leads the Crimson Tide with 85 tackles.

There's fellow linebacker Justin Jefferson, another senior who initially thought he was out of college eligibility before being granted an additional year as a former junior college transfer. He ranks second on the team in tackles (82) and tackles for loss (6 1/2).

The trio leads the way for a unit that seems determined to make amends for a disappointing season last year. They'll no doubt be ones to watch when the 13th-ranked Crimson Tide (10-3) take on No. 1 Indiana (13-0) and Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza in a College Football Playoff quarterfinal matchup at the Rose Bowl on Thursday. Alabama is the No. 9 seed in the CFP.

“You think back on where we have gone and you think about a year ago,” Alabama defensive coordinator Kane Wommack said. “Not being able to answer the bell and not punch back. Now, I think all our kids do is they fight, they punch and they just keep punching.”

It starts with Hubbard, Lawson and Jefferson — three guys who seem to play with a chip on their shoulder.

Hubbard was widely vilified for his effort against the Seminoles, including one particular play in which he appeared to be jogging, and he didn't bother trying to defend himself. Instead, he vowed to let it fuel him the rest of the season.

Since that 31-17 loss in Tallahassee, Alabama has have been mostly buttoned up on that side of the ball, holding 11 of its last 12 opponents to 24 points or fewer.

“I know he was super disappointed," coach Kalen DeBoer said about Hubbard. "Many guys were, with Week 1, with just the production. I would never really question how important it is to him. It means so much to play at a high level but even more to do it with his teammates.

“He takes it upon himself to make sure that, yes, the unit that’s on the field, the 1s, the 2s, that they’re playing at a high level and held to the standard.”

Lawson and Jefferson could be in the NFL right now. But they were among six defensive starters who put off the draft and opted to stay in school. Among the reasons: they wanted another shot at a national championship after last year’s team stumbled at Oklahoma and got left out of the playoff.

That game was in the front of their minds when Alabama got a rematch in Norman in the opening round of the CFP. Defense was the main reason the Tide turned a 17-0 deficit into a 34-24 victory. The unit intercepted a pass for a touchdown to gain momentum and allowed just seven points in the second half.

“We’ve faced about every offense that you can think of,” Hubbard said. “We’ve kind of seen it all and just keep growing. That’s kind of what you got to do.”

Alabama ranks 13th nationally in total yards allowed (288.9 a game) and points allowed (17.9 a game). Alabama already has wins against several notable QBs, some of them even one-time front-runners in the Heisman race. The list includes Vanderbilt's Diego Pavia, South Carolina's LaNorris Sellers, LSU's Garrett Nussmeier and Oklahoma's John Mateer.

Might Mendoza be next? He has the Hoosiers humming and averaging 472.8 yards and 41.9 points.

Behind Hubbard, Lawson and Jefferson, Alabama is confident it can pull an upset and keep its redemption season rolling.

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FILE - Alabama defensive back Bray Hubbard grabs an interception against Auburn during the second half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, in Auburn, Ala. (AP Photo/Vasha Hunt, File)

FILE - Alabama linebacker Justin Jefferson (10) deflects a pass meant for Tennessee wide receiver Braylon Staley (14) during the first half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025, in Tuscaloosa, Ala. (AP Photo/Vasha Hunt, File)

FILE - Alabama linebacker Deontae Lawson celebrates after recovering a fumble against Auburn during the second half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, in Auburn, Ala. (AP Photo/Butch Dill, File)