We’re back. 

 

Season 5 of the NBA 2K League began this week with The TIP-OFF Powered by AT&T for the 5th straight year, but with a twist. A new format for the tournament alongside some incredible new teams and rookies have added some real electricity to every night. We had a bunch of favorites, such as the Warriors, Jazz, and Gen.G, come out firing and live up to their lofty expectations. We had some big surprises as well, including the incredibly fun Raptors Uprising GC and new-look Lakers Gaming. We’ll get to in-depth looks at players and teams, but let’s start with a big picture look at how the league is changing for Season 5. 

 

The New Structure:

 

The regular season is gone. I know right? Weird. But, at the same time, exciting. The new format goes like this. The Tip-Off, Turn and Ticket (along with 2 extra seeding weeks) will serve as the defacto regular season. The 2-week group stage for each tournament will serve as the way for teams to rack up wins and begin their trek towards the playoffs.

 

Let’s just focus on The Tip-Off for now. Teams have been split up into 4 groups (see below) with 6 teams each. They are playing a round-robin in those groups, whoever finishes as the top 4 seeds in the group will move on to in-person (yay) bracket play. The kicker is that however many wins a team gets, they will receive points for those wins, similar to hockey or soccer. A group stage win is worth 1 point. A bracket stage win is also worth 1 point. If you win a tournament, it’s worth 3 points. Teams will collect these points across 3 5v5 tournaments. Whoever has the most points, like in hockey, makes the playoffs. That’s it. See? Not too complicated. I will keep everyone on the same page in Section 400, have no fear. It can get a little dicey, but that’s what I’m here for. (Btw we get 6+ weeks of in-person play this year, hell yea.)

 

We can continue digesting the new format for the league as the year goes on, but let’s get to the meat and potatoes. West is up first. 

 

Group Review:

 

(If you want to know how the groups were decided, check out the Group Draft on YouTube. Super interesting way to pick out groups, GMs were giving their thoughts as they were going through the draft. If you’re into the nitty-gritty, definitely give it a watch.)

 

Group A (The Normal Group):

• Lakers Gaming – 2 points (2-0)

• Jazz Gaming – 2 points (2-0)

• T-Wolves Gaming – 1 point (1-1)

• Pistons GT – 1 point (1-1)

1. Blazer5 Gaming – 0 points (0-2)
2. Cavs Legion GC – 0 points (0-2)

 

In a week full of surprises, Group A decided it wanted to be different and go almost as expected. Jazz Gaming, T-Wolves Gaming, and Pistons GT are the class of the group and look to be real threats in the Western Conference this year. The Jazz/T-Wolves game was a highlight of the week, dampened a little by some late-game technical issues, but not enough to distract from these two teams playing out a possible Western Conference Finals matchup. The only surprise has been Lakers Gaming, who has looked quite good in the first 2 games with their new-look lineup. It’s been the play of former #1 overall pick Krazy that has really turned them up. His elite center play has sparked the team on both ends, not to mention he is setting some hellish screens for Regg and Reese to work off of. It’s very refreshing to see a team wear purple and gold and be locked in and execute a winning game plan. As for Blazer5 and Cavs Legion, Unguardable and Jyden respectively are definitely worth a mention.. High-end scoring 2-guards always have a place in this league. Blazer5 Gaming looks like they could have a run in them still, so let’s not sleep on them. 

 

Group B (The Group of Death):

• Warriors Gaming Squad – 3 points (3-0)

• Dux Infinitos – 2 points (2-0)

• Mavs Gaming – 1 point (1-1)

• Bucks Gaming – 1 point (1-2)

1. Kings Guard Gaming – 1 point (1-2)
2. Pacers Gaming – 0 points (0-3)

 

Alright, we can admit it. This is the Group of Death. Every team in this group is a playoff contender and the top 4 will show up in Indy battered and bruised. Let’s start at the bottom and work our way up. Personally, I don’t think there is anything wrong with Pacers Gaming. I think it was fair to assume it would take a few games for Vandi and 630 to figure it out. Sadly for them, those “few games” have come against teams that are 6-2 in this group. At 0-3, they are likely out, but I don’t think this team is dead yet for the playoffs. Kings finally played a good game against the aforementioned Pacers. Defense, transition scoring, easy shot creation, all the things we expected to see, they showed up in a big way. They still have an uphill battle, but if they get to in-person play, watch out. Bucks and Mavs I’m going to pinch together. Both are young teams with a key vet who are figuring it out on the fly. They look good, however one will not make it out of this group. I’ll hold off on my victory parade for picking Dux to come out on this group, considering they haven’t faced the looking Giant that is Warriors Gaming Squad. 2-0 is an outstanding start though. Finally, we get to WGS. They look every bit like the Evil Empire we expected them to be. The defense this year though is one of the best ever. Consider this the beginning of Gradient’s DPOY push. This might finally be the year.

 

Group C (The Fun Group):

• Gen.G Tigers of Shanghai – 3 points (3-0)

• Wizards District Gaming – 2 points (2-1)

• 76ers GC – 2 points (2-1)

• Heat Check Gaming – 1 point (1-2)

1. CLTX Gaming – 1 points (1-2)
2. Hawks Talon GC – 0 points (0-3) 

 

This group has been a blast to follow. Some team is either getting completely blown out or we’re getting one of the best finishes of the year. No in-between. It’s great! The top 3 in this group have separated themselves this week, but have left enough room that either the Heat or the Celtics could shake up the party. I’ve personally liked what I’ve seen from Heat Check so far, but they really have two modes. Is Sav aggressive? Or, is Sav not aggressive? When he is option A, they play great and look like a playoff team. Option B, he looks like last year and the team crashes. He has a better defense this year behind him and a killer SG in Bsmoove. The breakout is either now or never. Speaking of last year, both the Celtics and the Hawks look like the same team as last year which isn’t good news for either of them. The Wizards and 76ers get put in the “good teams who need more time” category, we’ll be seeing them deep into the playoffs in August though. But, the cream of the Group C crop is Gen.G. Their defense is going to set records this year, they’ve got all the tools to be one of the best ever. That frontcourt of Feast and BumpyDon is not to be messed with, their trio of rookies, ReturnofDJ, HesCap, and #1 overall pick Gallo, are already showing signs of something really special. There is something brewing with this team. 3-0 is just the beginning.

 

Group D (The Group of Chaos):

• Raptors Uprising GC – 3 points (3-0)

• Nets Gaming Crew – 2 points (2-0)

• Knicks Gaming – 1 point (1-1)

• Hornets Venom GT – 1 point (1-2)

1. Magic Gaming – 0 points (0-2)
2. Grizz Gaming – 0 points (0-2)

 

What the heck is this group. It is both incredibly strange, and yet, dare I say going as expected? The most unexpected part, of course, has been Raptors Uprising GC. Talk about running teams off the court. The defense is back, Type at PF has been a force of nature, and damn, Dimez been good at Center. You heard me! Dimez at Center is working…for now. Big fan of this Raptors squad, I think they are just the chaotic force the Eastern Conference needed. Nets, on the other hand, are the yin to their yang. Smart, meticulous, more business-like in their approach so far. Nets GM OG King Curt deserves a lot of credit for putting a competitive team out there, as does 1on1Kris. Jury is still out on the Knicks and Hornets, they both have more games to play to iron things out, but it’s been up and down for both. The Magic and Grizz just don’t look the part yet. Both need to up their execution level on both ends if they want to be a threat this year.

 

That’s it for Week 1! Keep an eye out for official league-wide power rankings to come out Sunday or Monday. We’ve got one more week of group play before we all head to Indianapolis for a week of bracket play (again, yay). Follow me on Twitter @sportstein for all news and updates. I’ll see you in Section 400!

 

P.S. Pumped to be back writing on the website again. We’re going to have a lot of fun this summer. League is back! Let’s go!