RotoWire — Juan Pablo Aravena

Wizards District Gaming became the new NBA 2K League Finals champions after topping Warriors Gaming Squad in the NBA 2K League Finals Delivered by DoorDash. They won the series by a 3-1 score.

Things didn’t start well for the Wizards, though, as their Game 1 performance wasn’t up to the standards they showed in the semifinals against Raptors Uprising, the consensus best team in the league this season. The Warriors applied intense pressure on JBM, the Wizards’ star point guard, and it paid off – the Wizards scored just six points in the first quarter. The Warriors grabbed a 10-point lead once the first quarter ended and wouldn’t look back the rest of the way. The Wizards showed improvement in the second half and, in fact, won the final two quarters by a combined 32-30 score, but it was too late to mount any sort of reaction. The Warriors grabbed the lead in the NBA 2K League Finals Delivered by DoorDash following a 65-53 win in Game 1.

CB13 was the star for the Warriors in Game 1, as he ended with 40 points and five assists while shooting 17-of-29 from the field, while Jin chipped in with 12 points and Slaughter added six points, 12 boards, three assists, three steals and two blocks. JBM had 28 points and four assists for the Wizards, and Dayfri backed him up with 12 points and 13 rebounds.

The Wizards changed their approach for Game 2, and they switched their defensive strategy to close out the lanes on CB13. The strategy paid off, as the Wizards jumped out to a 19-13 lead following the first quarter, but the Warriors came back and made it a one-point game at the halftime break. Wizards Gaming didn’t tweak their approach, however, and they would pull away for good with a 19-12 third quarter. The Wizards annulled the CB13-Slaughter pick-and-roll combo in Game 2, cruising to a 60-50 win and evening the NBA 2K League Finals Delivered by DoorDash series at one win apiece.

JBM notched 25 points and seven assists for the Wizards, but Dayfri was absolutely unstoppable in the paint and registered a 18-point, 13-rebound double-double. ReeseDaGod came through with 10 points despite making just two of his six three-point attempts. CB13 and Slaughter combined for 27 points on 12-of-29 from the field for the Warriors, so it was clear the approach the Wizards took in Game 2 worked to perfection.

Having found the defensive strategy to slow down CB13 and the Warriors, the Wizards wouldn’t look back the rest of the way. They took control of the series in Game 3, posting a six-point lead following the first quarter and cruising their way until the fourth quarter, when the Warriors reduced the deficit by four points. By the time the fourth quarter began, however, the Wizards were already up by nine points so the Warriors’ late comeback attempt was unsuccessful. The Wizards showed a great deal of focus and commitment defensively and that was key to slow down the Warriors, as the losing squad shot 26-of-38 from the field. Game 3 ended with a 64-59 win for the Wizards, as they tightened things up in the final minutes to help lock up a 2-1 lead in the NBA 2K League Finals Delivered by DoorDash.

Both JBM (23 points, nine assists) and Dayfri (21 points, 11 rebounds, four assists) surpassed the 20-point plateau for the Wizards, while ReeseDaGod posted 12 points. CB13 notched 29 points and 10 assists for the Warriors and Slaughter posted a 12-point, 11-rebound double-double, but the star duo wasn’t enough for the Warriors. Neither Gradient nor Bsmoove came through as a reliable third option on offense, as they combined for 11 points despite shooting 4-for-7 from the field. Perhaps if the Warriors had relied on them a bit more, things would’ve been different.

The Wizards had all the momentum on their side ahead of Game 4 and were playing at “home”, and they made that pressure felt. The Wizards knew they had their backs against the wall and got off to a good start, leading by two at halftime (30-28), but the Wizards would come through in the second half. A 23-15 third quarter flipped the script for the Wizards, and they wouldn’t let the game slip away, putting even more pressure on the defensive side of the ball, limiting the Warriors to just 10 points in the final six minutes of action. The Wizards closed the game out in the first minutes of the fourth quarter and cruised their way to a 70-55 victory. A victory that clinched them the title in the 2020 NBA 2K League season.

JBM saved his best for last, as he was instrumental in the third-quarter comeback and finished with 46 points and four assists while making 21 of his 28 field goals. ReeseDaGod notched 22 points, and Dayfri stuffed the stat sheet with six points, 10 rebounds, nine assists, four blocks and two steals. Newdini ended with five points and three boards, while Just_Awkward had two points and two steals.

CB13 had 29 points and eight assists for the Warriors in Game 4, while Slaughter chipped in with 12 points and 11 boards. As was the trend all series long, though, both Gradient and Bsmoove failed to show up — Gradient went scoreless while Bsmoove shot 3-of-7 from the field, but missing his three long-range shots.