With the league officially past the halfway mark, we’re starting to get a clearer picture of which teams are our real contenders and which should start shifting their attention towards the offseason. However, Week 7 has the potential to be the best regular season week in NBA 2K League history with multiple league-shaking match ups and as many elite position battles as we’ve had in any week this season. Before we get to our Week 7 preview, let’s take a look back at some notes from Week 6.

Wednesday (Night 1):

1. Dimez might be the only player in the league who can have one game with 27 points and another with 2 and be just as effective. His ability to create open shots on the perimeter for the likes of Mo and Rux keeps him in the elite PG conversation, while he has helped make PeteBeBallin one of the best, if not the best, rookies in Season 2.

2. The “Mama Time” moniker is fun, but it does come with some extra pressure. MamaImDatMan has answered every question so far this year on his way to being a leading MVP candidate. The last 2 are inevitably, “Can he sustain it?”, and “Will he show up when it matters most?” We will get our answers, but adding on the pressure of elite 4th quarter scoring makes it that much more of a challenge.

3. We talk a lot about the best players at individual positions, but the NBA has been trending away from typical positions and a few players have adopted that quality in the 2K League. One of them is BallLikeSeem, who has seamlessly (no pun intended) become of the best “wing” players in the league. Shooting Guard or Small Forward, Seem has been able to maintain elite level play regardless of where he plays. Is he the most underrated player in the league? Only time will tell.

Thursday (Night 2):

1. We can get caught up in individual awards and how based in team success they can be. Perhaps the most talented player in the league is still oFab, who put up maybe the best individual performance of the year vs. Heat Check Gaming dropping 36 PTS, 13 AST & 5 STLs. He said on Twitter he wants to end the week 4-5. If he plays like that again, they should be just fine.

2. One of my favorite stories of the week was the emergence of new starting PG for Cavs Legion GC, Savage. His performance vs. Knicks Gaming was electric and you might be able to count on one hand how many buzzer beating dunks to win a game there have EVER been in basketball history. He may be the man to help turn their season around, it will be interesting to see how the team lines up when LYKaPRO returns from his suspension this week.

3. The move to put BigMeek on the bench on Bucks Gaming’s biggest game of the year can only be described as ballsy. However, it paid off. RSG brought an extra kick of energy and Arooks did the rest. Did it save their season? Perhaps, but their is still a long way to go.

Friday (Night 3):

1. The Nets GC x Knicks Gaming matchup brought a fantastic crowd to the arena once again. It also solidified the Nets as a true dark horse contender. Moving Lav to Point Guard and allowing Wavy.Zay to play as a secondary ballhandler at Small Forward has completely opened up their offense and everything else has fallen into place. They have led the league in different lineups this year, but it seems they have finally found a winner.

2. Heart-breaking loss for Heat Check Gaming. Losing on a buzzer beater is hard enough, but this team can’t seem to catch a break. Hopefully, The Ticket can bring them some reprieve from the travel and allow them to gain some momentum heading into the final stretch of the regular season.

What To Watch For In Week 6:

1. Must-See Game:
   1. Blazer5 Gaming (8-1) vs. Pacers Gaming (5-1):
      1. Time: Thursday, 8 pm/et
      2. Best Match-up: OneWildWalnut vs. Ramo
      3. Summary: There are almost too many good matchups to choose from, however, Blazer5 x Pacers Gaming has elite matchups across the board. The battle at the center positions give us maybe the best positional battle of the entire season and sets up a true clash of titans in the NBA 2K League,
2. Game Flying Under The Radar
   1. Wizards District Gaming vs. Grizz Gaming
      1. Time: Wednesday, 6 pm/et
      2. Best Match-up: Demon JT vs. Vandi
      3. Summary: With so many matchups at the top of the standings, you may miss the most intriguing clash of the week. Both teams on 2-game winning streaks and both teams preaching that they’ve figured it out, it could have serious playoff ramifications for the winner. Throw in the trade for KelMav to boot and you have yourself a real firecracker to start Week 7.
3. Elite Position Battles For Week 4
   1. Point Guard:
      1. Reizey (Magic Gaming) faces off against Radiant (76ers GC) at 6 pm/et on Thursday.
      2. Dimez (Mavs Gaming) takes his undefeated record agains the red-hot Bp (Kings Guard Gaming) on Friday at 7 pm/et.
      3. Mama Im Dat Man (Week 6 Intel Player of the Week) gets his first taste of his West Coast counterpart Bp (Kings Guard Gaming) at 9 pm/et.
      4. An epic throwdown to end the week as Dimez (Mavs Gaming) & Radiant (76ers GC) clash for the first time this season.
   2. Shooting Guard:
      1. WoLF 74 (Pacers Gaming) will have his hands full with Bsmoove (Warriors Gaming Squad).
      2. WoLF 74 (Pacers Gaming) also has a fun game against Blazer5 Gaming and LavishPhenom (Blazer5 Gaming) this week.
   3. Small Forward: 
      1. Swizurk (Pacers Gaming) goes up against Gradient (Warriors Gaming Squad).
      2. BalLikeSeem (Kings Guard Gaming) and King Peroxide (Blazer5 Gaming) have both raised their performance this year and now face off in one of the best games of the year,
   4. Power Forward: 
      1. DT (Magic Gaming) and KingQuai614 (Raptors Uprising) gives us a battle the league has been waiting for at PF.
      2. Rux (Mavs Gaming) meeting Yusuf_Scarbz (Kings Guard Gaming) is one of the most vocal meetings of the season and could lead to some very fun moments on the NBA 2K League Instagram story.
   5. Center:
      1. In one of the best 1-1 matchups Season 2 has had to offer, OneWildWalnut (Blazer5 Gaming) & Ramo (Pacers Gaming) sqaure off in a true battle of MVP & DPOY candidates,
      2. Worthingcolt (Kings Guard Gaming) is in for a fun week as he brings his hot streak against PeteBeBallin (Mavs Gaming), then against the reigning MVP, OneWildWalnut (Blazer5 Gaming).
      3. Type (Warriors Gaming Squad) will need to be at his best this week with back-to-back games against Ramo (Pacers Gaming) and Arsonal (Hawks Talon GC).

 

Content You May Have Missed: 

• Cool video here from Pacers Gaming about Point Guard Archetypes.
• Want to see how Magic Gaming treat new players? Check out this piece on ToXsiK’s move-in day
• Fun thread with your favorite NBA 2K League players with baby faces.
• Definitely take time out of your day to watch the newest episode of Locked In.

Scott Cole and Dirk Moment Of The Week:

When it comes to game-winners, the call can be as memorable as the play. As usual, Scott and Dirk nailed it.

For the WIN! 👀

Relive @Newdini33's game-winning layup for @76ersGC. pic.twitter.com/t5hV9aFUhw

— NBA 2K League (@NBA2KLeague) May 28, 2019

Keep up the good work, fellas.

This article represents the thoughts and opinions of the writer and not of the NBA 2K League.