A fitting end to another epic 3v3 season for the NBA 2K League. Lakers Gaming comes away with the title after defeating Magic Gaming 3-0, closing the season as they started it, as the best team in the league. ShiftyKai gets a well deserved Finals MVP, YooVC and Krazy get their career milestones, and we as fans get what we expected. The best team actually won. This is becoming quite the trend in the league, I would say the best team in the mode has won the last 3 titles. But regardless, a great season of 3v3, so let’s do a quick recap for our playoff teams! 5v5 preview will come out after the bye week, so keep an eye out in 2 weeks!

 

1. Lakers Gaming

 

23-3. That’s the Lakers final record of the season. Just pure, utter domination. A wire to wire championship. One of the best teams we’ve ever seen. Oh, and if it wasn’t obvious already, ShiftyKaii should finally win his MVP trophy. The history books smile, as the best player in the world is finally acknowledged. As we look towards 5s, very excited to see what this team has for us.

 

2. Magic Gaming

 

A brutal finish to an incredible season. All the talent in the world, but they just ran out of gas at the end. Winning a title in this league is unbelievably hard and sometimes, your ceiling smacks you on the head before you even realize it’s close to you. Their loss to Gen.G was simply too much for them to handle and having to fight through that lower bracket clearly left them a bit mentally battered by the time they got to the title. 5s is coming fast, we’ll see if they have the strength to get their feet back under them in time.

 

3. Gen.G Tigers

 

*slow clap* Best finish to a season in any game mode in team history. Nothing to be ashamed of at all. They were better than 22 teams in the league, but they just couldn’t get passed Lakers Gaming or Magic Gaming consistently. Regardless, huge season for them. 

 

4. T-Wolves Gaming

 

T-Wolves accomplished everything they needed to. Their rookies are settled and got great stage experience early. Bear showed a real ability to play another position. Tutak proved he’s the real deal. No real notes for the T-wolves. They went about as far as you could expect and won a good chunk of change.

 

5. Bucks Gaming

 

A good 3v3 run for Milwaukee. 5th is a great finish for them after starting 3-6 on the year. Their crazy run through the Steal and into the FInal 4 will live on as one of the better runs we’ve seen in 3s from a non-champion. Still, it’s 5s time and this team is the creme de la creme. As of now, they are my #2 team in the league heading into the season.

 

6. Heat Check Gaming

 

Miami, like Milwaukee, hit their ceiling about where I expected them to. Getting all the way to the #6 team in the league while playing their own unique style puts a big smile on my face. I love when teams do their own things and stick with it the whole way. Happy for the Heat and happy for Dtrick and Ky who had a real moment in the spotlight this seasons.

 

7. Grizz Gaming

 

Similar to T-Wolves Gaming, Grizz Gaming did a wonderful job this year considering their roster. Icy and OhDonn gave everything they had this year and got this team to the playoffs. We also got a classic Vandi season, so everyone got what they wanted. This team will be fun and scrappy in 5v5, excited for this group.

 

8. CLTX Gaming

 

We finally get to the first team that I’m a little disappointed with. This team had a ton of talent and the advanced stats absolutely loved them. Heck, if you simulated the playoffs 10 more times, this CLTX team might’ve been a championship Saturday selection. But alas, it’s another finish outside the top 5 for CLTX who have a good team, but plenty of questions heading into 5v5.

 

9. 76ers GC

 

I should probably put this team higher, but I don’t think they were ever that GOOD of a team, To me, they just know how to play on stage and how to game plan as well as any team in the league. Solid group all around, but just never had the offense to truly compete with the best. Like the Bucks, 5v5 is the big mode for this group. 

 

10. Nets Gaming Crew

 

Despite making the playoffs, NetsGC is probably my biggest 3v3 disappointment. After the success last year and the prospect of a year 2 bump for Greens, I was hoping for another step forward, but sadly, was left with an early exit. This team should be good in 5s, but they’ll need Greens to shake this off and get back to his usual self.

 

11. Pistons GT

 

Add Pistons GT to my biggest disappointments list. It’s really hard in this league to be good, it’s even harder to be good for 3 straight years. I think the grind of this game mode got to the Pistons early and dragged them down to the middle of the pack. I’m concerned for this team in 5v5 defensively, but with their roster, that could be easily overstated.

 

12. Knicks Gaming 

 

Finally, we have our Steal runner ups who should feel good about themselves. Getting to the playoffs is a good accomplishment for this team and gets them ready for 5v5. Sick One and OriginalMalik come back into the lineup, so this team is primed for a big run.

 

13. Cavs Legion GC
14. Warriors Gaming Squad 
15. Pacers Gaming
16. Hawks Talon GC
17. Jazz Gaming
18. Raptors Uprising GC
19. NBL Oz Gaming
20. Blazer5 Gaming
21. Dux Infinitos
22. Wizards DG
23. Mavs Gaming
24. Hornet Venom GT
25. Kings Guard Gaming

 

So long, 3v3! After the bye, we swap to the big dogs. It’s 5v5 time. In the meantime, check out the Virtual Courtisde podcast with Dirk and I. We’ll have a big 3v3 review and 5v5 preview coming up in the next few weeks. Have a good bye week everyone!