NBA 2K14 Roster Analysis 12/24/13

It's been a month since my last update, as it's been a busy holiday season.  That's okay though, as aside from adjustments surrounding around the Rudy Gay trade, 2K hasn't made many updates either.

For a more comprehensive look at how far behind 2K's rosters are...
The NBA 2K14 Living Checklist - EVERYTHING wrong with NBA 2K14's roster (includes ratings)

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PLAYERS ON THE WRONG TEAMS

Kendall Marshall - Free Agents (signed with Lakers 12/20)

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RATING EDITS

Jannero Pargo (Bobcats)
66 Overall (+1)
88 Stamina (+10)

Kyrie Irving (Cavaliers)
89 Overall (+2)
76 SIT (+51)

DeAndre Jordan (Clippers)
74 Overall (+1)
42 FT (+4)

Enes Kanter (Jazz)
69 Overall (+1)
83 Durability (+8)

Rudy Gay (Kings)
84 Overall (-2)
73 Medium (-6)
82 OffAwr (-4)
70 Consistency (-15)

Isaiah Thomas (Kings)
81 Overall (+6)
84 Close (+2)
77 Medium (+8)
86 3pt (+4)
89 Layup (+7)
66 Traffic (+7)
77 Pass (+3)
77 Steal (+11)
86 Hands (+3)
78 OffAwr (+6)
64 DefAwr (+8)
70 Consistency (+30)
99 Stamina (+1)
50 Strength (+2)
92 Hustle (+4)
95 Durability (+5)
82 Potential (+3)
65 Emotion (+5)

Monta Ellis (Mavericks)
84 Overall (+2)
80 Medium (+2)
80 3pt (+6)
84 FT (+7)
82 SOD (+2)
63 DefAwr (+3)
75 Consistency (+10)

DeMar DeRozan (Raptors)
79 Overall (+2)
78 3pt (+8)
81 FT (-2)
68 SOD (+3)
79 Handle (+3)
62 Security (+3)
49 Pass (+4)
46 DefReb (+4)
82 OffAwr (+2)
97 Stamina (+3)
92 Durability (+20)

LaMarcus Aldridge (Trail Blazers)
87 Overall (+3)
79 FT (-2)
94 Fade (+3)
85 Hook (+4)
65 SOD (+2)
61 Security (+3)
46 Pass (+6)
65 Steal (+5)
89 Hands (+3)
60 OBD (+4)
74 OffReb (+2)
84 DefReb (+6)
74 DefPost (+2)
91 OffAwr (+5)
78 DefAwr (+2)
90 Consistency (+5)
86 Stamina (+3)
62 Speed (+2)
68 Strength (+2)
90 Durability (+5)
91 Potential (+3)

Jermaine O'Neal (Warriors)
72 Overall (-1)
85 Block (-11)

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ADDED PLAYERS

Lorenzo Brown (65/PG) - 76ers
Key Ratings: 88 Handle, 81 Security, 78 Pass, 77 OBD, 84 Speed

Ryan Kelly (61/PF) - Lakers
Key Ratings: 78 3pt, 81 FT, 66 Block, 71 DefReb, 52 Speed

Ognjen Kuzmic (C) - Warriors
Key Ratings: 68 Dunk, 81 Block, 78 OffReb, 66 DefAwr

MISSING PLAYERS - 3
Alexis Ajinca (C) - Hornets
Chris Smith (PG) - Knicks - GUARANTEED (signed 9/10/13)
Robert Covington (PF) - Rockets - GUARANTEED (signed 7/15/13)

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INCORRECT INJURIES
Michael Beasley (75/SF) - Heat (Played 12/23)

MISSING INJURIES
Metta World Peace (74/SF) - Knicks (Out since 12/18)
Jordan Farmar (69/PG) - Lakers (Out since 12/1)
Andrei Kirilenko (77/SF) - Nets (Out since 11/8)
Omer Asik (71/C) - Rockets (Out since 12/2)

RECOVERED FROM INJURY
Jimmy Butler (76/SG) - Bulls
Carrick Felix (68/SG) - Cavaliers
Tyson Chandler (77/C) - Knicks
Jordan Farmar (69/PG) - Lakers
Tobias Harris (75/SF) - Magic
Brandan Wright (68/C) - Mavericks
Paul Pierce (84/SF) - Nets
Andrei Kirilenko (77/SF) - Nets
Danny Granger (80/SF) - Pacers
Anthony Davis (85/PF) - Pelicans
Darius Miller (64/SF) - Pelicans
Andre Iguodala (86/SF) - Warriors
Toney Douglas (74/PG) - Warriors
Trevor Ariza (78/SF) - Wizards
Otto Porter (74/SF) - Wizards
Chris Singleton (67/PF) - Wizards

INJURED LIST (Bold denotes new injuries)
Jason Richardson (73/SG) - 76ers
Nerlens Noel (71/C) - 76ers (OUT FOR SEASON)
Arnett Moultrie (60/PF) - 76ers
Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (78/SF) - Bobcats
Jeff Taylor (65/SF) - Bobcats (OUT FOR SEASON)
Brendan Haywood (64/C) - Bobcats
Larry Sanders (79/C) - Bucks
Ersan Ilyasova (73/PF) - Bucks
Carlos Delfino (69/SF) - Bucks
Zaza Pachulia (65/C) - Bucks
Derrick Rose (90/PG) - Bulls (OUT FOR SEASON)
Rajon Rondo (90/PG) - Celtics
J.J. Redick (74/SG) - Clippers
Reggie Bullock (64/SG) - Clippers
Maalik Wayns (63/PG) - Clippers
Marc Gasol (82/C) - Grizzlies
Quincy Pondexter (66/SF) - Grizzlies (OUT FOR SEASON)
Michael Beasley (75/SF) - Heat
Carl Landry (76/PF) - Kings
Raymond Felton (79/PG) - Knicks
Kenyon Martin (73/PF) - Knicks
Pablo Prigioni (66/PG) - Knicks
Kobe Bryant (93/SG) - Lakers
Steve Nash (80/PG) - Lakers
Steve Blake (69/PG) - Lakers
Devin Harris (76/PG) - Mavericks
Brook Lopez (80/C) - Nets (OUT FOR SEASON)
Danilo Gallinari (76/SF) - Nuggets
JaVale McGee (75/C) - Nuggets
Greg Stiemsma (62/C) - Pelicans
Patrick Beverley (73/PG) Rockets
Greg Smith (61/PF) - Rockets
Emeka Okafor (77/C) - Suns
Chase Budinger (69/SF) - Timberwolves
Ronny Turiaf (64/C) - Timberwolves
C.J. McCollum (72/SG) - Trail Blazers
Jermaine O'Neal (72/C) - Warriors
Festus Ezeli (63/C) - Warriors
Ognjen Kuzmic (60/C) - Warriors
Al Harrington (72/PF) - Wizards
Glen Rice Jr (66/SG) - Wizards

Marcus Camby (71/C) - Free Agents

NBA 2K14 Roster Analysis 11/26/13 - Featuring the worst rating edit in 2K history

Get ready for a facepalm.

For a more comprehensive look at how far behind 2K's rosters are...
The NBA 2K14 Living Checklist - EVERYTHING wrong with NBA 2K14's roster

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PLAYERS ON THE WRONG TEAMS

Luc Mbah a Moute (71/SF) - Kings (traded to Timberwolves 11/26)
Derrick Williams (72/PF) - Timberwolves (traded to Kings 11/26)

2K uploaded THREE rosters on 2K Share (4:14am, 7:15am, 1:55pm).

None of them included this trade.

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RATING EDITS

Evan Turner (76ers)
80 Overall (+5)
72 3pt (-9)
82 FT (+8)
61 Pass (+3)
64 Steal (+3)
52 OffReb (+9)
75 DefReb (+3)
79 OffAwr (+12)
63 DefAwr (+4)
75 Consistency (+45)

Ironically enough, Turner finally deserves the ratings 2K gave him all of last season.
(But seriously guys, 30 Consistency?)

Derrick Rose (Bulls)
90 Overall (-1)
94 OffAwr (-5)
65 Consistency (-5)
68 Durability (-14)

2K raised Rose's durability rating (11/20 roster) two days before his season-ending knee injury.

Good call.

Kyrie Irving (Cavaliers)
87 Overall (-2)
25 Shoot In Traffic (-51)

This player killing typo/glitch/error sums up what a laughingstock 2K's rosters have been the past 10 years.  How do you butcher the Cavaliers' best player and not even notice?  This surely couldn't have been intentional, but then you never really know with 2K Sports and the 2K Insider.  This is the definition of incompetence right here.

Good luck using Kyrie and the Cavs online now!  Curious minds will now get to playtest a player with 95 Layup, Finisher/Acrobat, and the lowest possible SIT!

Anthony Bennett (Cavaliers)
73 Overall (-3)
61 3pt (-8)
72 OffPost (-3)
68 DefPost (-2)
68 OffAwr (-5)
57 DefAwr (-4)
30 Consistency (-15)

The first overall pick of the 2013 draft is off to the worst start of any #1 pick in NBA history.

Paul George (Pacers)
91 Overall (+2)
92 Inside (+4)
94 Layup (+4)
89 Dunk (+4)
79 SOD (+1)
92 OffAwr (+2)
90 DefAwr (+4)
90 Consistency (+5)
97 Stamina (+2)
86 Speed (+2)
98 Potential (+3)

Is this the 3rd or 4th Paul George edit of the season?  I've lost count.  It'd be great if 2K got around to the other 400-or-so NBA players.

Anthony Davis (Pelicans)
85 Overall (+6)
81 Close (+4)
68 Medium (+4)
78 FT (+3)
93 Block (+4)
76 Steal (+3)
72 OBD (+2)
89 OffReb (+7)
84 DefReb (+1)
71 OffPost (+3) - Saw it coming; completely unwarranted. 0.55 PPP this year, 0.53 last year (BAD).
85 DefPost (+3)
73 OffAwr (+18)
89 DefAwr (+4)
75 Consistency (+20)
50 Strength (+3)
96 Potential (+3)

Believe it or not, he's still not the top rated player on the Pelicans.  Jrue Holiday maintains his absurd 88 Overall rating.

James Harden (Rockets)
87 Overall (-1)
70 OBD (-7)
68 DefAwr (-7)
90 Consistency (+5)

Harden's defense has been the gift that keeps on giffing (though in fairness it's only his off-ball defense i.e. awareness, he's been fine on-ball.

Eric Bledsoe (Suns)
84 Overall (+2)
65 Medium (+4)
76 3pt (-5)
81 FT (+2)
70 Shoot In Traffic (+2)
80 Pass (+5)
84 Steal (-8)
78 OffAwr (+10)
80 Consistency (+5)
59 Strength (+8)
85 Potential (+1)

Pretty amusing that Bledsoe hasn't played in 11 days and got a ratings boost.

P.J. Tucker (Suns)
69 Overall (+3)
79 3pt (+44)

Long overdue. Tucker shot 22-70 (31%) from 3pt range last year.  It took an efficiency explosion (20-39 shooting, 51%) for 2K to notice.

Klay Thompson (Warriors)
76 Overall (+1)
90 3pt (+4)

How many fans at home would rather have J.R. Smith (84), Eric Gordon (83), O.J. Mayo (82), Jason Terry (77), Dion Waiters (76), or Ben Gordon (76) than Klay Thompson?  What's that?  You mean to tell me NONE of you?

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ADDED PLAYERS

Matthew Dellavedova (66/PG) - Cavaliers
Key Ratings: 75 3pt, 84 FT, 84 Handle, 78 Pass, 48 DefAwr, 92 Stamina, 95 Hustle

Henry Sims (60/C) - Cavaliers
Key Ratings: 71 Inside, 65 Dunk, 55 Block, 77 OffReb

Toure Murry (65/PG) - Knicks
Key Ratings: 75 3pt, 68 Dunk, 80 Handle, 61 Pass, 70 Steal, 51 OffReb, 60 DefReb, 73 DefAwr

MISSING PLAYERS - 8
Lorenzo Brown (PG) - 76ers
James Southerland (SF) - Bobcats
Chris Smith (PG) - Knicks - GUARANTEED (signed 9/10/13)
Elias Harris (PF) - Lakers
Ryan Kelly (PF) - Lakers
Robert Covington (PF) - Rockets - GUARANTEED (signed 7/15/13)
Ognjen Kuzmic (C) - Warriors - GUARANTEED (signed 9/27/13)
Dewayne Dedmon (C) - Warriors
Arinze Onuaku (C) - Free Agent

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INCORRECT INJURIES
Tobias Harris (75/SF) - Magic (Returned 11/24)
Shane Larkin (70/PG) - Mavericks (Returned 11/18) - Healthy in last week's roster!

MISSING INJURIES
Matt Barnes (75/SF) - Clippers (Last played 11/18)
Raymond Felton (79/PG) - Knicks (Last played 11/16)
Deron Williams (88/PG) - Nets (Last played 11/20)
Brook Lopez (80/C) - Nets (Last played 11/15)
Jason Terry (77/SG) - Nets (Last played 11/20)
Chauncey Billups (81/PG) - Pistons (Last played 11/12)
Eric Bledsoe (84/PG) - Suns (Last played 11/15)

What's the point of injuries if 2K isn't going to keep up?  How did they screw up Larkin?  The rosters are just getting sloppy now despite less time being spent on them than ever before.

RECOVERED FROM INJURY
Ersan Ilyasova (73/PF) - Bucks
Luke Ridnour (70/PG) - Bucks
Trey Burke (73/PG) - Jazz
Glen Davis (75/PF) - Magic

INJURED LIST (Bold denotes new injuries)
Jason Richardson (73/SG) - 76ers
Nerlens Noel (71/C) - 76ers
Arnett Moultrie (60/PF) - 76ers
Brendan Haywood (64/C) - Bobcats
Larry Sanders (79/C) - Bucks
Derrick Rose (90/PG) - Bulls
Jimmy Butler (76/SG) - Bulls
Carrick Felix (68/SG) - Cavaliers
Rajon Rondo (90/PG) - Celtics
Maalik Wayns (63/PG) - Clippers
Marc Gasol (82/C) - Grizzlies
Carl Landry (76/PF) - Kings
Kobe Bryant (93/SG) - Lakers
Steve Nash (80/PG) - Lakers
Tobias Harris (75/SF) - Magic
Devin Harris (76/PG) - Mavericks
Brandan Wright (68/C) - Mavericks
Andrei Kirilenko (77/SF) - Nets
Danilo Gallinari (76/SF) - Nuggets
Danny Granger (80/SF) - Pacers
Darius Miller (64/SF) - Pelicans
Greg Stiemsma (62/C) - Pelicans
Greg Smith (61/PF) - Rockets
Emeka Okafor (77/C) - Suns
Chase Budinger (69/SF) - Timberwolves
C.J. McCollum (72/SG) - Trail Blazers
Andre Iguodala (86/SF) - Warriors
Toney Douglas (74/PG) - Warriors
Jermaine O'Neal (73/C) - Warriors
Festus Ezeli (63/C) - Warriors
Trevor Ariza (78/SF) - Wizards
Otto Porter (74/SF) - Wizards
Al Harrington (72/PF) - Wizards
Chris Singleton (67/PF) - Wizards
Marcus Camby (71/C) - Free Agents

NBA 2K14 Roster Analysis 11/20/13 - Six more players added

2K Sports added 6 more players to their roster, and gave us two player rating edits that exemplify the companies minimalist approach.

2K also got around to updating injuries that had been out-dated for a week.  However, in their typical bumbling fashion they finally got around to injuring Luke Ridnour yet this came FIVE DAYS after he RETURNED from his injury.

For a more comprehensive look at how far behind 2K's rosters are...
The NBA 2K14 Living Checklist - EVERYTHING wrong with NBA 2K14's roster

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ADDED PLAYERS
Brandon Davies (65/PF) - 76ers
Hollis Thompson (58/SF) - 76ers
Miroslav Raduljica (56/C) - Bucks
Dwight Buycks (71/PG) - Raptors
Julyan Stone (63/PG) - Raptors
Robbie Hummel (58/SF) - Timberwolves

Brandon Davies is a decent backup PF/C that essentially replaced Kwame Brown on the Sixer roster. 83 Inside (Standing Layup), 71 Dunk, 70 SIT, and a team-high 74 PostOff make him a useful enough offensive player. He is also an average rebounder on a team otherwise devoid of size.

Hollis Thompson has some use as a 3pt shooter; his 81 3pt ties with Evan Turner for best on the team. 71 Dunk and 74 Medium are useful, but his rebounding/defense is atrocious.

Miroslav Raduljica is the definition of a stiff, though his 69 PostOff actually leads the team (though this says as much about Zaza Pachulia's poor rating as anything).  On a Bucks team with only 4 healthy bigs, this is really about the only time he'll see some use.

Dwight Buycks is more or less a D.J. Augustin clone rating-wise with a few notable differences. Though Augustin has +1 overall rating, Buycks' 97 Speed and 98 Quickness give him an edge.

Julyan Stone is a big combo guard that will see more time at SG than anything for the Raptors.  He's a weak shooter and doesn't really bring anything to the table beyond a slightly higher Handle rating than Landry Fields.

Robbie Hummel has carved out a backup role with the Timberwolves in the absence of Chase Budinger (6.3 ppg and 4.5 rpg in 21.1 mpg over his last  4 games), but has so many awful ratings that it's detrimental to use him over fellow rookie Shabazz Muhammad.  44 Handle, 49 Layup, 52 Dunk, 49 On-Ball Defense, 41 Steal, 52 Speed, 50 Quickness, and 46 Vertical are pitifully bad ratings for a SF  (rivaled only by Steve Novak).

MISSING PLAYERS - 11
Lorenzo Brown (PG) - 76ers (signed after roster release)
James Southerland (SF) - Bobcats
Matthew Dellavedova (PG) - Cavaliers
Henry Sims (C) - Cavaliers
Chris Smith (PG) - Knicks - GUARANTEED (signed 9/10/13)
Toure Murry (SG) - Knicks
Elias Harris (PF) - Lakers
Ryan Kelly (PF) - Lakers
Robert Covington (PF) - Rockets - GUARANTEED (signed 7/15/13)
Ognjen Kuzmic (C) - Warriors - GUARANTEED (signed 9/27/13)
Dewayne Dedmon (C) - Warriors
Arinze Onuaku (C) - Free Agent

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RATING EDITS

The effort this year has been truly embarrassing.  These changes can barely even be called cosmetic.
The number of rating changes since the game released 51 days ago can be counted on two hands.

Derrick Rose
91 Overall (-1)
70 Consistency (-25)
82 Durability (+12)

Aaron Brooks
76 Overall (-1)
95 Speed (-2)
96 Quickness (-2)

Chris Andersen (previous update)
67 Overall (+1)
42 OffAwr (+5)
50 Consistency (+10)

Kris Humphries (previous update)
72 Overall (-1)
78 Inside (-9)
76 Close (-7)
71 Med (-5)

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INCORRECT INJURIES
Luke Ridnour (70/PG) - Bucks (Has played 2 games since 11/15)

MISSING INJURIES
Brandon Knight (73/PG) - Bucks (Has been out since 11/12)

RECOVERED FROM INJURY
Brandon Knight (73/PG) - Bucks
Louis Williams (79/SG) - Hawks
Gustavo Ayon (64/C) - Hawks
Solomon Jones (52/C) - Magic
Wilson Chandler (81/SF) - Nuggets

INJURED LIST (Bold denotes new injuries)
Jason Richardson (73/SG) - 76ers
Nerlens Noel (71/C) - 76ers
Arnett Moultrie (60/PF) - 76ers
Brendan Haywood (64/C) - Bobcats
Larry Sanders (79/C) - Bucks
Ersan Ilyasova (73/PF) - Bucks
Luke Ridnour (70/PG) - Bucks
Carrick Felix (68/SG) - Cavaliers
Rajon Rondo (90/PG) - Celtics
Maalik Wayns (63/PG) - Clippers
Trey Burke (73/PG) - Jazz
Carl Landry (76/PF) - Kings
Kobe Bryant (93/SG) - Lakers
Steve Nash (80/PG) - Lakers
Devin Harris (76/PG) - Mavericks
Brandan Wright (68/C) - Mavericks
Andrei Kirilenko (77/SF) - Nets
Danilo Gallinari (76/SF) - Nuggets
Danny Granger (80/SF) - Pacers
Darius Miller (64/SF) - Pelicans
Greg Stiemsma (62/C) - Pelicans
Greg Smith (61/PF) - Rockets
Emeka Okafor (77/C) - Suns
Chase Budinger (69/SF) - Timberwolves
C.J. McCollum (72/SG) - Trail Blazers
Toney Douglas (74/PG) - Warriors
Jermaine O'Neal (73/C) - Warriors
Festus Ezeli (63/C) - Warriors
Trevor Ariza (78/SF) - Wizards
Otto Porter (74/SF) - Wizards
Al Harrington (72/PF) - Wizards
Chris Singleton (67/PF) - Wizards
Marcus Camby (71/C) - Free Agents

MISSING INJURIES - 5
Kwame Brown (60/C) - 76ers
Andris Biedrins (63/C) - Jazz
Jeremy Evans (60/PF) - Jazz
Chris Wilcox (66/PF) - Free Agents
Jeremy Tyler (63/PF) - Free Agents

NBA 2K14 Roster Analysis 11/13/13 - Julius Erving pt. 2 + four added players

 Today's NBA 2K roster brings us four additional players: Luigi Datome, Nick Calathes, Dionte Christmas, and Ian Clark, as well as the addition of "Dr. J" Julius Erving to the 1985 Philadelphia 76ers team.

However anytime 2K focuses on one area of the roster it seems they fall behind in others.

Lance Thomas is still a member of the Pelicans despite being waived in favor of Lou Amundson and Josh Childress.  Arnize Onuaku was also waived in real life, decreasing 2K's missing NBA player count to 18.  Jamaal Tinsley was likewise waived by the Jazz (Diante Garrett will likely take his place) but is still on the team.

Steve Nash is still active despite being out indefinitely with his injuries.

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While the big story of the day is Erving's addition to the 1985 team, I also noticed a rating change to his 1977 version.  Previously I had made a big stink about Erving's SOD rating and how it was a gameplay killer.  Turns out 2K heard that and made an adjustment.

Julius Erving - 1977
97 Overall (+1)
81 SOD (+46)

One NBA legend down, 440 NBA players to go, eh?

Julius Erving - 1985
92 Overall (-5)
99 Inside Shot
82 Close Shot (-2)
72 Medium Shot (-1)
68 3pt Shot (+8)
78 Free Throw
96 Layup (-3)
99 Dunk
70 Standing Dunk (-10)
93 Spin Layup (-4)
90 Euro Step Layup (-3)
92 Hop Step Layup (-3)
95 Runner (-3)
93 Step Through (-1)
95 Shoot in Traffic
68 Post Fadeaway (+3)
64 Post Hook (+2)
75 Shoot Off Dribble (-6)
75 Ball Handling (-14)
72 Off-Hand Dribbling (-3)
83 Ball Security (+2)
68 Pass (-2)
77 Block (+1)
86 Steal
89 Hands
79 On-Ball Defense (-9)
68 Offensive Rebound (-1)
55 Defensive Rebound (-18)
42 Post Offense (-18)
70 Post Defense (+2)
92 Offensive Awareness (+1)
92 Defensive Awareness (+1)
88 Consistency (-7)
86 Stamina (-9)
84 Speed (-7)
85 Quickness (-3)
84 Strength
95 Vertical (-4)
82 Hustle (-6)
90 Durability (-5)
97 Potential
60 Emotion (+5)
Signature Skills: Highlight Film, Posterizer, Finisher, Shot Creator, Closer

To be honest I find this version much more realistic and hope that they apply some of the changes (most importantly, the Ball Handling decrease) to the 1977 version since I'm sure that's still the version that would be made available in MyTeam.

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ADDED PLAYERS

Nick Calathes (62/PG) - Grizzlies
Ian Clark (64/SG) - Jazz
Luigi Datome (67/SF) - Pistons
Dionte Christmas (66/SG) - Suns

Luigi Datome was added to the Detroit Pistons, but international basketball fans were quick to point out that Datome, like Vitor Faverani, has the face of Antonis Fotsis (Credit: Sportando).

While the Pistons have been playing Kyle Singler over Datome, Singler is underrated in NBA 2K and Datome rates out as a much better shooter and athlete. Datome will consequently see far more use in online games.

Datome vs Singler
78 Medium (+6)
88 FT(+8)
72 Dunk (+12)
73 Handle (+8)
70 Speed (+4)

Of course I would still run with Kentavious Caldwell-Pope as my backup SF but that's just me!

Nick Calathes is a big PG, capable of playing SG if necessary.  With his 80 pass rating, he has good synergy with shoot-first combo guard Jerryd Bayless.

Dionte Christmas is a slasher with 78 3pt rating which immediately makes him more valuable than Archie Goodwin (58 3pt rating) or P.J. Tucker (35 3pt rating) to most practical Suns players (if any exist).

Ian Clark is a shooter and not much else.  His 84 3pt ranks 3rd highest on the Jazz but with 25 dunk (the lowest among all SGs) you'll be hard pressed to finish with him.  Think of him as John Lucas with worse handle (playing him out of position as a backup PG may not be a bad idea).

MISSING PLAYERS - 15
Hollis Thompson (SF) - 76ers
Brandon Davies (PF) - 76ers
James Southerland (SF) - Bobcats
Miroslav Raduljica (C) - Bucks - GUARANTEED (signed 7/26/13)
Matthew Dellavedova (PG) - Cavaliers
Henry Sims (C) - Cavaliers
Chris Smith (PG) - Knicks
Toure Murry (SG) - Knicks
Elias Harris (PF) - Lakers
Ryan Kelly (PF) - Lakers
Dwight Buycks (PG) - Raptors - GUARANTEED (signed 7/16/13)
Julyan Stone (PG) - Raptors
Robert Covington (PF) - Rockets - GUARANTEED (signed 7/15/13)
Robbie Hummel (SF) - Timberwolves
Ognjen Kuzmic (C) - Warriors - GUARANTEED (signed 9/27/13)

NBA 2K14 Roster Analysis 11/9/13

2K finally added some missing players in their latest roster update, but didn't change much else.  Only one player has had ratings adjusted over the past week.

Check out the video for a more in-depth look at today's roster update.



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RATING CHANGES

DeAndre Jordan
73 Overall (+1)
90 OffReb (+3)
84 DefReb (+2)
65 Consistency (+10)
79 Hustle (+2)

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ADDED PLAYERS

Vitor Faverani (71/C) - Celtics
Paul Pressey (68/PG) - Celtics
Pero Antic (65/C) - Hawks
Gal Mekel (66/PG) - Mavericks

Rating details are available in the embedded video.
It's worth noting that the player faces used are NOT accurate and actually belong to various Euroleague players.
If 2K wasn't going to use original player models, why weren't these players added months ago?

MISSING PLAYERS - 20
Hollis Thompson (SF) - 76ers
Brandon Davies (PF) - 76ers
James Southerland (SF) - Bobcats
Miroslav Raduljica (C) - Bucks - GUARANTEED (signed 7/26/13)
Matthew Dellavedova (PG) - Cavaliers
Henry Sims (C) - Cavaliers
Nick Calathes (PG) - Grizzlies - GUARANTEED (signed 8/20/13)
Ian Clark (SG) - Jazz
Chris Smith (PG) - Knicks
Toure Murry (SG) - Knicks
Elias Harris (PF) - Lakers
Ryan Kelly (PF) - Lakers
Arnize Onuaku (PF) - Pelicans
Luigi Datome (SF) - Pistons - GUARANTEED (signed 7/16/13)
Dwight Buycks (PG) - Raptors - GUARANTEED (signed 7/16/13)
Julyan Stone (PG) - Raptors
Robert Covington (PF) - Rockets - GUARANTEED (signed 7/15/13)
Dionte Christmas (SG) - Suns
Robbie Hummel (SF) - Timberwolves
Ognjen Kuzmic (C) - Warriors - GUARANTEED (signed 9/27/13)

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INCORRECT LINEUPS - 8
Bobcats: Cody Zeller starting over Josh McRoberts (McBob's been starting all season)
Bucks: Luke Ridnour starting over Nate Wolters (Ridnour hasn't even played this season)
Celtics: Gerald Wallace starting over Jordan Crawford
Jazz: Alec Burks and John Lucas starting over Richard Jefferson and Jamaal Tinsley
Knicks: Cole Aldrich starting over Pablo Prigioni
Nuggets: Anthony Randolph starting over Jordan Hamilton
Rockets: Omer Asik starting at PF (should be at C)
Suns: Markieff Morris starting over Channing Frye

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RECOVERED FROM INJURY
Ekpe Udoh (67/C) - Bucks
Tyler Zeller (65/C) - Cavaliers
Brandon Rush (71/SG) - Jazz
Marvin Williams (65/SF) - Jazz
J.R. Smith (84/SG) - Knicks
Tornike Shengelia (59/SF) - Nets
Brandon Jennings (83/PG) - Pistons

INJURED LIST - 32
Jason Richardson (73/SG) - 76ers
Nerlens Noel (71/C) - 76ers
Arnett Moultrie (60/PF) - 76ers
Brendan Haywood (64/C) - Bobcats
Brandon Knight (73/PG) - Bucks
Carlos Delfino (69/SF) - Bucks
Carrick Felix (68/SG) - Cavaliers
Rajon Rondo (90/PG) - Celtics
Maalik Wayns (63/PG) - Clippers
Louis Williams (79/SG) - Hawks
Gustavo Ayon (64/C) - Hawks
Trey Burke (73/PG) - Jazz
Carl Landry (76/PF) - Kings
Tyson Chandler (77/C) - Knicks
Kobe Bryant (93/SG) - Lakers
Tobias Harris (75/SF) - Magic
Glen Davis (75/PF) - Magic
Solomon Jones (52/C) - Magic
Devin Harris (76/PG) - Mavericks
Shane Larkin (70/PG) - Mavericks
Brandan Wright (68/C) - Mavericks
Wilson Chandler (81/SF) - Nuggets
Danilo Gallinari (76/SF) - Nuggets
Danny Granger (80/SF) - Pacers
Darius Miller (64/SF) - Pelicans
Emeka Okafor (77/C) - Suns
Chase Budinger (69/SF) - Timberwolves
C.J. McCollum (72/SG) - Trail Blazers
Festus Ezeli (63/C) - Warriors
Otto Porter (74/SF) - Wizards
Chris Singleton (67/PF) - Wizards
Marcus Camby (71/C) - Free Agents

MISSING INJURIES - 6
Kwame Brown (60/C) - 76ers
Luke Ridnour (70/PG) - Bucks
Andris Biedrins (63/C) - Jazz
Jeremy Evans (60/PF) - Jazz
Leandro Barbosa (70/PG) - Free Agents
Jeremy Tyler (63/PF) - Free Agents

NBA 2K14 Roster Analysis 11/5/13

No ratings changes were made in this 2K update, which served only two purposes.

Re-implementation of Stats Inc's Hot/Cold streaks.
These are incremental boosts applied sporadically across the league.  Only six ratings fall under the umbrella:  3pt, FT, Off/Def Rebound, Block, and Steal.  It bears noting that these are the only ratings that 2K adjusted for their players league-wide between 2K13 and 2K14, which is not a coincidence.  These streaks have minimal effect on the game play and are more cosmetic than anything.  They serve to give the illusion that 2K is actually working hard on the roster, but this is far from the case.

Five weeks into this game's release and we are still missing 24 players, including Celtics starting center Vitor Faverani.  The missing players and numerous bad ratings that plague 2K's roster will transfer over to next-gen.  Buyer beware.

Injury Update (but not really)
2K is notorious for mailing in their updates by merely adjusting injuries, a feature they often can't get right.  Russell Westbrook notably returned from injury on 11/3 but is still sidelined in a roster dated 11/5.  Are you kidding me? Oversights like this are simply unacceptable, and will likewise transfer to next-gen gaming. 2K Sports has proven over the years that they have merely a casual interest in the NBA, and that making NBA video games is nothing more than a job for them.  New technology isn't going to improve their mindset.

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NEW INJURIES
Brandon Knight (73/PG) - Bucks
Carlos Delfino (69/SF) - Bucks
Glen Davis (75/PF) - Magic
Solomon Jones (52/C) - Magic
Wilson Chandler (81/SF) - Nuggets
Patrick Beverley (73/PG) - Rockets
Otto Porter (74/SF) - Wizards

INCORRECT INJURIES
Russell Westbrook (91/PG) - Thunder

NBA 2K14 Roster Analysis 11/1/13

2K Sports released another roster update and early on they seem to have committed to small, semi-daily updates.  Let's hope they eventually get to editing more than one player per update, though.

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RATING CHANGES

Michael Carter-Williams
73 Overall (+4)
71 Med (+5)
70 3pt (+10)
83 Pass (+3)
82 Steal (+5)
74 OffAwr (+4)
76 DefAwr (+5)
71 Hustle (+15)
89 Potential (+4)

MCW had one of the best debuts for a rookie in recent memory and 2K jumped on that right away.  MCW has already been edited by 2K twice already; they had him at a lowly 61 overall in their default roster, which looks all the more foolish now than it did one month ago.  Expect to see more edits in the near future as he's currently 6-11 from 3pt through his first two games.

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MISSING PLAYERS - 24
No missing players were added, and it's looking like some key players will be missing from next-gen versions in two weeks.

Vitor Faverani is the Celtics starting center, and posted 12 points, 18 rebounds, and 6 blocked shots tonight.  He is missing from the game despite having signed three months ago.  He stands out as the most egregious omission thus far.

Hollis Thompson (SF) - 76ers
Brandon Davies (PF) - 76ers
James Southerland (SF) - Bobcats
Miroslav Raduljica (C) - Bucks - GUARANTEED (signed 7/26/13)
Matthew Dellavedova (PG) - Cavaliers
Henry Sims (C) - Cavaliers
Phil Pressey (PG) - Celtics - GUARANTEED (signed 7/22/13)
Vitor Faverani (C) - Celtics - GUARANTEED (signed 7/22/13)
Nick Calathes (PG) - Grizzlies - GUARANTEED (signed 8/20/13)
Pero Antic (C) - Hawks - GUARANTEED (signed 7/26/13)
Ian Clark (SG) - Jazz
Chris Smith (PG) - Knicks
Toure Murry (SG) - Knicks
Elias Harris (PF) - Lakers
Ryan Kelly (PF) - Lakers
Gal Mekel (PG) - Mavericks - GUARANTEED (signed 7/11/13)
Arnize Onuaku (PF) - Pelicans
Luigi Datome (SF) - Pistons - GUARANTEED (signed 7/16/13)
Dwight Buycks (PG) - Raptors - GUARANTEED (signed 7/16/13)
Julyan Stone (PG) - Raptors
Robert Covington (PF) - Rockets - GUARANTEED (signed 7/15/13)
Dionte Christmas (SG) - Suns
Robbie Hummel (SF) - Timberwolves
Ognjen Kuzmic (C) - Warriors - GUARANTEED (signed 9/27/13)

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INCORRECT LINEUPS - 6
Bobcats: Cody Zeller starting over Josh McRoberts
Celtics: Kelly Olynyk starting over LOL OH WAIT VITOR FAVERANI NOT PRESENT
Jazz: Alec Burks starting over Richard Jefferson
Magic: Glen Davis starting over Kyle O'Quinn (Davis is injured)
Pelicans: Tyreke Evans starting over Al-Farouq Aminu
Suns: Gerald Green starting over P.J. Tucker

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RECOVERED FROM INJURY
Andrew Bynum (86/C) - Cavaliers
Terrence Jones (64/PF) - Rockets

Andrew Bynum is unexpectedly healthy to start the season, which is big news for Cavs fans (though a nerf could be coming his way if he can't get it together soon).

INJURED LIST - 32
Jason Richardson (73/SG) - 76ers
Nerlens Noel (71/C) - 76ers
Arnett Moultrie (60/PF) - 76ers
Brendan Haywood (64/C) - Bobcats
Ekpe Udoh (67/C) - Bucks
Carrick Felix (68/SG) - Cavaliers
Tyler Zeller (65/C) - Cavaliers
Rajon Rondo (90/PG) - Celtics
Maalik Wayns (63/PG) - Clippers
Louis Williams (79/SG) - Hawks
Gustavo Ayon (64/C) - Hawks
Trey Burke (73/PG) - Jazz
Brandon Rush (71/SG) - Jazz
Marvin Williams (65/SF) - Jazz
Carl Landry (76/PF) - Kings
J.R. Smith (84/SG) - Knicks
Kobe Bryant (93/SG) - Lakers
Devin Harris (76/PG) - Mavericks
Brandan Wright (68/C) - Mavericks
Tornike Shengelia (59/SF) - Nets
Danilo Gallinari (76/SF) - Nuggets
Danny Granger (80/SF) - Pacers
Darius Miller (64/SF) - Pelicans
Brandon Jennings (83/PG) - Pistons
Emeka Okafor (77/C) - Suns
Russell Westbrook (91/PG) - Thunder
Chase Budinger (69/SF) - Timberwolves
C.J. McCollum (72/SG) - Trail Blazers
Festus Ezeli (63/C) - Warriors
Chris Singleton (67/PF) - Wizards
Marcus Camby (71/C) - Free Agents

MISSING INJURIES - 5
Kwame Brown (60/C) - 76ers
Carlos Delfino (69/SF) - Bucks
Glen Davis (75/PF) - Magic
Shane Larkin (70/PG) - Mavericks
Jeremy Tyler (63/PF) - Free Agents

Anthony Bennett: Worst debut ever for #1 overall pick?

The Cavaliers shocked the world when they selected Anthony Bennett with the first pick in the 2013 NBA draft.  Unlike most #1 picks, Bennett was not expected to make an impact right away and it will be an uphill battle for him to get more minutes behind power forward Tristan Thompson.  That in itself exemplifies the weakness of this class.

Bennett shot 0-5 from the field in his pro debut, scoring only 2 points and collecting 5 rebounds in 15 minutes (while #2 overall Victor Oladipo has played far better thus far).  This left me wondering: "how many #1 overall picks played this poorly in their first NBA game?"  Is this an omen that he's the next Kwame Brown, or is there hope to cling on to?

Using Game Score, found on Basketball-Reference...

Game Score; the formula is PTS + 0.4 * FG - 0.7 * FGA - 0.4*(FTA - FT) + 0.7 * ORB + 0.3 * DRB + STL + 0.7 *AST + 0.7 * BLK - 0.4 * PF - TOV. Game Score was created by John Hollinger to give a rough measure of a player's productivity for a single game. The scale is similar to that of points scored, (40 is an outstanding performance, 10 is an average performance, etc.).

Excellent (20-25 GS)

24.7 LeBron James: 25 points, 6 rebounds, 9 assists, 4 steals, 42 minutes (12-20 FG)

23.2 David Robinson: 23 points, 17 rebounds, 3 blocks, 34 minutes (6-11 FG)

22.3 Allen Iverson: 30 points, 6 assists, 37 minutes (12-19 FG)

20.6 Blake Griffin: 20 points, 14 rebounds, 4 assists, 39 minutes (8-14 FG)

20.0 Anthony Davis: 21 points, 7 rebounds, 29 minutes (6-12 FG)

It should surprise no one that the King tops this list.   The hype for LeBron was off the charts, and he delivered in memorable fashion in his first NBA game.  The top four players on this list are superstars, so this bodes well for Anthony Davis.  Not just anyone can walk into the NBA and drop 20 points in their first game with a bulls-eye on their chest.

Above average (10-15 GS)

15.0 Chris Webber: 15 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks, 34 minutes (5-12 FG)

13.6 Andrew Bogut: 13 points, 9 rebounds, 3 blocks, 37 minutes (6-9 FG)

13.5 Dwight Howard: 10 points, 12 rebounds, 3 steals, 4 blocks, 38 minutes (6-11 FG)

11.7 Tim Duncan: 15 points, 10 rebounds, 2 blocks, 4 turnovers, 35 minutes (6-9 FG)

11.4 Elton Brand: 14 points, 8 rebounds, 2 blocks, 35 minutes (3-11 FG)

11.2 Derrick Rose: 11 points, 9 assists, 3 steals, 32 minutes (3-9 FG)

11.1 Larry Johnson: 11 points, 3 rebounds, 2 blocks, 26 minutes (4-8 FG)

10.6 Joe Smith: 14 points, 3 rebounds, 26 minutes (5-12 FG)

10.4 Derrick Coleman: 11 points, 12 rebounds, 3 blocks, 25 minutes (5-13 FG)

Solid all-around games for these top rookies that most of them would build upon.  Joe Smith is the only player here who never made an All-NBA team.

Below average (5-10 GS)

9.4 Michael Olowokandi: 14 points, 6 rebounds, 22 minutes (5-9 FG)

8.9 Patrick Ewing: 18 points, 6 rebounds, 3 blocks, 44 minutes (8-21 FG)

8.3 Shaquille O'Neal: 12 points, 18 rebounds, 3 blocks, 8 turnovers, 6 fouls, 32 minutes (4-8 FG)

8.1 John Wall: 14 points, 9 assists, 3 steals, 35 minutes (6-19 FG)

7.5 Danny Manning: 12 points, 4 rebounds, 27 minutes (6-10 FG)

6.3 Brad Daugherty: 8 points, 13 rebounds, 6 assists, 37 minutes (3-8 FG)

Michael Olowokandi proved that a solid debut is not an indicator of future success (it was all downhill from there for Kandi-man).  Shaq's debut is probably the most interesting we've seen as he produced a ton of stats on opening night, both good and bad (obviously, he got it together).

Poor (0-5 GS)

3.6 Kenyon Martin: 10 points, 7 rebounds (4-16 FG)

3.4 Kyrie Irving: 6 points, 3 rebounds, 7 assists, 26 minutes (2-12 FG)

3.4 Pervis Ellison: 6 points, 2 rebounds, 13 minutes (2-4 FG)

1.8 Kwame Brown: 2 points, 3 rebounds, 3 blocks, 12 minutes (1-2 FG)

0.5 Andrea Bargnani: 2 points, 2 rebounds, 2 blocks, 9 minutes (1-3 FG)

0.3 Glenn Robinson: 8 points, 4 rebounds, 5 turnovers, 13 minutes (3-5 FG)

While Kyrie Irving had an awful debuts, we find the majority of draft busts here at the bottom of the list.  It logically stands that a player who was bad in their first game is more likely to be bad in games 2, 3, 4, etc.

Abominable (Negative GS)

-0.8 Anthony Bennett: 2 points, 5 rebounds, 15 minutes (0-5 FG)

-3.0 Greg Oden: 0 points, 5 rebounds, 13 minutes (0-4 FG)

-3.3 Yao Ming: 0 points, 2 rebounds, 11 minutes (0-1 FG)

Bennett is one of only three #1 overall picks to have a negative impact in their first NBA game, and beats out Greg Oden for the worst shooting performance by a #1 overall pick in the lottery era. Yao Ming ranks as the worst pro debut, which gives Bennett and Cavs fans some hope. However, Yao was up to speed and playing at a high level in about two weeks.  Greg Oden has had the worst career in NBA history for a #1 overall pick and it's not exactly encouraging to find Bennett's name next to his.

It's still too early to write-off Bennett, but given NBA history, it's looking a bit grim.

NBA 2K14 Roster Analysis 10/30/13 - 2K responds

Responding to opening night criticism, 2K Sports quickly released another roster that completed all the missing transactions in the game, and added two of the missing players that were on the disc.

There were no new rating changes, although Marcus Morris of the Suns had his position changed to SF.

PLAYERS ADDED - 2
Mike Harris (62/SF) - Jazz
Hamady N'Diaye (52/C) - Kings

What is most disappointing about the missing players list is EIGHT of these players signed GUARANTEED contracts as far back as July.  2K Sports had THREE MONTHS (including one month with the game in consumer hands) to add these players in advance of opening night, and failed to do so.

MISSING PLAYERS - 24
Hollis Thompson (SF) - 76ers
Brandon Davies (PF) - 76ers
James Southerland (SF) - Bobcats
Miroslav Raduljica (C) - Bucks - GUARANTEED (signed 7/26/13)
Matthew Dellavedova (PG) - Cavaliers
Henry Sims (C) - Cavaliers
Phil Pressey (PG) - Celtics - GUARANTEED (signed 7/22/13)
Vitor Faverani (C) - Celtics - GUARANTEED (signed 7/22/13)
Nick Calathes (PG) - Grizzlies - GUARANTEED (signed 8/20/13)
Pero Antic (C) - Hawks - GUARANTEED (signed 7/26/13)
Ian Clark (SG) - Jazz
Chris Smith (PG) - Knicks
Toure Murry (SG) - Knicks
Elias Harris (PF) - Lakers
Ryan Kelly (PF) - Lakers
Gal Mekel (PG) - Mavericks - GUARANTEED (signed 7/11/13)
Arnize Onuaku (PF) - Pelicans
Luigi Datome (SF) - Pistons - GUARANTEED (signed 7/16/13)
Dwight Buycks (PG) - Raptors - GUARANTEED (signed 7/16/13)
Julyan Stone (PG) - Raptors
Robert Covington (PF) - Rockets - GUARANTEED (signed 7/15/13)
Dionte Christmas (SG) - Suns
Robbie Hummel (SF) - Timberwolves
Ognjen Kuzmic (C) - Warriors - GUARANTEED (signed 9/27/13)

PLAYER MOVEMENT
Darius Morris (66/PG) - 76ers (from Free Agent)
Mike James (65/PG) - Bulls (from Free Agent)
Roger Mason (69/SG) - Heat (from Free Agent)
Cole Aldrich (61/C) - Knicks (from Free Agent)
Solomon Jones (52/C) - Magic (from Free Agent)
Donald Sloan (64/PG) - Pacers (from Free Agent)
Rasual Butler (60/SF) - Pacers (from Free Agent)
Ronnie Brewer (73/SG) - Rockets (from Free Agent)
Ish Smith (71/PG) - Suns (from Free Agent)
A.J. Price (56/PG) - Timberwolves (from Free Agent)
Gani Lawal (56/PF) - Free Agent (from 76ers)
Reggie Williams (64/SF) - Free Agent (from Rockets)
Chris Johnson (64/C) - Free Agent (from Timberwolves)

OVER/UNDERRATED PLAYERS
Since there is a glimmer of hope that 2K Sports is paying attention to criticism this season, here is a list of ratings that ruin Association/MyCareer modes because the players are off.

Bobcats: Ben Gordon (76/SG) will start over Gerald Henderson (74/SG)
Cavaliers: Anthony Bennett (76/PF) will start over Tristan Thompson (74/PF); Alonzo Gee (71/SF) will start over Earl Clark (70/SF)
Celtics: Kris Humphries (72/PF) will start over Brandon Bass (70/PF)
Hawks: Cartier Martin (65/SF) will start over Kyle Korver (64/SF) and DeMarre Carroll (64/SF)
Magic: Hedo Turkoglu (72/SF) will play over Maurice Harkless (71/SF)
Nets: TyShawn Taylor (68/PG) will play over Shaun Livingston (62/PG)
Nuggets: J.J. Hickson (77/C) will start over JaVale McGee (75/C); Wilson Chandler (81/SF) will start over Danilo Gallinari (76/SF); Anthony Randolph (71/PF) will play over Darrell Arthur (68/PF) and Timofey Mozgov (67/C)
Pistons: Chauncey Billups (81/PG) will play over Will Bynum (71/PG)
Raptors: Tyler Hansbrough (72/PF) will start over Amir Johnson (71/PF); Steve Novak (53/SF) will never play
Rockets: Aaron Brooks (77/PG) will start over Jeremy Lin (76/PG) and Patrick Beverley (73/PG); Ronnie Brewer (73/SG) will play over Francisco Garcia (68/SF) and Omri Casspi (66/SF)
Spurs: Matt Bonner (58/C) will never play
Thunder: Jeremy Lamb (71/SG) will start over Thabo Sefolosha (70/SG)

Testing an Association, the following free agent signings ironically happen:
Bulls signed Richard Hamilton (74/SG)
Lakers signed Lamar Odom (72/PF)
Spurs signed Stephen Jackson (79/SF)
Suns signed Shannon Brown (74/SG)

What would solve that?  Accurate rating decreases for all of the above.

NBA 2K14 Roster Analysis 10/29/13 - Opening Night

This is just another piss-poor opening night from 2K Sports.  This is nearly as bad as last year's horrific opening night roster!  2K bamboozled all of you with their "Dynamic Rosters" and "Stats Inc" rhetoric.  It's still the same crap.

I for one am anxious to see what EA Sports and NBA Live is capable of in the roster department.  2K Sports can't even get current-gen right; should we REALLY have any faith that they'll get next-gen right?

If you want REAL NBA 2K14 rosters rather than this lackluster effort then I suggest you download my opening night roster file for XBox 360
The Real NBA 2K14 (10-29-13)
Just search for Gamertag on 2K Share: Real 2K Insider

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RATING CHANGES - 5
Paul George (89/SF), Byron Mullens (66/C), and Tony Wroten (63/PG) changed positions which resulted in an Overall rating change, but had no actual attribute changes.  C.J. Miles (71/SG) also changed positions but his Overall remains unchanged.

Darren Collison
80 Overall (+1)
40 Dunk (+12)
78 Vertical (+18)

Antawn Jamison
75 Overall (-1)
50 Vertical (-16)

2K Sports saw fit to lower Jamison's Vertical but saw ABSOLUTELY NOTHING WRONG with his 90 OFFENSIVE AWARENESS or 90 CONSISTENCY.  Aaaaaaaaalllllrighty then.

Quincy Pondexter
66 Overall (-1)
35 Hustle (-40)
79 Potential (+6)

This restores Pondexter's Hustle back to it's nonsensical 2K13 value.

Alex Len
62 Overall (+5)
66 Dunk (+5)
48 Fade (+8)
62 Hook (+11)
31 Pass (+2)
79 Block (+1)
54 OBD (+6)
61 OffPost (+11)
69 DefPost (+7)
52 OffAwr (+8)
73 DefAwr (+10)
58 Quickness (+3)

Len averaged a team-low 2.8 points and team-high 3.8 fouls in the preseason, so one can only wonder what 2K Sports is basing this on.  Oh right, Gortat was traded.  Remind me what that has to do with Len?   Plumlee will be starting.  If 2K felt this way about Len, it should have been reflected well before any trade.

Klay Thompson
75 Overall (+2)
82 Layup (+3)
83 SOD (+5)
83 OffAwr (+3)
64 DefAwr (+3)
75 Consistency (+5)
78 Speed (+3)
78 Quickness (+5)

83 Shoot Off Dribble for a player who was assisted on 83% of his field goals last season.  Makes sense.

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PLAYERS ADDED - 1
Gani Lawal (56/PF) - 76ers

Lawal is re-added to the game (he was still on the disc, having been in 2K13's roster), but in typical 2K Sports fashion, they did this AFTER he was waived.

MISSING PLAYERS - 26  (last year: 30)
Hollis Thompson (SF) - 76ers
Brandon Davies (PF) - 76ers
James Southerland (SF) - Bobcats
Miroslav Raduljica (C) - Bucks
Matthew Dellavedova (PG) - Cavaliers
Henry Sims (C) - Cavaliers
Phil Pressey (PG) - Celtics
Vitor Faverani (C) - Celtics
Nick Calathes (PG) - Grizzlies
Pero Antic (C) - Hawks
Ian Clark (SG) - Jazz
Mike Harris (SF) - Jazz
Hamady N'Diaye (C) - Kings
Chris Smith (PG) - Knicks
Toure Murry (SG) - Knicks
Elias Harris (PF) - Lakers
Ryan Kelly (PF) - Lakers
Gal Mekel (PG) - Mavericks
Arnize Onuaku (PF) - Pelicans
Luigi Datome (SF) - Pistons
Dwight Buycks (PG) - Raptors
Julyan Stone (PG) - Raptors
Robert Covington (SF) - Rockets
Dionte Christmas (SG) - Suns
Robbie Hummel (SF) - Timberwolves
Ognjen Kuzmic (C) - Warriors

A few of these players have been signed for a while to guaranteed contracts and there's absolutely no good reason for them to be missing one month until the game's release.  The rest made their teams in preseason and it's anyone's guess if 2K will ever add any of them.  Last year it took 2K Sports SIX MONTHS to add Kent Bazemore.

PLAYER MOVEMENT
Jamaal Tinsley (PG) - Jazz (from Free Agents)
Emeka Okafor (C) - Suns (from Wizards)
Marcin Gortat (C) - Wizards (from Suns)
Royce White (PF) Free Agents (from 76ers)
Jeremy Tyler (PF) Free Agents (from Knicks)
Marcus Camby (C) - Free Agents (from Rockets)
Shannon Brown (SG) - Free Agents (from Suns)
Malcolm Lee (SG) - Free Agents (from Suns)
Kendall Marshall (PG) - Free Agents (from Suns)

PLAYERS ON WRONG TEAMS - 13 (last year: 18)
Gani Lawal (PF) - 76ers (should be Free Agent)
Reggie Williams (SF) - Rockets (should be Free Agent)
Chris Johnson (C) - Timberwolves (should be Free Agent)
Darius Morris (PG) - Free Agent (should be 76ers)
Mike James (PG) - Free Agent (should be Bulls)
Roger Mason (SG) - Free Agent (should be Heat)
Cole Aldrich (C) - Free Agent (should be Knicks)
Solomon Jones (C) - Free Agent (should be Magic)
Donald Sloan (PG) - Free Agent (should be Pacers)
Rasual Butler (SF) - Free Agent (should be Pacers)
Ronnie Brewer (SG) - Free Agent (should be Rockets)
Ish Smith (PG) - Free Agent (should be Suns)
A.J. Price (PG) - Free Agent (should be Timberwolves)

2K Sports should be ashamed of themselves.  It's well known that regular season rosters are finalized the day before the game comes out.  These moves are now official in the eyes of everyone besides 2K Sports.

INCORRECT LINEUPS - 10 (last year: 6)
Bobcats: Cody Zeller starting over Josh McRoberts
Cavaliers: Alonzo Gee starting over Earl Clark
Celtics: Kelly Olynyk starting over LOL OH WAIT VITOR FAVERANI NOT PRESENT
Hawks: John Jenkins starting over DeMarre Carroll (Korver shifting to SG)
Jazz: Alec Burks starting over Richard Jefferson (Hayward shifting to SG)
Kings: Luc Mbah a Moute and Jason Thompson starting over John Salmons and Patrick Patterson
Lakers: Jodie Meeks and Chris Kaman starting over Steve Blake and Shawne Williams (Gasol shifting to C)
Magic: Glen Davis starting over Kyle O'Quinn (Davis is injured)
Pelicans: Tyreke Evans starting over Al-Farouq Aminu
Suns: Gerald Green starting over P.J. Tucker

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INJURIES - 33
Jason Richardson (73/SG) - 76ers
Nerlens Noel (71/C) - 76ers
Arnett Moultrie (60/PF) - 76ers
Brendan Haywood (64/C) - Bobcats
Ekpe Udoh (67/C) - Bucks
Andrew Bynum (86/C) - Cavaliers
Carrick Felix (68/SG) - Cavaliers
Tyler Zeller (65/C) - Cavaliers
Rajon Rondo (90/PG) - Celtics
Maalik Wayns (63/PG) - Clippers
Louis Williams (79/SG) - Hawks
Gustavo Ayon (64/C) - Hawks
Trey Burke (73/PG) - Jazz
Brandon Rush (71/SG) - Jazz
Marvin Williams (65/SF) - Jazz
Carl Landry (76/PF) - Kings
J.R. Smith (84/SG) - Knicks
Kobe Bryant (93/SG) - Lakers
Devin Harris (76/PG) - Mavericks
Brandan Wright (68/C) - Mavericks
Tornike Shengelia (59/SF) - Nets
Danilo Gallinari (76/SF) - Nuggets
Danny Granger (80/SF) - Pacers
Darius Miller (64/SF) - Pelicans
Brandon Jennings (83/PG) - Pistons
Terrence Jones (64/PF) - Rockets
Emeka Okafor (77/C) - Suns
Russell Westbrook (91/PG) - Thunder
Chase Budinger (69/SF) - Timberwolves
C.J. McCollum (72/SG) - Trail Blazers
Festus Ezeli (63/C) - Warriors
Chris Singleton (67/PF) - Wizards
Marcus Camby (71/C) - Free Agents

INCORRECT INJURIES - 1
Terrence Jones (64/PF) - Rockets: (Day-to-day)

MISSING INJURIES - 4
Kwame Brown (60/C) - 76ers
Carlos Delfino (69/SF) - Bucks
Glen Davis (75/PF) - Magic
Jeremy Tyler (63/PF) - Free Agents

2K brings it's dreaded injuries back (making this roster and any further releases USELESS to any custom roster editors), but it shouldn't surprise anyone that they missed a couple.

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NBA 2K claims to be the #1 sports simulation but such a claim would require paying attention to the details. I read an article today on Knickerblogger that I think completely applies here.  2K's roster work is a continued blight upon the series and prevents it from being a TRUE champion.  Just because NBA Live hasn't released a game in 3 years, doesn't mean 2K has been releasing perfect 10/10 titles.  Far from it.  They have been getting by and doing just enough to keep their fans sated.  Just being "good enough" isn't (and never should be) "good enough".  I sincerely hope EA Sports manages to give 2K Sports a swift kick in the ass and remind them that anyone is beatable if they're not putting forth the effort.

NBA 2K14 Roster Analysis 10/25/13 - The return of "Dr. J" Julius Erving

"Dr. J" Julius Erving was added to the 1977 Sixers team in the lastest NBA 2K14 roster update.  Given that we only received one version of Erving (he is still missing from the 1985 Sixers team), I assume that his inclusion is really only for the purposes of MyTeam (which is where the real profit is for 2K).

Julius Erving (SF/SG)
96 Overall
99 Inside Shot (aka Standing Layup)
84 Close Shot
73 Medium Shot
60 3pt Shot
78 Free Throw
99 Layup
99 Dunk
80 Standing Dunk (SF avg = 51)
97 Spin Layup
93 Euro Step Layup
95 Hop Step Layup
98 Runner
94 Step Through
95 Shoot in Traffic
65 Post Fadeaway
62 Post Hook
35 Shoot Off Dribble (SF avg = 71)
89 Ball Handling  (SF avg = 72)
75 Off-Hand Dribbling
81 Ball Security
70 Pass
76 Block
86 Steal
89 Hands
88 On-Ball Defense
69 Offensive Rebound
73 Defensive Rebound
60 Post Offense
68 Post Defense
91 Offensive Awareness
91 Defensive Awareness
95 Consistency
95 Stamina
91 Speed
88 Quickness
84 Strength
99 Vertical
88 Hustle
95 Durability
97 Potential
55 Emotion
Signature Skills: Highlight Film, Posterizer, Finisher, Shot Creator, Closer

2K Sports once again proves they have no idea what they are doing in their player rating department.
How bad is that 35 SOD?  The lowest rated SF is Earl Clark (50) who used to be a PF. Most centers rate higher.  Of course, most centers don't have 89 Ball Handling either.  Many gamers will be fooled into thinking Erving is another LeBron James or Michael Jordan, but the SOD will hinder him drastically and frustrate many.

Erving is ultimately a poor man's Dominique Wilkins.  Nique has an even more absurd 99 Standing Dunk (Erving and Nique are the only non PF/C with 80+ SD), better rebound ratings, and better shooting ratings (that's before a 50 point gap in SOD rating).  Erving is technically a better ball handler (but can't put it to great use), and his defensive ratings are about 10 points better than Nique's.

What should have been the triumphant return of a 4x MVP (3x ABA, 1x NBA) is instead a bit of a dud.  Don't get me wrong, Dr. J will still be a better MyTeam player than 90% of the players out there, but he'll play more like Josh Smith than he will the player Michael Jordan emulated, and the lack of realism is ultimately disappointing.

ATTRIBUTE CHANGES
As far as I can tell, only one player received rating changes in the 10/25 roster, despite numerous over/underrated players that litter the 2K Sports roster.

Andre Drummond (C/Pistons)
74 Overall (+2)
45 Handle (+10) - Uh... what?
30 OHD (+5)
82 DefPost (+12) - Held opponents to 0.77 PPP
83 DefAwr (+3)
55 Consistency (+10)
86 Hustle (+18) - Tell that to UConn
88 Potential (+8)

PLAYER MOVEMENT
PHILADELPHIA 76ERS
Daniel Orton (56/C) from Free Agents

ATLANTA HAWKS
Cartier Martin (65/SF) from Free Agents

PLAYERS ON WRONG TEAMS
MIAMI HEAT
Jarvis Varnado (61/PF) to Free Agents

NEW YORK KNICKS
Jeremy Tyler (63/PF) to Free Agents

FREE AGENTS
Seeing as how 2K added camp invite Cartier Martin to the Hawks, I see no reason why they couldn't have added the rest of the camp invites, particularly players who are locks to make their respective teams.

Ronnie Brewer (73/SG) to Rockets
Ish Smith (71/PG) to Suns
Roger Mason (69/SG) to Heat - Varnado was waived to make room for Mason
Jamaal Tinsley (69/PG) to Jazz
Louis Amundson (67/PF) to Clippers
Diante Garrett (67/PG) to Thunder
Darius Morris (66/PG) to 76ers - Long known he would make the team
Mike James (65/PG) to Bulls
Donald Sloan (64/PG) to Pacers - HAS A TWO YEAR GUARANTEED CONTRACT!!!!
Cole Aldrich (61/C) to Knicks
Rasual Butler (60/SF) to Pacers
A.J. Price (56/PG) to Timberwolves

RETIREMENTS
Tracy McGrady announced his retirement and was quickly removed from the game by 2K Sports in their 10/18 roster update.  Maybe they should get around to these guys?

Corey Maggette (74/SF) - Stated he would retire after being cut by Spurs
Raja Bell (71/SG)
Antonio Daniels (68/PG) - Has been retired for THREE YEARS now
James Posey (67/SF) - Has been retired for THREE YEARS now
Jerry Stackhouse (65/SF)
Luke Walton (64/PF) - Broadcasting Lakers games
Kurt Thomas (64/PF)
Jared Jeffries (64/PF) - Nuggets scout
Bobby Simmons (59/SF)
Joel Przybilla (57/C)
Malik Allen (57/PF) - Has been retired for THREE YEARS now
Matt Carroll (57/SG) - Sixers shooting consultant
Vladimir Radmanovic (56/PF) - Announced retirement earlier in month
Brian Skinner (54/C)
Francisco Elson (54/C)
Brian Cardinal (52/PF) - Has been retired for two years now.

OVERSEAS
Terrence Williams (73/SF)
Delonte West (73/PG)
Maurice Evans (71/SF)
James White (69/SG)
Darius Johnson-Odom (69/SG)
Armon Johnson (66/PG)
Antoine Wright (65/SG)
Josh Selby (65/SG)
Sherron Collins (65/PG) - out of NBA for 3 years
Linas Kleiza (64/SF) - has stated no desire to ever return to NBA
Donte Greene (63/SF)
Travis Leslie (63/SG)
DaJuan Summers (61/SF)
Jeremy Pargo (61/PG) - signed multi-year deal with CKSA Moscow
Charles Jenkins (61/PG)
Samardo Samuels (60/C)
Darington Hobson (60/SF)
Christian Eyenga (60/SF)
Luke Babbitt (60/SF)
Kyle Weaver (60/SG)  - out of NBA for 3 years
Kim English (60/SG)
Hassan Whiteside (59/C)
Hamed Haddadi (59/C)
Justin Harper (59/PF)
Earl Barron (57/C)
Luke Haranbody (57/PF)
Andy Rautins (57/SG) - out of NBA for 3 years
Johan Petro (56/C)
Jon Brockman (56/PF)
D.J. Mbenga (52/C) - out of NBA for 3 years
Kyrylo Fesenko (52/C)

COME ON ALREADY
Kelenna Azubuike (71/SG) - Not an NBA player following multiple knee surgeries
Antoine Wright (65/SG) - Out of NBA for 3 years
Quinton Ross (62/SG) - Out of NBA for 3 years
Rodney Carney (61/SF) - Out of NBA for 3 years
Ronald Dupree (56/SF) - Out of NBA for 3 years
Orien Greene (53/PG) - 5 NBA minutes in the last 6 years
Darnell Jackson (52/PF) - Out of NBA for 3 years

NBA 2K14 Chicago Bulls Rating Changes

Derrick Rose
92 Overall (0)
76 3pt (-1)
Skills Added: Pick & Roll Maestro, One Man Fastbreak
Skills Removed: Shot Creator, Ankle Breaker

Joakim Noah
82 Overall (-1)
67 Layup (+16)
53 Pass (+3)
87 Block (+1)
67 Steal (+7)
88 OffReb (-6)
83 DefReb (-8)
Skills Added: Tenacious Rebounder, Defensive Anchor
Skills Removed: Hustle Points

Luol Deng
79 Overall (-4)
78 3pt (-4)
81 FT (+4)
44 Block (-16)
64 Steal (+2)
70 OffReb (-9)
48 DefReb (-27)
81 OffAwr (-2)
83 DefAwr (-3)
75 Consistency (-5)

Carlos Boozer
77 Overall (-2)
86 Close (-4)
85 Med (-4)
73 FT (+4)
62 Dunk (+8)
44 Block (+2)
62 Steal (-6)
74 OffReb (-9)
92 DefReb (+4)
75 OffAwr (-3)
60 Consistency (-10)
80 Stamina (+2)
61 Hustle (+13)
86 Durability (+8)
84 Potential (-9)
Skills Removed: Bruiser

Jimmy Butler
76 Overall (0) - Would rate 78 at SF
74 Inside (-8)
82 3pt (-1)
50 Block (+4)
70 Steal (+2)
82 OBD (+6)
72 OffReb (+10)
42 DefReb (-13)
70 DefPost (+7)
84 DefAwr (+6)
65 Consistency (+5)
99 Stamina (+10)
93 Hustle (+5)
85 Potential (+5)
Skills Added: Lockdown Defender

Taj Gibson
75 Overall (-1)
67 FT (+5)
89 Block (+5)
57 Steal (-3)
80 OffReb (-10)
69 DefReb (-4)
86 Durability (-9)
Skills Added: Posterizer

Kirk Hinrich
74 Overall
84 3pt (+3)
71 FT (-7)
50 Block (+12)
69 Steal (+3)
31 OffReb (+4)
38 DefReb (+1)
90 Stamina (-4)
Skills Added: Charge Card, Pick Dodger, Floor General

Mike Dunleavy
70 Overall (+2)
88 3pt (+4)
82 FT (+1)
55 Block (+17)
41 OffReb (+3)
63 DefReb (+16)
Skills Added: Charge Card

Marquis Teague
66 Overall (-2)
41 3pt (-25)
62 FT (-9)
52 Block (+23)
62 Steal (-2)
45 DefReb (+5)

Nazr Mohammed
64 Overall (+3)
72 FT (+8)
82 Block (+30)
65 Steal (+1)
87 OffReb (+3)
78 DefReb (+2)

Top post defenders in the NBA (2013)

This week I'm working on an article and study regarding Synergy Sports Postup stats (both offense and defense) in order to expand my understanding of the NBA game, as well as improve upon my NBA 2K Post Offense/Defense rating formulas. 

I figure it can't hurt to tease with the top post defenders in the NBA. A lot of people criticize Synergy's raw data but I'd say they look pretty damn accurate when implementing tighter controls.

Synergy's flaw is that it "ranks" every player with 26+ possessions (a paltry number, leading to nearly 300 qualifiers) and does not differentiate by position.  It's extremely important to distinguish position when comparing the ranking.  Tony Parker (0.69 Points Per Possession Allowed) may have a better "score" than Tim Duncan (0.75 PPP allowed) but a point guard is going to be hopelessly outmatched against a center, or even a big wing.  Given such a contrast in the quality of opposition, positional context is required for the data to make sense.

Not only have I broken things down by position, but also raised the possession requirement from 26+ possessions to 100+ possessions.  This should help us avoid statistical anomalies that are more likely to occur with smaller sample sizes (Hamed Haddadi's 0.53 PPP allowed in 30 possessions is a key example).  I'm looking strictly at NBA players who played regular minutes.

CENTERS (Median Poss% = 36, Range = 23-51)
0.58 Dwight Howard
0.64 Tiago Splitter
0.64 Tyson Chandler
0.64 Kevin Garnett
0.65 Marcin Gortat
0.66 Marc Gasol
0.70 Larry Sanders
0.72 Nikola Pekovic
0.73 Robin Lopez
0.73 Joakim Noah
0.73 Chuck Hayes
0.74 DeMarcus Cousins
0.75 Tim Duncan
0.75 JaVale McGee
0.76 Emeka Okafor
0.76 Festus Ezeli
0.77 Andre Drummond
0.78 Kosta Koufos
0.78 Chris Kaman
0.79 Al Horford
0.79 Al Jefferson
0.79 Roy Hibbert
0.80 Elton Brand
0.81 Chris Bosh
0.81 Kevin Seraphin
0.83 Kendrick Perkins
0.83 Bismack Biyombo
0.84 Jonas Valanciunas
0.84 Epke Udoh
0.85 DeAndre Jordan
0.85 Omer Asik
0.86 Greg Stiemsma
0.88 Brook Lopez
0.89 Nikola Vucevic
0.89 Lavoy Allen
0.90 Spencer Hawes
0.93 Greg Monroe
0.94 J.J. Hickson
0.97 Greg Smith
0.98 Meyers Leonard
1.01 Tyler Zeller

POWER FORWARDS (Median Poss% = 28; Range = 21-40)
0.64 Carmelo Anthony
0.71 Josh Smith
0.71 LaMarcus Aldridge
0.73 Shane Battier
0.75 Pau Gasol
0.75 Nick Collison
0.76 Zach Randolph
0.76 Brandon Bass
0.79 Tristan Thompson
0.79 Jason Thompson
0.79 Lamar Odom
0.80 Paul Millsap
0.81 Udonis Haslem
0.81 Jason Maxiell
0.83 Luis Scola
0.84 David Lee
0.84 Serge Ibaka
0.84 Amir Johnson
0.84 Boris Diaw
0.86 Carl Landry
0.86 Ryan Anderson
0.88 Blake Griffin
0.88 Markieff Morris
0.89 Thaddeus Young
0.89 Kenneth Faried
0.89 David West
0.90 Carlos Boozer
0.90 Anthony Davis
0.92 Patrick Patterson (HOU)
0.96 Derrick Williams
0.97 Dante Cunningham
1.02 Ersan Ilyasova
1.06 Reggie Evans

SMALL FORWARDS (13-16 Poss% for these elite SFs)
0.72 Jeff Green
0.75 Metta World Peace
0.84 Jimmy Butler
0.87 Paul George

NO QUALIFIERS for Shooting Guard or Point Guard position. (J.R. Smith was close w/ 99)

Given the low number of SFs who qualified (it's certainly worth noting the ones who did), I'm going to lower the bar for the perimeter positions to squeeze out the top performers at each position.

SMALL FORWARDS (80+ poss; Range = 9-16%)
0.71 Michael Kidd-Gilchrist
0.72 Jeff Green
0.75 Metta World Peace
0.75 Kevin Durant
0.78 Luol Deng
0.80 Caron Butler
0.80 Paul Pierce
0.84 Jimmy Butler
0.87 Paul George
0.88 Chandler Parsons
0.89 Evan Turner

You may notice the absence of LeBron James.  I myself am a bit shocked given that Synergy includes playoff games in their data. LeBron had 99 games and 3,837 minutes under his belt, yet still did not qualify.  LeBron recorded only 50 post defense possessions across that time, and it made up only 5.6% of his defense (surprisingly low given his defensive acumen and the fact that he's playing more PF than ever before).  He had a ton of success when he did defend the post, with 0.56 PPP allowed (6th best mark in Synergy's database).

LeBron's 0.56 PPPA in those 50 possessions is a great example of why I placed these restrictions on the data, as his overall mark is great but he's defending postups half as much as other small forwards.  Sample size is definitely an issue given that his mark is so far ahead of the pack.  LeBron may very well be the best post defender at the SF position, but we need more data to conclusively say that.

SHOOTING GUARDS (65+ poss; Range = 8-11%)
0.61 Kevin Martin
0.71 Danny Green
0.78 James Harden
0.82 Monta Ellis
0.88 Dwyane Wade
0.91 Luke Ridnour
0.93 J.R. Smith
0.93 Arron Afflalo
0.95 Klay Thompson
0.94 Lance Stephenson
1.06 Jason Kidd
1.06 Randy Foye

POINT GUARDS (50+ poss; Range = 5-8%)
0.69 Isaiah Thomas
0.67 Tony Parker
0.75 Chris Paul
0.80 Raymond Felton
0.81 George Hill
0.86 Ty Lawson
0.89 Jarrett Jack
0.98 Damian Lillard

I have thoughts on each of these, but you'll have to wait until the completion of the article.  For now, enjoy!