Despite the 2023/24 NBA season coming to an end (with the Boston Celtics claiming victory for the first time since 2008), the news cycle surrounding The Association is far from silent. Typically, in the months after the conclusion of a season, coverage of the premier basketball league slows to a trickle, only seeing upticks on significant occasions such asDraft Night and the start of NBA free agency. This year, however, things are a little different. There are a series of firsts that demand rapt attention from diehard fans and casuals alike – most notably the Los Angeles Lakers' selection of Bronny James with the 55th pick in the draft – andNBA 2Kwould be remiss not to take advantage of this once-in-a-lifetime event.
The NBA offseason has always been dramatic. Teams and star players alike reassess their goals for the upcoming year, sometimes resulting in huge trades and free agency signings. Kevin Durant’s move to the Bay Area in 2016 immediately comes to mind, and while an event of similar scale hasn’t occurred yet this season, it’s already seen its fair share of drama. The Golden State Warriors' dynastic trio has gone through a painful divorce with Klay Thompson moving to the Dallas Mavericks, and Paul George has swapped the LA Clippers colors for a partnership with Joel Embiid. However, in the midst of ending eras, Bronny James' rookie season providesNBA 2Kwith a unique opportunity to feature him on the cover alongside his dad.
NBA 2K Should Take Advantage of Bronny James' Draft Selection in the Near Future
Whenever Draft Night rolls around, the talk of the town is typically centered around the next number-one pick, who bears responsibility for turning the fortunes of a poor team around on his young shoulders. Victor Wembanyama’s unicorn status was all any fan or analyst could talk about last year, but that’s not the case this time around. Zaccharie Risacher’s selection by the Atlanta Hawks was overshadowed by the prospect of a father and son playing together for the first time in NBA history, with Bronny James – son ofthe NBA’s all-time leading scorer LeBron Jamesand arguably its best-ever player – up for selection.
The possibility birthed tons of discourse in the days leading up to and after the Draft, with many expressing concerns about nepotism and theLakers' drive to be among the best NBA teams. All that aside, the Lakers' selection has proven to be a shrewd business decision, with the franchise selling over 500,000 Bronny James #9 jerseys, shattering LeBron’s previous record and climbing higher each day. The success of the draft pick – at least commercially – is too good of an opportunity forNBA 2Kto pass up on.
NBA 2K26 Could Kill Two Birds with One Stone with the James Family
Few elements of theNBA 2Kfranchise gather more interest than its cover star, and it’s paramount for 2K Games to nail this detail with every new iteration.The face of the brand inNBA2K25might not be official yet, but there’s reason to believe that it’ll be either Anthony Edwards, who enjoyed a meteoric rise in popularity towards the end of the season, or Jayson Tatum. As such, finding the best time for the James father-son duo to grace its cover is a puzzle the franchise must get right to take advantage of this rare phenomenon.
For example,NBA 2K24was the perfect opportunity to honor Kobe Bryantnearly four years after his death, as his jersey number lined up with the year. The obvious play for 2K Games would be to wait for LeBron James' farewell tour, which would presumably fall in the 2025/26 season if his newly inked two-year contract is to be his last. Donning the duo as the faces of the brand for2K25would have leveraged the hype from Bronny’s draft, but since that option may be out of reach with the Celtics winning a record-breaking 18th title, doing so in2K26as a way of saying goodbye to the game’s longest-tenured player would be a nice (and commercially justified) gesture.
NBA 2K24
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