NBA star warns performances will 'plummet' after GTA VI release and there's evidence to back him up

Steven Adams has told reporters to prepare for league-wide performances to “plummet” after GTA VI releases in November, and well-documented “gaming disorder” concerns among high-level athletes aren’t to be scoffed at.

The Houston Rockets Centre said: “You guys should anticipate November. The performance of the league, league-wide… GTA is dropping. Look at the NFL, all the leagues, and watch them plummet, mate.”

“Just for the month of November,” Adams continued, to audience laughter. “Performances are going to go down. It should come back up, though. The boys will get it done. Hopefully, they’ll finish the game. Coaching, as well, by the way. The coaching scouts are going to be horrendous, mate. Just for November, it should bounce back in December, hopefully.”

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Can gaming really affect professional athletes' performances?

Beginning with the NBA, LeBron James revealed in October 2024 that he is ranked in the top-100 Madden players worldwide.

Channing Frye, who won the 2016 NBA Championship with James for the Cleveland Cavaliers, estimated in January 2025 that ‘75% of NBA players’ indulge in video games.

Speaking with CNN, the former Cavs man said: “Devon Booker, Kevin Durant, all those guys are playing Call of Duty. I think Luka [Doncic] is a diamond or platinum [rank] in Overwatch.

“I would say 75% of guys [in the NBA] play video games,” continued Frye. Former Slam Dunk contest winner and ex-NBA professional Terrence Ross estimated the number was nearer to 80%.

But does enjoying video games equal addiction? In the case of James, a four-time NBA Champion and GOAT contender, his Madden exploits are evidently harmless. For others? It isn’t always so simple.

LeBron James isn't a gaming addict, but that isn't the case for all high-level athletes. (Credit - Getty)

Cam Adair, founder of support community Game Quitters, revealed in the same CNN report that an NFL star’s gaming addiction led him to lose out on a $14 million, multi-year deal.

“This player was a rising star, really coming on, and was due for a huge, multi-year contract,” said Adair. “His manager called me, because he was quite concerned about the amount of gaming he was doing.

“It wasn’t yet affecting his play on the field, but the manager was a little bit concerned about the way it was affecting his downtime. This player, his performance started to decline and injuries started to pile up, and, actually, he didn’t get that multi-year deal.

“At the time, that deal would have been worth about $14 million a year, on a multi-year deal. [Gaming] didn’t keep him from playing in the NFL, but this is, like, tens of millions of dollars left on the table.”

In the NBA, similar stories are identifiable. Frye confessed that his relationship with gaming became “too much,” prompting him to delete his World of Warcraft account.

“A lot of guys in the [NBA] have problems sleeping, because we are on the road so much. Traveling, doing this and that,” said the ex-Cavs man. “And what a video game does is just keep you up.

“So I’ve seen guys stay up all night just playing. I was spending more time on the video game than I was watching basketball. Obviously, I was doing my workouts, but it was like, ‘Would I stay an extra 30 minutes? No, let me go home earlier, so I have 30 minutes to play.’”

“[Playing World of Warcraft] got to the point where I was just like, ‘I have to delete my account.’ That was too much. Literally, in the summertime, I wouldn’t leave my room for 24 hours,” admitted Frye.

In snooker, Triple Crown champion Neil Robertson was a self-admitted gaming addict, with the likes of World of Warcraft, Diablo II and FIFA all affecting his performances.

Neil Robertson was once a gaming addict. (Credit - Getty)

“I was an addict, for sure,” confessed the Australian. “Oh my God, yeah. You’re somewhat in denial about it all. You’re thinking it’s not impacting you when it really is.

“It impacted my practice, and then that’s obviously going to impact your performances on the table,” claimed Robertson, who acknowledged his FIFA addiction affected him in the 2013-14 season.

“When I got into FIFA 14, I actually had a big drop off in results because I just was playing this game all the time,” recalled the Australian. “I was going to practice angry because I was losing [at FIFA]. It was just horrific. There would be some days where I’d get so infuriated playing the game, that I wouldn’t even go to practice.”

Robertson then admitted he had to bat away thoughts of losing purposefully in snooker, so he could spend more time playing World of Warcraft.

“Our raiding nights (in World of Warcraft) were Wednesdays and Sundays,” he explained. “Sunday is always the day of the final of a snooker tournament.

“I remember thinking, ‘Don’t fall into the trap of thinking it’s okay to lose in the semis on Saturday because that means you can raid on Sunday.’”

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Why professional sports teams have already raised concerns about gaming

‘Are you addicted to Fortnite?’ was a question commonly asked by NHL teams at a Buffalo-based scouting combine, back in 2018.

Third-round draft pick Riley Sutter fielded that inquiry from room-to-room, interview-to-interview, before joining the Washington Capitals. But why was such a question so recurrently posed?

According to the Washington Post, Sutter learned that front offices were fearful after an NHL insider claimed a recent draft pick would ‘never make it professionally’ because of his addiction to Fortnite.

“There’s definitely some guys around the league that are pretty bad for it,” Sutter admitted. “It takes away from their sleeping and keeps them up late. . . . It’s starting to become a pretty big issue.”

Elsewhere, an unnamed agent to various NBA players revealed that team personnel were growing concerned about “guys not sleeping… It’s because of them playing video games all night.”

“It’s not something the teams will come to you about. A coach or GM won’t say [anything], but trainers do,” he revealed. “Teams with really young players complained all year about guys not sleeping.

“It used to be chalked up to them partying and all that, but now it’s because of them playing video games all night,” he continued.

Since 2019, the World Health Organization has recognised “gaming disorder” as an addiction, and ex-NBA star Ross believes athletes are prone to falling victim.

“You always want to strive to be the best. Whatever it is you’re doing — whether it’s academics, sports, your work — it’s always like that added push of the competitiveness that comes out,” claimed Ross.

“I think competitiveness is definitely an aspect that draws a lot of guys to play. Because, at the end of the day, everything that we do is pretty much a game.”

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