Key Takeaways European players dominate top rankings in NBA 2K25, with WNBA star A’ja Wilson boasting the highest overall rating.
2K focuses on integrating off-court elements into the game to enhance user experience, ignite passion for basketball, and promote inclusivity.
Ronnie Singh, aka Ronnie 2K, believes NBA 2K acts as an educational tool for global players and real NBA players to understand the game better.
With the widely anticipated launch of NBA 2K25 – 2K’s flagship basketball game – now just mere days away, GIVEMESPORT was given the opportunity to fly out to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts to discuss with Ronnie Singh – more commonly known as Ronnie 2K – all things 2K25, while also having the chance to try out the latest updates and newest game modes before its global release on September 6.
International Players Top the Ranks
Top 3 rated NBA players in 2K25 are European
The NBA has seen a surge of European talent entering the league over the last decade, and now, they are making their mark as some of the league’s most dominant players.
Picking up his third MVP title in four years, it comes as no surprise that Denver Nuggets superstar Nikola Jokic comes into NBA 2K25 as the highest-ranked player with a 97 overall. However, he is tied for that rating with Luka Dončić and Giannis Antetokounmpo , with Oklahoma City Thunder and Team Canada guard, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander , and Joel Embiid rounding out the top five, each with a 96 overall rating.
Future Hall-of-Famers LeBron James and Stephen Curry each come into the game tied with 95 overall ratings, each down one from last year, while other Team USA giant Kevin Durant sits in 10th place with a 94 overall rating.
But despite Jokić putting up another stellar display in the 2023-24 campaign, where he averaged a triple-double 26.4 points, 12.4 rebounds and 9.0 assists per game, it is WNBA superstar A’ja Wilson who trumps them all. The back-to-back champion with the Las Vegas Aces enters the game as the highest-ranked player with a 99 overall rating, the first WNBA player to achieve such a feat.
Coming off a summer in which she helped lead Team USA to gold at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games , this year’s cover athlete is currently on course to pick up what would be her third WNBA MVP honors, averaging a double-double 27.5 points, 12.0 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.9 steals and 2.7 blocks per game, as the 2023-24 campaign reaches its crescendo.
The biggest upgrade, though, goes to San Antonio Spurs , and Team France sensation, Victor Wembanyama , who, last year, became the highest-ranked rookie the game has recorded since it changed its rating system over a decade ago when he was given an 84 overall.
The 20-year-old phenom then made a jump of seven ratings to be ranked 18th overall in the game with a 91 overall rating, leapfrogging All-Stars Tyrese Haliburton and Ja Morant , among others, while he sits fractionally behind established veterans like Kawhi Leonard (92), Kyrie Irving (92), and last season’s NBA Finals MVP, Jaylen Brown (92).
Wembanyama’s rating sees him make history again by becoming the highest-rated second-year player in history, and for a player who was unanimously voted Rookie of the Year after producing 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.2 steals and a league-leading 3.6 blocks, it is fully deserved.
Growth of NBA Is ‘By Product’ of 2K
2K feel they are ‘more than just a game’
Over the last few years, 2K has made the effort to integrate off-court elements into the game, such as fashion and music, to enhance the overall user experience.
This is mainly showcased in the MyCAREER option, where players can shop around ‘The City’ to get some of the most hyped items on the market, as well as style their MyPLAYER out in gear from traditional sportswear brands such as Nike, Adidas and New Balance.
Likewise, each iteration brings with it a new soundtrack that players will hear as they explore the game, while in past iterations, some of the most well-known artists have been scanned into the game, such as that of J. Cole.
For Ronnie 2K, combining all of these elements is key to igniting interest in basketball as a whole, and as such, 2K’s Digital Marketing Director really believes that 2K has played its part in promoting interest in the game worldwide.
“I’ve definitely believed in the growth of the NBA as a byproduct of us. But I think that we are more than just a game now, and we really mean a lot to consumers that love to play the life of something. And in our case, it’s a basketball game. But there are so many elements to what happens on the court and then off the court. And I think that we’ve really kind of connected with a fan base that’s thinking about how their favorite player is doing, and wanting to be their favorite player.”
Furthermore, 2K25 has taken initiative from the successful Olympic Games, where Team USA, spearheaded by ‘The Avengers’ – James, Curry and Durant – won their fifth consecutive gold medal after defeating Wembanyama and Team France in the gold medal match, by bringing FIBA courts to the game.
The option to play international games will be available in MyCAREER in the ‘Heart of a Dynasty’ backstory, where players have the chance to go through high school, college, and the FIBA Under-19 World Cup before they try their hand at making it to the NBA, while players can play as *that* Team USA in straight from ‘Quick Play’.
NBA 2K As An ‘Educational Device’ To Promote International Growth
Even the NBA stars use the game to learn about how they can develop on-court
The NBA is one of the world’s most recognized leagues, attracting more than 2 billion social media followers among its 30 teams and the most well-known players, according to a study by the Sports Business Journal, equating that to about one in every eight people in the world.
The same report, conducted earlier this year, also estimates that the NBA has one of the youngest, and most diverse, fan bases, when compared to other North American Sports leagues, such as the NHL and MLB. Whether NBA 2K has played some role in that is uncertain, but it is certainly not outlandish to think so.
Speaking earlier on in the year in a hotel in Paris, France, Singh alluded to how he felt 2K has been successfully implemented as an educational tool for not just global players to gain a wider understanding about the game, and the league in its entirety, but also to help real NBA players learn more about themselves, and their opponents.
“2K has been an educational device. It’s been quoted by [Dallas Mavericks owner] Mark Cuban, and a lot of the players that they learn about the game, through the video game. And so, any way that we can help kind of grow the game is obviously going to be beneficial to both parties. We’re focused on leveraging 2K as an educational device, especially in international regions, where they’re maybe less knowledgeable on the sport.”
Ronnie 2K further goes on to discuss how he has had interactions with fans from across the globe who have used various iterations of 2K to learn more about what is going on in the NBA, which showcases just how much impact the game has on not just consumers, but also the league itself.
“It’s like, how can we, within the facility of our game, provide that kind of information? I’ve had so many engagements [internationally] where people will come up to me and know me from the video game, and know about what we have going on even more so than they know about what’s happening in the traditional game, which I think is really, really fascinating, and a really good reminder to us that this game means so much to so many people.”
Beginner Player? No Problem
The ‘Learn 2K’ mode is to help drive inclusivity by offering beginner players the chance to learn the fundamentals
One standout feature new to 2K25 is the ‘Learn 2K’ mode, where beginner players, and casual players that want to develop their knowledge and gameplay even more, have the chance to work through various tutorials that range from basic to advanced shooting mechanics, dribbling, post-up play and defense.
This may come as some relief to players, with 2K25 having gone to great lengths to ensure that their graphics and gameplay are as close-to-life as possible, and have added over 9,000 new ProPlay animations, among a plethora of dribbling animations and signature shots that all exceed 1,000 new varieties to ensure that is the case.
But for Ronnie 2K, it’s all about encouraging beginners, but simultaneously rewarding players who learn to step up the ranks.
“It starts with the Risk-Reward feature. We want to reward people for advancing in the game and being a little bit better. But the best way that we are trying to drive that is through the ‘Learn 2K’ feature, and being able to take your game to another level.”
Basically, any skill or department in which a player feels they need to work on, they can do so. There’s even a film room where players can go to watch videos on how to perform moves in order to level-up their game.
As players become more confident, they can then adjust their ‘Shot Timing Profile’, which sees players able to customize whether they want to have “low or high risk-reward”, with the upper end seeing more skilled players rewarded for mastering the timing of their shots.
“If you want to be a dribble god, you can learn the latter stages of dribbling in that game and figure out how to use the stick to your advantage. But, if you’re just coming into the experience, you can learn to dribble and take care of the basketball, and post-up etc. We’re trying to be as inclusive as possible to get people to feel like they can play at any level that they want and feel like they are being rewarded for their good basketball play.”
Inclusivity has been a mainstay of NBA 2K’s drive to bring in more fans – and keep them hooked – to the game, and Ronnie 2K believes 2K25 will help promote that even more due to its new accommodating features.
“We find the digital space to be the most inclusive, and we give our players the opportunity to play from anywhere, and the ability to help the NBA grow their game internationally starts with being able to play it digitally, and anywhere in the world.”
There are only a few days left to pre-order NBA and to play the game three days early ahead of its release on September 6th 2024, so why not read more about the game’s latest installment, and secure your copy from 2K right here.