What has 2K done to the Chicago Bulls? After a summer of free-agency heartbreak, the Bulls salvaged their offseason by adding half of Utah’s roster, headlined by Carlos Boozer. They also added a much needed shooter in Kyle Korver and a couple solid guards (C.J. Watson and Ronnie Brewer). But why will this team not be used as much as it would have been? The answer is simple:
Michael Jordan.
With the recent announcement of the Jordan Challenge and the inclusion of historical teams in NBA 2K11, the Windy City crew will most definitely hit the court with MJ rather than Booz. Sure D-Rose is a very popular player in Chicago and beyond, but is he MJ? No. Is Deng Pippen? No. What about Booz and Rodman? Booz is way too boring to even reach Rodman’s basement. The obvious point I am trying to get across here is that the new and improved (and in my opinion best team in the East -- yeah I said it) will see a lot of fans opting for the past rather than the present.
D-Rose is a machine in NBA 2K10. He finally had a solid jump shot after all of the roster updates, and he essentially became a smaller, slightly less talented 2K-LeBron. Adding Booz to Rose should help to create one of the sickest (yet still broken) pick and pops in the game, with Noah sitting there to fix it if you break it. Plus, if all else fails, you can always just dish it to Korver in the corner for the open J.
But then there is MJ’s Bulls, all eight of them. MJ is no doubt going to be arguably one of the greatest video game characters of all-time. He has not been featured in a video game since the NBA Street days. His Airness will surely rival (and probably trump) the unforgettable Madden 04 Michael Vick.
To put Jordan's potential video game greatness into perspective, just remember the amount of cheese you saw with Vick, then combine that with the last few years of LeBron shenanigans. Now, close your eyes and imagine the greatness of the greatest basketball player ever to touch the rock, and then imagine putting him in a video game. Only one word should come to mind at this point. Broken.
But I also know a lot of you are not cheesers or refuse to admit it -- even I cheese on occasion. Either way, if we are given the weapon of mass destruction, we probably will not resist the urge to use him over D-Rose -- unless you're a 15-year-old child who is wearing a "vintage" Garnett Timberwolves jersey
So my request to fellow 2K-ers is to simply not forget about the present. Sure the past is awesome ('95-'96 Sonics live on in this household), but do not dwell on what was. Bring D-Rose and Booz to life and fulfill what I believe is their destiny: a 4-2 2011 NBA Finals series (loss) against the Lakers.
Then again, it is your $60 so play the game however you want. Put MJ on the current roster for all I care. I know I’ll be using the 15-year-old Sonics more than the atrocity that sits in Oklahoma City.
Payton to Kemp all day long.
Dustin Toms is a staff writer for OS, specializing in basketball and fighting games. Born and raised in Washington state, he has made his life goal to personally see to David Stern's firing after the Seattle Supersonics were relocated. You can follow him not on twitter, but on the forums (eckoefx).