Hey guys, it’s Robby from Two Brothers Gaming again here with some more NBA 2K16 My Team Throwback Thursday card reviews! Every week in NBA 2K16’s My Team mode, there are Throwback Thursday cards released with specific players’ highlight seasons. Each week here on Operation Sports, I’ll be highlighting these players and showing you stats, badges, individual attributes, and everything related to each player. If you pull one of these cards, you’ll know what to do with them! Don’t forget to watch the accompanying video review as well.

Let’s get into it:

-NOTE-This is a combination of last week’s players (listed first) with this week’s players (listed last) due to the holidays surrounding last week’s releases. Enjoy!

WEEK OF DECEMBER 31:

2011 D.J. Augustin, Charlotte Bobcats – 78 overall

Augustin is known as a scoring point guard who struggles with his shot, and that’s perfectly translated here in his 2011 card. This replicates his highest-scoring season as a pro, at 14 points per game, but he did so on just 41% shooting from the field, and I have a problem with that. As a scorer, whether in the game or in real life, efficiency is key. Augustin will struggle to find a spot on most rosters because he doesn’t stand out enough as a scorer to warrant consideration over better options.

2013 Omer Asik, Houston Rockets -- 78 overall

Asik’s best season as a pro was the 2012-13 campaign, where he averaged 10 points and almost 12 rebounds per game serving as a great paint protector for the Rockets. He does not have an elaborate offensive game and should be looked at as a reliable silver option if you only use your bigs for rebounding and defense, which gives him a nice niche in the game. Other than that, his less-than-desirable athleticism and free throw shooting may get you into trouble. Asik’s a solid budget pickup for early RTTP seeds and that’s it.

2008 Jose Calderon, Toronto Raptors – 80 overall

Calderon’s biggest strength is his playmaking ability, and his biggest weakness is his defense. 11 points and 8 assists per game on 50/42 marks from field goal and three point range sound enticing, but the defense from Calderon is just atrocious. If you’re willing to overlook this and play him spot minutes, he can be effective. I would suggest looking elsewhere, especially since he’s at the lower end of the Gold tier of point guards ratings-wise.

2011 Kevin Love, Minnesota Timberwolves – 96 overall

This is a replication of Love’s amazing 30-30 (points and rebounds) game for the Timberwolves way back in 2011. I used Love effectively last year (see my Budget Ballers series), and his Diamond card lives up to the hype, although he does NOT receive 99 ratings in rebounding, holding true to 2K’s “Legend Scale,” wherein one player will be the very best ratings-wise at certain categories. Love can do everything but defend with outstanding results, and if you’re lucky enough to pull this card, he should be started immediately.

WEEK OF JANUARY 7:

2012 Luol Deng, Chicago Bulls – 83 overall

It’s forgotten that Deng played an integral role in the Bulls’ rise to prominence as a do-it-all small forward, a Swiss Army knife of sorts for the team. This earned him back-to-back All-Star selections, the first of which was for the 2011-12 season replicated in this card. Deng averaged 15 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, and a steal per game while connecting on 36% of his three-pointers and leading the league in minutes played at 39.4 per contest. Deng wasn’t a superstar, but for most My Teams, he can have a place on the roster and outweigh his weaknesses (41% from the field overall) with his strengths (budget defender and scorer, versatility).

2009 Boris Diaw, Charlotte Bobcats – 77 overall

The 2008-09 season saw Diaw begin with the Suns, where he won the Most Improved Player award in years’ past, and end with the Bobcats, where he showcased his versatility to the tune of 13 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 assists per game on 50% shooting. Diaw is one of those players that doesn’t get translated into the 2K games properly (to no fault of the development team, he’s just truly an oddity in the NBA world) because of his unique skillset. He’s unselfish to a fault and a player anyone in the league would play alongside---but that may not help your My Team. Diaw will most likely be overlooked by all but the most diligent fans.

2013 Larry Sanders, Milwaukee Bucks – 78 overall

This was the season where Sanders put it all together on the floor and got a nice contract before things unwound for him and he walked away from the game. Before that, he averaged 9.8 points and 9.5 rebounds per game to go with 2.8 blocks, terrorizing opposing teams without much of an offensive game to speak of. He did in 2013 what Hassan Whiteside is currently doing for the Heat—maximize his talents on the defensive and rebounding fronts and become so outstanding that he had to receive playing time. Sanders is a very nice option in the Silver tier to surprise opponents who don’t remember his lone highly productive season.

2013 Rashard Lewis, Miami Heat – 70 overall

I’m unsure why this card is being released when there are a ton of better versions of Lewis out there, including the Sonics version that was an Onyx last year. There simply isn’t much to say about a bench player that only got into 55 games and averaged 14 minutes per game. Not a useful card for anything but three point shooting, and even then, his Free Agent card is comparable.

2009 Brandon Jennings, Milwaukee Bucks – 96 overall

This is a replication of Jennings’ 55-point outburst in his rookie year, one that many thought was a sign of things to come for the young Buck. Reviews are still mixed and polarizing on Jennings to this day, but on this night, he was spectacular. I’ve played against this card in Gauntlet mode within My Team and it’s a force to be reckoned with. Jennings has handles, athleticism, and shooting, all of which combine to make him lethal should he fall into your lap.

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That’s it for this week. If you’d like to see the players in-game, be on the lookout for more videos, and if you have any questions I can be reached on Twitter @twobrosgaming.