It will take several years and good games along the way, but Live has a chance.

The gaming landscape has changed greatly in the four years since NBA Live and NBA 2K last faced off in competition.

NBA Live went on vacation; NBA 2K grew into a juggernaut.

If EA Sports tries to recapture the basketball gaming market out of the gate, it will be like Jose Calderon trying to guard Kobe. To return to relevance, the Live team needs to rebuild brick by brick.

By focusing on delighting one segment of the community at a time, they can win over different groups of gamers and convert them into loyal customers. To optimize this process, EA can focus on gamers who feel that 2K falls short of satisfying their main desires.

Thankfully, EA picked the perfect way to start.

Despite the many joys of playing NBA 2K14, its one-on-one dribble game has never felt quite as responsive and rewarding as it could.

NBA Live 14's introduction of BounceTek – coupled with the series' historical success in that area – underscores its devotion to nailing that aspect of the game. To many basketball fans and gamers, nothing captures the sport's allure quite like a tight crossover leading to broken ankles and a high-flying dunk. By making this part of NBA Live as rewarding as possible, EA can start winning people over.

Live has to win gamers back piece by piece.

From there, EA can move on to dominating another subset of the market.

Resurrecting Be A Pro mode (it's now called Rising Star) could make a huge difference. Especially with the joy of using BounceTek dribbling to pull off highlight reel plays.

Rising Star mode also lets you go online, allowing would-be NBA All-Stars to take their players into tournaments and leagues with their online teams. With some gamers feeling a bit underwhelmed with NBA 2K14's Crew mode return, NBA Live 14 could snag a few more fans if Rising Star impresses.

NBA Live could possibly develop Rising Star into a more full-featured mode like Connected Careers in Madden. This mode satisfies both the competitive one-on-one diehards, as well as the gamers who crave a more immersive franchise experience.

But NBA Live won’t become a contender in a day. Building a complete basketball game, both in terms of modes and gameplay, takes time and practice. Trial and error plays a role in finding balance and success.

2K Sports had years to build what they offer now. EA can't hope to close the chasm between the two in the span of a year or two. They can, however, eliminate small gaps one at a time.

With strong first impressions from Rising Star and BounceTek, EA can jump back into the basketball gaming world and make an impact this year regardless of how rough other areas of the game turn out. They will start building a devoted, loyal NBA Live following immediately. Adding a new segment of customers to that group each year will build the momentum necessary to get even more gamers on the bandwagon.

And if NBA 2K can't counter this strategy, they will eventually find themselves looking up at NBA Live as they did during the heyday of the PlayStation 2.