Thoughts and Observations From NBA 2K League Week 6
July 12, 2021
The NBA 2K League’s second tournament of Season 4 kicks off on Wednesday, July 14. THE TURN powered by AT&T runs through Saturday, July 17.
Teams will be competing for an overall prize pool of $260,000, with the winners walking away with $117,000. The second-place finishers share $52,000 while third and fourth place get $22,100 apiece. Fifth through eighth place take home $11,700 each. After watching Week 6 action, some squads are better prepared than others.
Getting Right for THE TURN
Wizards District Gaming, the reigning 2K League champions, have again separated themselves from the pack. Week 5 Player of the Week Dayfri helped push his team to a 3-1 Week 6 record as they locked down a top seed in THE TURN.
At 14-4, WDG has the best record in the league and outscored both Pistons GT and Magic Gaming by 22 points total this week, as they swept the former and split with the latter.
There is no team in the league that should feel more confident than WDG.
After a couple of shaky weeks, T-Wolves Gaming regrouped and produced their own 3-1 week. They do not have the top seed in the Western Conference, as it belongs to Pacers Gaming, who had their bye week.
Heading Into The Tournament With The Wrong Vibe
We know Hawks Talon GC is the league’s oldest team, and I don’t mean that in a good way. They’ve lost their last eight games, and hopefully are able to regroup during the bye week.
They will need to show up ready to implement some new strategy heading into THE TURN. While they badly need a turnaround, the losing doesn’t isn’t as fresh as it is with Lakers Gaming and Mavs Gaming.
Both teams were swept in their Week 6 series’. Lakers Gaming dropped a pair of contests to Blazer5 Gaming and Gen. G Tigers of Shanghai, while Mavs Gaming couldn’t handle 76ers GC or T-Wolves Gaming. The series against T-Wolves was especially troubling because Mavs PG Dimez played one of his best games of the year in the first meeting, scoring 30 points, but it wasn’t enough as he didn’t get a ton of help.
These three squads need a dramatic turnaround to make some noise come Wednesday.
20-20 Vision
It was just one game, but some stat lines tend to jump out more than others. Blazer5 Gaming’s Bash had one of those games against Lakers Gaming on Wednesday.
During Blazer5 Gaming’s 85-72 win in game two, Bash recorded 28 points and 21 assists. While his 3-for-8 three-point shooting wasn’t exactly “lights out,” he was still efficient overall, making 11-of-18 from the field while turning the ball over just once. The performance joins a growing list of impressive showings by 2K League point guards.
India and Harris THE TURN Debate. Who’s Wrong?
Which team is going to win THE TURN? Harris Rubenstein and Made in India debated the topic during Saturday night’s stream.
Rubenstein was confident in his assertion that Kings Guard Gaming was in the best place to come out victorious. Rubenstein cited the team’s improved defense since moving Yusef Scarbz to center and Mama Im Dat Man finding himself as an offensive leader.
India likes T-Wolves Gaming to come out on top. They won THE TIPOFF, and India seemed impressed by Bear Da Beast and co. surge during Week 6.
Well, they’re both wrong in my opinion. My prediction for the winner of THE TURN is Wizards District Gaming. Defensively, they have the components to shut down anyone in the league. Besides OneWildWalnut, no center in the league imposes his will defensively like Dayfri. Just Awkward is arguably the best lock in the league. He averaged two steals per-game during Week 6.
WDG is confident and poised to take THE TURN.
Ziah’s Debut
Mavs Gaming SG Ziggy Ziah became the third woman to play a game in the 2K League. Mavs Gaming was winless in Week 6, but Ziah had some highlights as she scored 13 points in the first game of the series against T-Wolves Gaming. Ziah may need some time to get more acclimated, but the potential to help Mavs Gaming this season as a capable shooter is apparent.
Brian Mazique is a life-long hoops junkie and a fan of the NBA 2K franchise since its inception in 1999. Professionally, he has a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism and Mass Communication, and has covered sports and video games for the past 15 years for a variety of platforms, including Bleacher Report, Forbes, and Heavy.com. The views on this page are that of this writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of the NBA 2K League or its clubs.