In absence of individual player assignments, the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions of NBA 2K14 have given gamers three “Points of Emphasis” to help control their AI teammates' on-court behavior. During a game, players can apply one offensive emphasis, one defensive emphasis and one bonus “flex” emphasis.

To select your emphases before tip-off, press the triangle button on the pregame loading screen; During gameplay, hit right on the d-pad to change your emphases on the fly; In a timeout, highlight the "Point of Emphasis" icon and press the X button to adjust your strategies. If your emphases aren't saving, or if they seem to be changing without your consent, simply pause the game, go to the "Options" screen, cycle over to "Coach Settings," then make sure that "Points of Emphasis" is set to "Manual," not "Auto."

While there are no written explanations in NBA 2K14's menus or in its PDF manual about what exactly these emphases do, here are Operation Sports' educated guesses, based upon dozens of gameplay hours:
 

Offense

Crash Offensive Glass

After a shot, all five players will run into the paint and attempt to secure a rebound. This can create more second-chance points, but it also leaves your team vulnerable to fast breaks.

Run in Transition

Whenever the opposing team takes a shot, your perimeter defenders will leak out into the open court, looking for a quick outlet pass. While this will help generate fast break opportunities, it will also make your defense vulnerable to put-back buckets.

Patient Offense

This only seems to affect computer-controlled teams, as it will cause the CPU to walk the ball up the court and milk the shot clock, attempting to shoot only as the clock begins to wind down.

Shoot at Will

This, too, only appears to affect computer-controlled teams, as it will cause the CPU to look for shooting opportunities early in the shot clock. Think Mike D'Antoni's “7 seconds or less” offense.

Feed the Post

If offensive play calling is set to “Auto,” or the "2K Smart Play" button is pressed (left bumper), the game will call lots of post-up plays for your team's big men.

Get Shooters Open

If offensive play calling is set to “Auto,” or the "2K Smart Play" button is pressed (left bumper), your teammates will set lots of off-ball screens to create open looks for your lineup's best sharpshooters.

Play Through Scorer

If offensive play calling is set to “Auto,” or the "2K Smart Play" button is pressed (left bumper), the game will run a variety of plays designed to get the ball into the hands of one specific player.

Pick and Roll Offense

If offensive play calling is set to “Auto,” or the "2K Smart Play" button is pressed (left bumper), the game will call lots of plays involving ball screens.

Get to the Basket

If offensive play calling is set to “Auto,” or the "2K Smart Play" button is pressed (left bumper), the game will try to create scoring opportunities around the rim by calling a mix of dribble penetration, post-ups and off-ball cuts to the basket.

Defense

Conservative Defense

Your defenders will sag off their man and try not to commit fouls. This can be a useful strategy if you have the lead late in a game or if the opposing team is “in the bonus,” meaning they'll be awarded free throws after every foul.

Play Physical

Your defenders will body-up their man, playing tight on-ball and off-ball defense. In the paint, your players will often commit fouls instead of letting the other team have dunks or layups. This style of play works best against teams who lack athleticism and can't shoot free throws well. Don't use this strategy to defend speedy teams, as they will easily drive around your on-ball defender, and there will often be no one in good position to provide help defense.

Limit Perimeter Shots

As with the “Play Physical” strategy, all five of your defenders will play tight defense, closely guarding their man and heavily contesting any outside shots. Your defense remains susceptible to quick teams who can penetrate and score in the paint, but unlike with “Play Physical,” your players won't be taking any fouls if they do get beaten to the rim.

Nothing Inside

Your off-ball defenders will stay close to the paint, looking to collapse on the ball whenever it's driven inside or thrown into a post player. This can force lots of missed shots and turnovers if your opponent has no deep threats on the floor. However, this setting also gives up many open three-point looks, thus, it can be easily beaten by taking the ball inside then passing it out to a spot-up shooter.

Limit Transition

Your players will not go after offensive rebounds, and instead, will sprint back to play defense so that the other team cannot score easy fast break buckets. This can be helpful if you have a large lead in the second half or are facing an opponent who has trouble scoring out of half-court sets.

Key on Scorer

If a superstar like LeBron James or Kevin Durant is dominating your defense, this will ensure that all your off-ball defenders cheat over towards the other team's star player. The CPU will then automatically bring over double teams or even triple teams whenever it feels like the key player is in a dangerous scoring position.

Crash Defensive Glass

If your defense is giving up too many second-chance points, this emphasis will bring all five defenders down into the paint to help rebound the ball. The main downside is that your guards and wing players will no longer be in good position to receive a quick outlet pass and take off for a fast break after a rebound. Additionally, if an opposing big man does manage to bring down a board, he can easily pass the ball back outside to an open spot-up shooter.

Create Chaos

Your defenders will frequently gamble, jumping out into passing lanes and rushing out to the perimeter to trap the ball handler. This brand of defense is easily defeated by smart ball movement and speedy dribbling. But if the other team lacks quickness or has a tendency to make reckless passes, combining “Create Chaos” with “Play Physical” can cause lots of tipped passes, loose balls and interceptions.