Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Blazers NBA 2K14 Ratings

Today, the rankings come out for NBA 2K14.  Straight from the Blazers' Facebook page (Casey Holdahl), here are the ranks for the Blazers:

Player  Rating   IN    OUT  PER D  POST D  HNDL  REB   IQ 
L. Aldridge 84 A C+ D+ B- D+ B- A-
D. Lillard 84 C+ A- B F A D- A-
M. Williams 78 C A B+ D- B D- B+
N. Batum 78 C+ B- B+ C+ C- C- B+
W. Matthews 77 C+ B A D C D- B+
T. Robinson 74 B F C C+ D- B+ C+
C. McCollum 74 C+ B+ C+ F B- D- B-
D. Wright 72 C C+ B- D+ C C B
R. Lopez 68 C+ F D- B+ F C B-
E. Watson 67 D+ C+ B F A- D C
A. Crabbe 64 C B+ C+ D- C D+ C
J. Freeland 63 C+ D+ D- C- D B C-
V. Claver 61 C B- D+ C- D+ D+ C
W. Barton 58 C- D+ C+ F C+ C- D
M. Leonard 58 D+ F D- B- F C C-


Analysis:

Aldridge is ranked too low at 84.  He is a top 3 PF in the game, but is likely ranked behind Kevin Love and Blake Griffin- I'd take Aldridge over Griffin personally, but these are the 3 best PF's in the game right now.  Offensively, he is dominant, as indicated by his A grade for inside scoring.  Defensively, he is underrated, where his B- grade should be closer to a B+.  While he rebounding is not great, we are still talking about a guy who averaged 9 per game, and the B- rating may be slightly on the low side.

Damian Lillard was graded nicely by the 2K crew, tied for Aldridge for tops on the team with an 84 grade.  His outside scoring, IQ and handle grades will lead to impressive stats over game simulations, and his defense may be slightly overrated at a B grade.  Nic Batum, graded as a 78, and Wesley Matthews, graded as a 77, are in similar spots as in last year's game.  Doesn't that seem accurate?  Batum is inconsistent, but has all of the tools to put together a 16-5-5 season.  Given all scores in the C range or higher, this is reflected.  Matthews is given credit for being the best perimeter defender on the team.  While Batum has his pundits, Matthews is the best Blazer to be thrown on a Kobe Bryant or a James Harden.  His outside shooting score is high, and his status in the game seems accurate.

After those four players, the ratings need to be questioned.  Does anyone really believe Mo Williams is worthy of a 78 rating?  Veteran players have been comically overrated over the last 3-5 years in 2K's NBA series, and it appears that this will be a similar situation.  No one can deny Williams ability to shoot from range- an A grade- but it is nearly shocking to see him rated as a B+ perimeter defender.  Last season Williams posted a pedestrian 111 defensive rating.  That earns a B+?  Like Williams, Earl Watson- graded as a 67- is overrated.  Watson seems like a solid candidate to start the season on IR, and to see him ranked as the team's 10th best player- and 9 points better than Meyers Leonard (more to come) is a mistake.  Watson should be graded as a 60 at best (though, in true Blazer fan colors, I hope I am wrong!)

If the ratings of Thomas Robinson, Robin Lopez, Dorell Wright and CJ McCollum prove to be accurate, the Blazers did an awesome job of improving their bench (I, again, agree that the team did).  Robinson may be optimistically graded, but he is still a top 5 pick oozing with potential, and he could be the best rebounder on the team- just as 2K ranks him.  Robin Lopez is graded as the team's best post defender, but has a shockingly accurate C rating for rebounding.  Dorell Wright is the likely sixth man to start the year for Rip City, and is known for his ability to stretch the defense with his accurate 3 point shot (37.5% last year over 361 attempts).  He is graded as a C+ for outside shooting, which is puzzling, especially given Victor Claver (28% last year over 87 attempts) is rated as a B-.  Did 2K do their homework on this one?  CJ McCollum, the rookie who Portland selected at 10 in the draft, grades as a 74, which is 4 points higher than Lillard was initially graded as a rookie last year.  This shows 2K thinks McCollum is NBA ready, and with the outside shot (B+) to stretch the defenses and earn minutes.  At a 74 though, is he really only three points worse overall than Wesley Matthews?

The end of the bench is shockingly similar to last year's ratings.  Did 2K review these again?  Apparently they thought no one would notice, as Joel Freeland is still rated as a 63 despite an underwhelming rookie campaign, and Meyers Leonard is given a 58 rating, and poor offensive grades despite showing potential in that area.  Barton and Claver's scores are reminiscent of last year's game, and Crabbe- a rookie- is given a 64 grade.  No doubt shooting in video games is a worthy attribute, but he will be struggling to find minutes, especially at the start of the year.

Overall, 2K did a decent job with their ratings- some better than others.  The actual game 2K puts out is always worth the money, having improved the game noticeably over the past few years.  I will be a consumer in the game, and realize that, given online status in the game, ratings can fluctuate throughout the season.  That said, if I were giving the Blazers overall ratings for NBA 2K14, they would look like this:

Lamarcus Aldridge: 88
Damian Lillard: 84
Nicolas Batum: 79
Wesley Matthews: 78
Mo Williams: 73
Dorell Wright: 73
Thomas Robinson: 70
Robin Lopez: 69
CJ McCollum: 68
Victor Claver: 65
Meyers Leonard: 64
Allan Crabbe: 61
Earl Watson: 60
Joel Freeland: 60
Will Barton: 57

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