I heard one media talking head say a few true things:
1) today’s NBA athlete is like a Maserati compared to yesteryear’s Mustang GT, and with that high-end performance comes lots of tweaks and tension type injuries, and
2) the money is so huge now that yeah, they do need (or are pushed) to get more minor treatments, because a lot of people and businesses are riding on players’ career and health.
I don’t have a source for those points [bad memory].
Also, probably my paraphrasing above is more of me, than of the nameless media personality that I am referencing. But the point is this:
Those and other factors [offense being helped by newer rules, society generally drifting more toward emotionalism] do contribute to a “softer” mentality. Not picking on today’s player; they came up in this time, and that’s that…
>>further reading>>