NBA 2K17 News Post

NBA and Take-Two Launching NBA 2K eLeague in 2018, Teams Operated By NBA Franchises

01:22 AM - February 9, 2017 by bostonchipster

As pictured in the image above, Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick, joins NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, at the league’s headquarters in New York, N.Y. on Wednesday, February 8th, 2017, as they announce plans to launch the NBA 2K eLeague, a new, professional competitive gaming league. NBA 2K eLeague will bring together the best basketball gamers in the world, and marks the first official eSports league operated by a U.S. professional sports league.

Read the official press release below. More details are scheduled to arrive later today.

NBA AND TAKE-TWO TO LAUNCH NBA 2K eLeague

First Official eSports League Operated by U.S. Professional Sports League Set for 2018 Debut

The National Basketball Association (NBA) and Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ:TTWO) today announced plans to launch the NBA 2K eLeague, a new, professional competitive gaming league that will bring together the best basketball gamers in the world. This marks the first official eSports league operated by a U.S. professional sports league.

Set to debut in 2018, this groundbreaking competitive gaming league will consist of teams operated by actual NBA franchises. The founding teams, each composed of five professional eSports players who will play the game as user-created avatars, will be announced in the coming months. The NBA 2K eLeague will follow a professional sports league format: competing head-to-head throughout a regular season, participating in a bracketed playoff system, and concluding with a championship matchup.

“We believe we have a unique opportunity to develop something truly special for our fans and the young and growing eSports community,” said NBA Commissioner Adam Silver. “We look forward to combining our best-in-class NBA sports team operators with Take-Two’s competitive gaming expertise to create a brand new league experience.”

“We are proud to expand our strong relationship with the NBA and co-create the NBA 2K eLeague,” said Strauss Zelnick, Chairman and CEO of Take-Two. “Through the NBA 2K series, which is renowned throughout the world for capturing the authenticity of the NBA and the passion of its fans, we have a proven track record of highly successful collaboration. With this new venture, Take-Two and the NBA aim to fuel the accelerating growth of eSports and take the thrill of competition to exciting new heights.”

The relationship between NBA and Take-Two dates back to 1999, with the NBA 2K series selling over 68 million units worldwide. The most recent release, NBA 2K17, is the highest-rated annual sports game of the current console generation and the highest-rated title in the history of the NBA 2K series.(1) To date, NBA 2K17 has sold-in nearly 7 million units, and is poised to become 2K’s highest-selling sports title ever.

In December, 2K launched its second official eSports competition, NBA 2K17 All-Star Tournament, which offers teams of gamers the chance to win a trip to NBA All-Star 2017. The 5-on-5 tournament, featuring a $250,000 grand prize, will culminate on Feb. 17 in New Orleans.

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Member Comments

# 41 NoLeafClover @ 02/09/17 06:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ksuttonjr76


	How many people watched the games last year? I'm pretty sure that Take Two has data to justify this endeavor with NBA, and for the NBA to back it up. Plus, you have to take in consideration the additional exposure they'll get from this. They're basically giving people a genuine chance to become a professional gamer in a different genre that's not a fighting, RTS, or FPS game. Real talk, if I thought my skills were good enough in the MyPlayer arena, I would try out myself. I've played against people when money was on the line when I thought I was one of better players at NBA 2K. Let me tell...You haven't seen "skills" until you played in a tournament.

But when those "skills" such as zigzagging behind brick wall screens at the 3 point line do nothing to reflect the actual game it's supposed to be based on, I wonder how the NBA will feel when they get an actual look at it?

# 42 BA2929 @ 02/09/17 06:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lilkoolaid


	is this news for online people only?

90% of everything 2k does for their NBA franchise is for online people only lol

I don't blame them either. That's where the money is.

# 43 basehead617 @ 02/09/17 07:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NoLeafClover


	But when those "skills" such as zigzagging behind brick wall screens at the 3 point line do nothing to reflect the actual game it's supposed to be based on, I wonder how the NBA will feel when they get an actual look at it?

That does not describe the play of last year's tournament, I watched it.

# 44 nova91 @ 02/09/17 08:26 PM

They need to work on having a non crappy non spastic game before launching an eSports league. If I was a part of that league and any one of 2Ks numerous problems caused me to lose a game, I'd raise hell.

# 45 jyoung @ 02/09/17 09:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by basehead617


	That does not describe the play of last year's tournament, I watched it.

2K16 didn't have shooters who could consistently make a three from close to half court; it didn't have dribblers who could make you stumble or fall down just by flicking their right joystick; and it didn't have screeners who could stun you, knock you down, or drain your entire stamina meter just by suctioning you into one of their screens like a vacuum cleaner.

All of that stuff became possible in 2K17 with the invention of grand badges/hall of fame badges, and the majority of the top teams' offensive gameplay now revolves around doing those things every time they don't have a fastbreak.

In 2K16 it was also easier to play man to man defense because everyone had good defensive ratings and gold defensive badges, whereas most people in 2K17 have bad defensive ratings and bronze defensive badges, so now most of the top teams just play a variety of zone defenses that no team in the real NBA would use for more than a couple of possessions per game.

Zig zag dribbling in 2K16 was also generally less effective because the ball was more tangible and much easier to bump loose compared to the less tangible and more yo-yo-like dribbling in 2K17.

# 46 Hustle Westbrook @ 02/09/17 10:32 PM

This sounds amazing. How the hell do I sign up for this lol?

# 47 ViolenceFight @ 02/09/17 11:21 PM

....A combine you say. I was super hesitant talking with Ev, and a few others last night. If there's pay, and it's decent, I'll be finding a combine to attend. I want to do this real bad, but can't afford to quit my job if it's not remotely close to what I currently make.

That's literally all I am worried about. I love basketball. I play 2k because I don't have a lot of free time to play actual basketball. I would love to do this, and I also really need to know where I stand in comparison to the actual monsters that are hiding out there. I'm actually getting a little more hype than I know I should for this

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# 48 jyoung @ 02/10/17 12:41 AM

Quote:


	How many people watched the games last year? I'm pretty sure that Take Two has data to justify this endeavor with NBA, and for the NBA to back it up. Plus, you have to take in consideration the additional exposure they'll get from this.

I don't remember what the viewer turnout was like last year, but the official 2K twitch channel was fluctuating between 1,000 to 2,000 viewers during last weekend's stream.

At the moment, Pro Am is still a very niche community within 2K. The majority of 2K's users play MyCareer, MyPark, or MyTeam.

If one of the most popular MyPark players (Nadexe) hadn't been playing in last weekend's tournament, I bet the turnout for that stream probably would have been even lower.

# 49 Leasim96 @ 02/10/17 02:22 AM

Guys - if the nba is associating with 2k - this means they may help fund better servers - think about it - i believe the nba is a multi billionaire company - i'm sure they can help fund better servers etc. 2k should have no excuse now. I mean - that's their excuse right? - if other games have better servers than it's clear they just don't want to spend on better ones.

2 things could happen - either they make a separate version of the game basically with dedicated servers for these players alone - or the nba helps fund this and we ALL get a better game because of it.

I'm kind of leaning towards dedicated servers/version for the pro scene - with their custom sliders too probably to make it more realistic?.

Hope not and that they fix the game as a whole - it would be amazing if nba indeed helps fund this and the game becomes amazing because of it. There's certainly a lot at risk now that they are in the "big time" basically.

If this will be big - a lot of people will be watching - and it might be very embaressing if it flops. So i have a feeling 2k is gonna try real hard on this. Still a chance they just make a dedicated version for the league though.

Aside from that - it makes total sense that they pick youtubers - think about it. They all have channels - their viewers would likely watch and there you have a big portion of the audience. Personally - i would be interested in how Chris Smoove does - just him alone has 3million subscribers. If the draft is for youtubers - he would probably be a top pick considering he knows a lot about the game if you've followed him.

Infact i could totally picture him being the face of this whole thing - considering many consider him the best 2k youtuber. Although i will admit - for my player stuff - i've been liking agents content this year.

# 50 hanzsomehanz @ 02/10/17 02:34 AM

This is the best pressure and heat that could be pressed on 2k to make a complete improvement on their video game basketball brand

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# 51 blk5tar5 @ 02/10/17 08:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ksuttonjr76


	I must be getting old. I just remembered that one of the major cable companies (TNT?) had announced an eSports show. I guess I can't wrap my head around watching other people play a game. To be fair, back when Video Arcades were common, I used to watch other people play Street Fighter and Mortal Combat for hours. Times are changing, and I guess I'm acting like a stubborn old man, lol.

Esports is where the action is for rating and money of course. People do this for a living now. Just YouTube it you'll see how crazy it is.

Sent from my iPhone using Operation Sports

# 52 blk5tar5 @ 02/10/17 08:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ksuttonjr76


	From Wikipedia.... The global eSports market generated US $325 million of revenue in 2015 and is expected to make $493 million in 2016; the global eSports audience in 2015 was 226 million people.[11] I guess it is bigger than I originally thought. The NBA is forward thinking, and they're trying to cash in on that untapped potential. EA might want to try to do something with their Madden and particularly FIFA games.

EA is already in it.

https://youtu.be/vx4_4fCosIY

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# 53 ksuttonjr76 @ 02/10/17 11:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yesh2k


	2k is basically printing money at this stage, so funding servers has never been a problem; willingness to spend money on them has held them back. NBA coming on board makes this a necessity now because they can't embarrass the league.

Lol...They've BEEN printing money with GTA 5 alone, since Take-Two Interactive is the parent company of 2K Sports.

# 54 bucknut7 @ 02/10/17 12:16 PM

They better regulate these player avatars to be somewhat realistic, or we're going to be seeing a bunch of 7'5 centers with green Mohawks

# 55 stillfeelme @ 02/10/17 12:56 PM

A lot of the details of course not been released but I think just because the NBA is behind this automatically means there will be better servers. I hope it is but we will see.

They have mentioned that the games could be played in the NBA arena or other areas. I think the games will be played locally 10 players at the same location to avoid as many internet/lag/server issues and this also guarantees that there is no cheating going on.

To me the NBA and 2K could have milked this way better if the teams were made of actual NBA players controlled by eLeague players. They could have had a eLeague draft selection show man. Also watching the games would be like watching a version of NBA with real NBA players even if the players didn't play for the team.

# 56 BCSunstoppable @ 02/10/17 01:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stillfeelme


	A lot of the details of course not been released but I think just because the NBA is behind this automatically means there will be better servers. I hope it is but we will see. They have mentioned that the games could be played in the NBA arena or other areas. I think the games will be played locally 10 players at the same location to avoid as many internet/lag/server issues and this also guarantees that there is no cheating going on. To me the NBA and 2K could have milked this way better if the teams were made of actual NBA players controlled by eLeague players. They could have had a eLeague draft selection show man. Also watching the games would be like watching a version of NBA with real NBA players even if the players didn't play for the team.

They said the players wouldn't need to travel because everything now can be done online. I believe the arena comment is more for like the playoffs or maybe big key match ups, but it won't be every game. I do think it should be regulated and every team should a room in their arena or somewhere, where the team can meet to play their scheduled game. Your opponent would be doing the same in their own team arena.

I also would have preferred to use real players and I honestly wouldn't have minded representing the actual teams, they are our owners and we should represent the official teams, I honestly don't see it as a disadvantage, I would love to take my garbage of a team Magic and carry them to victory in the eleague, that would be a story.

# 57 stillfeelme @ 02/10/17 01:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BCSunstoppable


	They said the players wouldn't need to travel because everything now can be done online. I believe the arena comment is more for like the playoffs or maybe big key match ups, but it won't be every game. I do think it should be regulated and every team should a room in their arena or somewhere, where the team can meet to play their scheduled game. Your opponent would be doing the same in their own team arena. I also would have preferred to use real players and I honestly wouldn't have minded representing the actual teams, they are our owners and we should represent the official teams, I honestly don't see it as a disadvantage, I would love to take my garbage of a team Magic and carry them to victory in the eleague, that would be a story.

I meant to say that I didn't actually think having this meant the servers would be better. I think balancing the eLeague would have been better to have a fantasy type draft. They are going to have to balance these MyCareer Avatars someway anyway.

# 58 trandoanhung1991 @ 02/10/17 03:12 PM

This is going to be hilarious. Just watch NBA 2K18 flop big time with this.

I have no doubt in my mind 2K will mess it up. They're being way too greedy.

Basketball is a very organic thing, and players grow and regress. If, since 2K started NBA 2K, they haven't even managed to get the physics right, how will this even work? Class based? That means no growth at all, and a stale meta. How will growth even work? What about talent and capabilities? What about clutch? What about all the nuances of the real game that's absent in the virtual one?

I think they'll go full NBA Jam and make an NBAWatch/Rocket NBA game. That's the only way it'll capture any kind of audience at all. As another poster once said, why not just watch the real NBA instead?

All in all, I'm fully expecting a ridiculous representation of the NBA from this co-venture. Because that's the only way it'll even be viable.

# 59 2_headedmonster @ 02/10/17 03:51 PM

This does very little for me. An awesome mode, done at a diminutive scale i, in all likelihood, wont even get to play.

# 60 Leasim96 @ 02/10/17 04:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jax01


	And that is the dilemma, or I'm just speculating. Probably the best pro-am players (high bball iq, hella stick skills, etc) I know, don't have YT channels. Smoove don't even play pro-am, he's an offline guy I think. The learning curve from offline to elite pro-am is different. If you've been playing vs CPU or with CPU teammates, it's gonna be different playing vs humans who are all 96 ovr with 40 badges and plenty of games practicing together.

Indeed - but just imagine it though - this gives youtubers easy content to make - them talking about how they prepare/ what goes on behind the scenes = lots of exposure for the league. I mean - competitive gaming i'd say it's something that a lot of people are interested in / would like to take part in. Since a lot of people connect with certain youtubers, I could picture youtubers being the face of teams and making extra content centered around it. Their fan bases rooting for them and such. Rivarlys between fan bases. Stuff like that.

It doesn't even have to be ALL youtubers, just one or 2 in every team gives this whole thing A LOT of exposure. As for pro am, i don't think it's that complicated honestly. In one week of team coordination at a pro level (whatever that may mean according to the competition) , they could all probably get a hang of it. 2k is not like other games where skill actually comes into account IMO. It always has some sort of "stats" bail out at the end of the day. What usually takes the most skill is general basketball recognition - running correct plays - knowing when to pass/ and being willing to - and shot recognition. And of course knowing how to play team defense. If they're gonna train for this, i don't think it'll take that long since they will be concentrated on such probably. I wonder if they'll have a pre-season for practice. It'll be interesting.

It would be cool to see legit 2k expert players (although honestly i can just picture players using exploits/cheesy moves - and stats bailing them out - aka Broken HOF badges). I can't legit picture players being really good outside of that. Because that's what usually happens. Either theirs an OP Build - or a Broken aspect of the game someone is exploiting. Outside of that i don't think i would see much difference between players? it'll be interesting from that aspect.

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