Why do NBA teams start games big and finish them small

Smaller guys are generally in better shape, so maybe it’s just that they have more left in the tank after 40 minutes of game action.

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If a smaller lineup works, why not go to it earlier in the game? And if the bigger lineup works better earlier in the game, why wouldn't it work as well late?

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I think four reasons primarily:

1) As people mentioned before, smaller guys generally have better endurance and can give more effort on both ends of the floor late in games.

2) Smaller guys generally have less fouls and can be on the floor more late while the big guys accumulate more fouls and can play early but generally have to sit late.

3) Small ball lineups are generally considered to be better offensive lineups. There are some bigs in the NBA that can shoot, but if your team is down 2 or 3 or even tied up and you want to spread the floor for your star to try to get a bucket (Harden, Lebron, Giannis) you generally want to have good shooters around them so that if anyone helps they are leaving a capable shooter wide open. Big lineups dont have as many offensive perimeter threats but they are better for rim protection and rebounding which is of less importance when your team is down late.

4) Lastly, free throws tend to be of increasing importance late in games and smaller perimeter players are generally better free throw shooters.

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Because of their new favorite term/practice: Load Management

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Antonio Cromartie and Shawn Kemp shoulda practiced “load management “