How we see NBA 2K Players tournament
Amid the ongoing concerns with the novel coronavirus pandemic, NBA players will not be able to play basketball until further notice. They can still play games, though, and this one involves a joystick instead of a basketball.
The NBA and its players association will host an “NBA 2K Players tournament” featuring 16 current players competing in a single-elimination tournament on Xbox One, beginning 7 p.m., ET Friday on ESPN. Additional match-ups will air through April 12. The winner will select a charity to receive $100,000 from 2K, the NBA and NBPA in support of coronavirus relief efforts.
Every player will choose from eight NBA teams, each of which can only be used once. If a mirror match is set, the away team is awarded the first choice. Rounds one and two will be single elimination, with the semifinals and finals running best of three.
The first game will feature top-seeded Kevin Durant against Derrick Jones Jr., with both players choosing a pre-selected team. Durant can choose his current team (Brooklyn), his former teams (Golden State, Oklahoma City) or others (Dallas, Houston, Utah or the L.A. Clippers). Jones can choose from Boston, Brooklyn, Dallas, the Clippers, Miami,
Milwaukee, Philadelphia or the Los Angeles Lakers. The players’ seeding is based on the NBA 2K rating and tenure.
Given those parameters, here are our picks for each head-to-head matchup.
First round
(1) Kevin Durant-Derrick Jones Jr. (16): Durant
Durant unleashes his pent-up energy from staying sidelined this season due to Achilles injury.
(8) Montrezl Harrell-Domantas Sabonis (9): Harrell
Just like he does on the court, Harrell relies on the pick-and-roll with Lou Williams to dominate this game.
(5) Devin Booker-Michael Porter Jr. (12): Booker
As an NBA 2K ambassador, it was already part of Booker’s job description to excel at this game.
(4) Donovan Mitchell-Rui Hachimura (13): Mitchell
After testing positive for COVID-19, Mitchell says he spent most of his time playing video games. So it’s not surprising he breezes through the first round.
(2) Trae Young-Harrison Barnes (15): Young
Young has a quick handle both with the ball and the control stick.
(7) Zach LaVine-DeAndre Ayton (10): LaVine
LaVine knows all the button combinations to throw down a few dunks.
(6) Andre Drummond-DeMarcus Cousins (11): Cousins
After spending more time in the training room than on the court the past two seasons, Cousins keeps himself sane partly by excelling as a gamer.
(3) Hassan Whiteside-Patrick Beverley (14): Beverley
Beverley’s persistent trash-talking throws Whiteside off his game.
Semifinals
(1) Durant-Harrell (8): Durant While Harrell calls too many pickand-roll plays, Durant wins by matching his versatile approach between isolation plays and ball movement.
(5) Booker-Mitchell (4): Mitchell Mitchell wins because he relies more on facilitating, while Booker relies too much on scoring.
(2) Young-LaVine (7): Young Just like real life, their head-to-head matchup goes into quadruple OT. But unlike what happened on the court, Young hits a game-winning shot.
(11) Cousins-Beverley (14): Beverley Beverley’s yapping eventually prompts a frustrated Cousins to throw his controller.
Conference finals
(1) Durant-Mitchell (4): Durant Since scoring isn’t enough in this matchup, Durant relies on his defensive length and shot-blocking ability to win. (2) Young-Beverley (11): Young Young ignores Beverley’s antics, offering yet another sign this young point guard can become special.
Finals
(1) Durant-Young (2): Durant Durant shows he still can win a young man’s game, an encouraging sign for his expected return next season.