Tag: NBA 2k21

NBA 2K21: The first images of next-gen Steph Curry and Klay Thompson are mind-blowing

This is looking great.

We’re only a month away from the launch of the new Xbox Series S and X and the PlayStation 5, and on Tuesday, 2K dropped the first footage of next-gen NBA 2K21 gameplay.

Sports games don’t have a great record in the first year of generational switches, but it appears that 2K have taken player models to another level on next-gen hardware. Warriors stars Steph Curry and Klay Thompson look tremendous, and we even get a peek at next-gen Mark Cuban as Luka Doncic walks onto the court for a Mavericks game. The next-gen edition of 2K21 will release on launch day for the new Xboxes (November 10th) and the PS5 (November 12th).

This is one of the biggest visual upgrades we’ve seen in years for the 2K series, but I’m still waiting for an uncut gameplay session so we can see just how much better the game looks in action. The real test is whether 2K can deliver a massive upgrade from the normal television or MyPlayer camera angles, not in a sizzle-reel. Still, this is a great start.

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How the NBA 2K21 video game ranks Houston Rockets players

The NBA calendar is unusual in 2020, but that isn’t extending to the world of video games. Here’s how the Rockets stack up in NBA 2K21.

Due to a multi-month hiatus in the 2019-20 season from COVID-19, the NBA calendar is quite unusual in 2020. Early September is typically when players are getting ready to report to training camp for the next season, with the offseason and all of its associated player movement complete.

Instead, in 2020, the playoffs of the previous season are still going in early September — and only in the second round! The annual NBA Draft and free agency won’t take place until later in October, and the 2020-21 season might not begin until January 2021. The timetable is extremely unconventional, all owing to the coronavirus pandemic.

However, even with a new season still months from arriving, the latest NBA 2K21 edition of the NBA 2K video game franchise still hit the shelves in early September, as it usually does. Roster changes from the draft and free agency will be implemented in a subsequent roster update.

With players rated across numerous categories on a 1-100 scale, here’s how overall ratings of the current Houston Rockets roster stack up:

James Harden: 96
Russell Westbrook: 88
Robert Covington: 79
Eric Gordon: 78
Danuel House: 76
P.J. Tucker: 76
Jeff Green: 76
Austin Rivers: 75
Ben McLemore: 74
DeMarre Carroll: 73
David Nwaba: 73
Chris Clemons: 73
Tyson Chandler: 72
Thabo Sefolosha: 72
Bruno Caboclo: 72
Luc Mbah a Moute: 72
William Howard: 68
Michael Frazier: 68

Harden is tied with Kawhi Leonard for the No. 3 overall rating on the game. Only LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo (97) are higher.

Meanwhile, at 88, Westbrook is tied for the No. 18 spot. The complete list of player ratings for all NBA teams can be viewed here.

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Warriors’ Eric Paschall takes jab at one of his ratings in NBA 2K21

After the release of the highly anticipated NBA 2K21, Eric Paschall wasn’t happy with his athleticism rating in the new basketball game.

Following the drop of NBA 2K21, the ever-debated ratings were released for each player in the new video game. The latest edition of 2K21 hit the shelves on Friday, and the ratings are already generating buzz on social media.

One member of the Golden State Warriors chimed in with a comment about one of his ratings on Twitter. In an exchange with his former Villanova teammate Josh Hart, Eric Paschall took a jab at his athletic attributes in the game. While Hart was happy with his athleticism in 2K21, Paschall wasn’t satisfied with his rating.

Via @epashcall on Twitter:

After throwing down a steady amount of highlight-worthy dunks in his first NBA season, Paschall’s earned a solid athletic rating in 2K21.

Via @SLAMonline on Twitter:

Via @Ballislife on Twitter:

Via @NBAonTNT on Twitter:

Via @NBATV on Twitter:

In a season full of downs, Paschall’s rookie campaign served as a bright spot for the Golden State Warriors. With the trade of D’Angelo Russell and injuries to both Splash Brothers, the Villanova product blossomed into one of Steve Kerr’s lead offensive weapons in 2019-20.

The 23-year-old averaged 14.0 points on 49.7% shooting from the field with 4.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists per contest. Paschall ranked in the top 10 in both points and rebounds per game for 2019-20 rookies. The young forward registered 20 or more points in 13 games, including two 30 point performances.

Paschall’s impressive rookie season earned him points in the race for Rookie of the Year. Behind winner Ja Morant, the former second-round pick landed at No. 6 on the 2020 Rookie of the Year list.

If he can build off his high-caliber rookie debut, Paschall’s ratings in NBA 2K21 are bound to grow to a level he sees fit.

For a look at the complete ratings for the Golden State Warriors, click here.

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Where does Lonzo Ball’s rating rank in among other players in NBA 2K21?

Lonzo Ball’s rating in NBA 2K21 is at a personal low for him but where does it rank relative to the rest of the league?

Friday’s release of NBA 2K21 brought with a wide mixing range of reactions to the ratings. Josh Hart expressed some anger to one specific rating while Lonzo Ball’s 77 rating, the lowest of his career, came as quite a surprise.

Ratings in 2K, though, are entirely relative. Some context is gained by looking at the rest of the Pelicans. Ball comes in as the fifth highest-rated player on the team with Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson both receiving 86 ratings to lead the team. Jrue Holiday holds an 83 rating and JJ Redick a 78. Derrick Favors also has a 77 rating.

When looking at other guards who are also rated 77, there’s a mixed bag of comparisons. Alec Burks of the Sixers and Elfrid Payton of the Blazers both are 77s as is Coby White of Chicago, Jalen Brunson of the Mavericks and Gary Trent, Jr. of the Blazers.

Ball’s 2017 draft class has had some mixed returns. The No. 1 pick in Markelle Fultz, now in Orlando, has had a winding story in the league but the 2019-20 season saw him bounce back to a regular contributor for the Magic, leading to a 77 rating as well. Boston’s Jayson Tatum, the star of the class, holds an 89 rating while Sacramento’s De’Aaron Fox has an 85 rating and Memphis’ Josh Jackson a 73 rating to round out the top five picks.

Ball is one of a host of former Lakers that have been moved around the league as Los Angeles pieced together a team led by LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Ball and Ingram’s teammate Josh Hart has a 75 rating while Utah’s Jordan Clarkson, a teammate of Ball’s for half a season, is rated 78. New York’s Julius Randle, who spent one season with Ball, is rated an 80 while Washington’s Thomas Bryant, who was released in the summer of 2019, is rated a 79. D’Angelo Russell is the standout former Laker in Minnesota with an 84 rating.

Ball is one of the top players in the league from UCLA, though. Houston’s Russell Westbrook is the top at 88 while Chicago’s Zach Lavine is an 85. Holiday, as mentioned, is 83-rated, Kevin Love is 82-rated with the Cavaliers and Norman Powell is 77-rated with the Raptors.

When it comes to specific attributes, Ball’s highest is his 90-rated pass perception. That ranks tied for 13th in the league with Tatum, Jae Crowder, Andre Drummond and Corey Brewer. Ball’s pass IQ is 89, ranking in a tie for 20th in the league with the likes of Ben Simmons and Kyrie Irving, among others. His 88 pass accuracy ranks him in a tie for 11th, again matching Irving’s rating along with multiple others.

While the specifics of Ball’s attributes may be generally on the right track, it’s hard to rationalize the drop in rating give his increase in production this season. Then again, it’s a video game where you can basically change any rating you want.

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See NBA 2K21 ratings for Thunder, all-time Thunder/Sonics rosters

With the release of NBA 2K21, see the ratings of Oklahoma City Thunder players in the present and the all-time Thunder/Sonics teams.

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NBA 2K21 was released worldwide on Friday, marking the latest edition of the game that has dominated the basketball video game market.

For those who have not yet gotten it, take a look at the Oklahoma City Thunder roster and player ratings, both for the current team and the all-time rosters that are included.

Point guard Chris Paul tops the 2021 team with a rating of 88, the 20th-best in the league.

On the all-time roster, Kevin Durant leads the Thunder/Sonics with a 97 rating and Gary Payton is close behind at 95.

2K21 Thunder roster

  • Point guard Chris Paul: 88
  • Guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: 84
  • Forward Danilo Gallinari: 83
  • Center Steven Adams: 82
  • Guard Dennis Schroder: 80
  • Center Nerlens Noel 76
  • Guard/forward Luguentz Dort 74
  • Center/Power forward Mike Muscala 73
  • Power forward Darius Bazley 73
  • Guard/forward Andre Roberson 72
  • Forward/Guard Terrance Ferguson 71
  • Forward Abdel Nader 71
  • Guard/forward Hamidou Diallo 70
  • Forward/guard Deonte Burton 70
  • Forward Isaiah Roby 70
  • Power forward Hervey 69
  • Guard/forward Devon Hall 67

Some notable figures, beyond Paul’s 88:

Dort has a B+ for perimeter defense; Diallo, despite getting quite a bit of rotation time, and Ferguson, who started part of the year, are ranked quite low compared to players like Burton, Roby and Hervey, who got minimal time. 2K21 has very few of today’s players ranked below 70.

Thunder/Sonics all-time roster

  • Forward Kevin Durant 97
  • Guard Gary Payton 95
  • Point guard Russell Westbrook 95
  • Guard/forward Ray Allen 95
  • Small forward Paul George 92
  • Guard Dennis Johnson 91
  • Power forward/center Shawn Kemp 90
  • Power forward Spencer Haywood 89
  • Center Jack Sikma 89
  • Point guard Gus Williams 89
  • Forward Rashard Lewis 89
  • Guard Fred Brown 88
  • Shooting guard Dale Ellis 88
  • Forward Xavier McDaniel 87
  • Forward Detlef Schrempf 87

The game also has the 1995-96 Sonics team that won 64 games and got to the NBA Finals behind Payton and Kemp.

In addition, it has the 2011-12 Thunder roster that made the Finals with Durant, Westbrook, James Harden and Serge Ibaka.

Josh Hart reacts to his NBA 2K21 rebounding rating: ‘2K raters are idiots’

Josh Hart found out the rating of his player in NBA 2K21 on Friday and had some strong reactions to one speciic rating.

The release of NBA 2K ratings brings with it a yearly tradition of complaints. The subjectiveness of the ratings is the source of debate and anger for fans, gamers and players alike. In previous years, 2K would release individual player ratings one by one, usually at the request of the player as a form of social media marketing.

This year, though, the ratings were not released individually, likely a result of COVID-19 rearranging calendars and schedules in 2020. As a result, Friday’s release of NBA 2K21 brought with it a flurry of reactions, including from Josh Hart.

While most players would have complaints about their overall ratings, Hart’s criticism was a very specific one. Hart set a career-high in rebounds at 6.5 per contest this season despite only start 16 of the 65 games he played in. His anger, then, was understandable when he found out his rebound rating.

Hart’s defensive rebounding rating did actually increase dramatically for 2K21, rising from a 54 to a 77. However, considering he’s always been a good rebounder, 54 feels criminally low as well.

It wasn’t all anger from Hart with regards to his rating on Friday, though. He was also quick to point out that his 78 athleticism rating is one above teammate Lonzo Ball.

We won’t be the ones to tell Hart that his vertical rating was actually lower than Ball and he wasn’t willing to spoil his teammate’s fun.

Ronnie 2K, the social manager for NBA 2K’s games, raced in to try to do damage control by showing Hart his defensive rebounding rating, which Hart took in stride.

Hart’s overall rating stayed at a 75 this year, the same as NBA 2K20. Ball’s rating, though, dropped despite his career season in New Orleans.

Lonzo Ball receives lowest rating of career in NBA 2K21 with a 77

NBA 2K21’s release on Friday brought with it the surprise of Lonzo Ball’s career-low player rating after his breakout season.

By most all accounts, Lonzo Ball’s third season in the NBA and his first in New Orleans was the best season of his young career. Ball averaged a career-high in points and shot a career-best 37.5% from three, including stringing together the best stretch of his career from the start of December until the league came to a halt in March.

However, that strong form did not result in an improvement in his NBA 2K rating. In fact, Ball’s rating dropped to its lowest yet.

With NBA 2K21 released on Friday, the ratings of every player were released at once, a change from previous years in which individual ratings came out one at a time. Ball saw his rating drop from a 79 last season, which was then tied for the lowest in his brief career, to a 77 this season. Ball’s highest rating came heading into his sophomore year when he was rated an 80.

In terms of individual stats, Ball’s three-point shot increased from a 71 to a 79 while his overall playmaking increased in each stat. The most notable drops came in his scoring outside of the three-point line and at the rim. Ball did also maintain a number of his badges, almost all focused on his playmaking and passing ability.

Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram were the joint top rating for the Pelicans at 86 while Jrue Holiday was rated an 83. JJ Redick was marginally ahead of Ball with a 78 while Derrick Favors was also a 77. Jahlil Okafor and Jaxson Hayes were each rated 76 and Josh Hart and Nicolo Melli were rated 75 apiece.

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Michigan State, Breslin Center featured in new NBA 2K21 trailer

Michigan State was heavily featured in the latest trailer of NBA 2K21 along with a player character who resembles Emoni Bates..

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In the new version of NBA 2K21’s MyCareer mode, players will be able to journey from being a high school athlete through college before making it to the NBA. In a new trailer released today by the 2K team, Michigan State and the Breslin Center were heavily featured around the college basketball experience.

Interestingly, the player shown in the trailer wears No. 21 as he journeys from high school through college. That’s interesting because that’s the same number that Michigan State Basketball commit Emoni Bates currently wears in high school… Surely that must just be a coincidence…

You can watch the trailer below:

Celebrity chef Guy Fieri releases NBA 2K21 cover art with Golden State Warriors jersey

The Golden State Warriors have a new chef in jersey after Guy Fieri posted a photoshopped NBA 2K21 cover with the restaurateur to Instagram.

Looks like there’s a new chef on the Golden State Warriors.

Celebrity chef Guy Fieri posted a photoshopped cover of NBA 2K21 with the restaurateur himself as the cover athlete.

In the picture, Fieri donned a Warriors jersey.

“Heatin’ up from 3! What’s my rating?” Fieri, a lifelong Warriors fan, captioned it.

We’re not sure how good his shot is, but it probably doesn’t take long for him to catch on fire.

It’s unclear why Fieri decided to go with the No. 68 on the jersey, as no Warrior in team history has worn it, but it’s a logical guess that he used his 1968 birth year as inspiration.

View this post on Instagram

Heatin’ up from 3! What’s my rating? 😂

A post shared by Guy Fieri (@guyfieri) on

Fieri’s family moved to northern California after he turned 1 year old, according to GQ. He has interacted with players, family and associates of the team, including when Ayesha Curry was on Guy’s Grocery Games and when Fieri apparently offered to cook a meal for Kevin Durant when the Warriors were making a pitch to the star in 2016, according to the Mercury News.

But as much as he follows the team, Fieri is not going to be the cover athlete of 2K.

EA either did not see the photo, or they did not like the idea of having Fieri on the cover. On Wednesday, 2K announced that New Orleans Pelicans rookie Zion Williamson would grace the cover of the 2021 edition.

Twitter rightfully roasted NBA 2k21 for its insanely sweaty graphics

Zion Williamson is the sweatiest dude ever, apparently.

Video game graphics have looked better and better as the years have gone by and naturally so.

Everything can’t still look like Super Mario on the original Nintendo, right? Right. That would be terrible. With that being said, however, a video game should never look this real.

Or, for that matter, this sweaty.

2k sports gave us the first look at NBA 2k21 during Sony’s Future of Gaming event and it was, uh, interesting.

Zion Williamson introduced the game and was the athlete they used in their gameplay video. The first thing you see is the Pelicans’ forward absolutely drenched in sweat.

Like, bruh. THAT LOOKS REAL. It’s almost like a photo of Zion on the court. Fam. Unreal. Well, not unreal. It’s actually too real.

Even the video when he’s in action looks ridiculously real.

SO. MUCH. SWEAT.

He was so sweaty that Twitter had no choice but to roast NBA 2k itself.

Honestly? They aren’t wrong. NBA 2k looks better each and every year…but the game typically comes with similar flaws that are just never corrected.

So, yeah, 2k. The sweat is cool. Zion is cool. All of that is good. But fix the game, fam.