Milwaukee Bucks: How accurate are the team’s NBA 2K19 ratings?
By Robby Cowles
Giannis Antetokounmpo
NBA 2K19 Rating: 94 (Previously: 94)
There’s no better place to start than with the cover athlete for NBA 2K19, none other than the Bucks’ fearless leader, Giannis Antetokounmpo. (It’s a bit of an oversight by 2K to not have Giannis on the cover with a smoothie, if you ask me.)
If you were expecting Giannis to get a slight boost from the prestige of being the cover athlete, you’d be mistaken as his rating remains unchanged from the end of last year.
At 94 overall, Giannis is in a three-way tie for the fifth best player in 2K with Kawhi Leonard and Anthony Davis, behind only LeBron James (98), Kevin Durant (97), James Harden (96) and Stephen Curry (95). Giannis’ place in the 2K19 hierarchy about fits his place in the real NBA, right on the edge of the top players in the league but not quite cracking the top five yet.
Giannis’ rating is probably close to as high as it will ever be until he develops further and shows he has a consistent jumper, which acts as the only thing holding him back on the court and in the game. Still, Antetokounmpo’s size and high athleticism ratings make him practically unguardable in 2K, with the ability to dunk on anyone if he gets any momentum toward the basket.
It would’ve been nice to see 2K19 give Giannis a little nod to being the cover athlete by bumping up his rating further, but it’s hard to complain about him being rated on the same level as superstars such as Anthony Davis and Kawhi Leonard, and ahead of players like Kyrie Irving and Russell Westbrook.
For now, the rating makes sense until (and it is only a matter of time) Giannis smooths out his jumper. Then, expect him to gain a few extra points.
Verdict: Fair