.png){kind=small}
Let’s say the beginning of January you were searching around on OTGBasketball.com and found an article about the NBA 2K League. From there you decided to give it a shot and become the next NBA 2K League star. So, you pick up the game, head to your game console of choice and hop online to get cracking on those required 50 wins.
If only it was that easy.
Like the rest of you, I have NBA 2K League dreams and as a writer, felt it was my duty to go through the journey to get the best idea of what it would be like to join the league. I never really was a fan of the MyPlayer modes in the past and preferred to be a general manager playing with my favorite team.
So, even though I had NBA 2K18 I was only playing on the MyGM Mode until the beginning of January. And that decision has hurt my NBA 2K League chances.
In early January, I decided to give it a shot and start MyCareer. This was a long drawn out process which honestly has been fun every step of the way. The problem is once I got to a point where I could play online I realized that my character was not at any level to compete.
In MyCareer mode, you start as a player named “DJ” and play in a streetball tournament. No matter how poorly you play in this tournament, somehow you get a shot to impress your favorite NBA team, which is fine; they cannot expect everyone to be professionals right away. Following my advice from my last article, I decided to be a defensive minded center who focuses on rebounding and blocking.
When going online to play Pro-Am games you have to use your created player. The problem is when you start playing the game your created player is a 60 overall. Like most basketball gamers, I figured I could compete with these guys even though my player does not have a good, overall.
My confidence, though admirable, was for naught. I was a complete liability at the center position going up against players that averaged having a 90 overall. This was not only disappointing, but proved that the NBA 2K League is an actual virtual league.
Even though I would consider myself an above average NBA 2K player, I did not put in the time and training to make my player good enough to compete. To get better your player needs to participate in drills, hit the weight room and get consistent playing time in the MyCareer mode.
From there you can improve your player’s skills, which will eventually improve his overall rating. There is the other option of spending money to make your player the best they can be, but who really does that? Needless to say, I hit a snag in my dreams because I did not have a character that was good enough to compete.
When the NBA 2K League was announced I figured the online mode would just let everyone compete on the same level to determine the best gamers, like Pokémon tournaments (I may have competed in some National Pokémon tournaments in the past).
In those tournaments, if each Pokémon were over level 50 they would automatically be brought down to that level to prove who was the best trainer instead of who had highest levels. It was a way to focus on evolution ratings instead of sheer power.
Coming from that background, I figured that’s what NBA 2K would do. My naivety ended up hurting my chances at success because I did not train my actual character (the irony coming from a Pokémon trainer).
If you decided to give this a shot in the beginning or middle of January you are in a similar boat as I am, which is sinking without a life preserver. It is not impossible to get your player to the skill level to compete and get 50 wins, even if you got the game today.
The problem is that reach the adequate skill level, you will have to play the game for hours on end. Some of us have a job or six and do not necessarily have the time to train up our players. All hope is not lost. I am working on getting my player to a decent level and then I will be back in the Pro-Am trying to get my 50 wins in no time. See you all on NBA 2K18.