Steven Adams Jokes GTA 6 Could Cause a League-Wide Performance Dip

Houston Rockets center Steven Adams might have found one of the most entertaining excuses for why some athletes might struggle this November. He jokingly predicted a temporary league-wide performance dip once GTA 6 finally arrives on November 19, 2026.

Speaking during the Rockets’ media day, Adams didn’t just stop at the NBA when warning about the slump in performance. Laughing it off, he also included the NFL; the coaches and even scouts would probably be distracted by the game and focus on work.

“You guys should anticipate November. The performance of the league, league-wide. GTA is dropping,” Adam said. He then suggested fans should watch sports across the board and expect performances to “plummet” during the month.

Adams eventually offered some hope, though. According to him, things should return to normal in December after players have had enough time to finish the game. However, if it still looks like the athletes would be able to ignore the distraction, Rockstar might start aggressive GTA 6 marketing shortly despite the massive hype.

Well, looking at the schedules of the NBA and NFL, GTA 6 is scheduled to launch during the middle of both game seasons, on November 19, 2026. Moreover, GTA 6 has different PS5 release times worldwide. This means that players would be surrounded by Vice City spoilers even when they’re trying to stay focused on their next game.

The excitement around GTA 6 has already reached professional athletes. Previously, the New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye indicated that he might wait for a break or a bye week before getting started with the game.

Adams might be joking; however, plenty of players understand what he means. We’ve previously seen such examples where a company shuts down for GTA 6 launch day. With more than a decade separating GTA 6 from GTA 5, November is surely a dangerous month for anyone trying to maintain a normal schedule