Anyone can win an NBA championship with the Cleveland Cavaliers. (Looks at the Cavs' big man rotation.) Well, OK, scratch that. Anyone can win the NBA championship with the Cleveland Cavaliers in NBA 2K15.
Equipped with the league's best player, its best power forward, the MVP of the FIBA World Cup and a drove of dudes better in their video game form than real life (sup, Dion?), the Cavs are this year's resident cheat code team. Using Cleveland in NBA 2K15 outs a person as A) a Cleveland sports fan, B) a 10-year-old child or C) a horrible human being with whom no one should communicate.
Beginning with a superteam siphons the fun out of the entire journey. It's starting at the endpoint before going through the mixture of agony, frustration and eventual glee of building from the ground up. The Cavaliers are the mail-order bride of the video game world. Same goes for the Oklahoma City Thunder, San Antonio Spurs, Los Angeles Clippers, Golden State Warriors and Chicago Bulls.
What's the fun in starting something when you already know the outcome?
People who want to get the most out of their NBA 2K15 experience—and there are plenty of ways to do that, by the way—start from the ground up. You don't necessarily have to strip your team entirely of NBA-level talent Sixers style, either; video games are equally discouraging if you're losing over and over and over.
Like most things in life, it's about finding the middle ground. Having an infrastructure that's good enough to kind of compete but in need of TLC before hitting championship contention. With that in mind, here's a look at a few teams actually worth the long-term journey.
Minnesota Timberwolves
The Hook: DEM ATHLETES
Roughly eight seconds into my NBA 2K15 journey I'll be beginning a MyGM or MyLeague—depending on my friskiness level—with the Timberwolves. This has been decided for months, beginning right around the time it became increasingly obvious Andrew Wiggins and Anthony Bennett would be heading northwest.
The Timberwolves are going to be an awful basketball team in 2014-15. Their projected starting five consists of one player who can shoot (Kevin Martin). Their two most talented players, Wiggins and fellow rookie Zach LaVine, are incredibly raw products—guys a couple years away from NBA stardom if they ever get there. Ricky Rubio's subtle defensive excellence does not translate well into a video game. Nor does Nikola Pekovic's back-to-the-basket stylings or Thad Young's constant motor.
There needs to be a roster overhaul before there is an ascent. That said, the core components of this roster are enough to make the Wolves an unstoppable force not seen in basketball video games since the ball was literally on fire.
Rubio, for all his faults, is among the league's best handful of passers and arguably its most creative. The challenge with him is not where to trade him but how to develop him into a useful shooting threat—you know, kind of like real life. But even if you're unable to work miracles with Rubio's shot, the Spaniard plus the Canadian plus the beanpole American in the open court will be a thing of beauty.
LaVine and Wiggins were the two most impressive athletes of the 2014 draft class. Their acrobatics are so impressive that the Timberwolves are opening training camp with a dunk contest between the two first-round picks. Add Rubio, the special pass modifier and video game physics...do I really need to keep going here?
Even Gorgui Dieng will have some long-term value as an athletic shot-blocking presence. This might be the most fun terrible team in video game history. (And given the progression metrics, it won't always be horrible.)
Milwaukee Bucks
OK, OK, maybe all the time I spent studying the 2014 draft class clouds these rankings a bit. But only a bit. The Bucks not only have No. 2 pick Jabari Parker and intriguing second-rounder Damien Inglis but also basketball Twitter's best friend (Giannis Antetokounmpo) and quite a few guys whose avatars are better than their real-life form.
O.J. Mayo, the $24 million scourge of Milwaukee, has been a longstanding member of the J.R. Smith All-Stars—named for guys you'd want on your video game roster but wouldn't allow within 500 yards of your real-life arena. Larry Sanders and John Henson are both long, athletic rim protectors whose springiness amplifies their effect blocking shots.
Ersan Ilyasova is still an OK shooter in 2K despite his stretch 4 reputation being a bit overblown. Jared Dudley and Jerryd Bayless can stand in corners and shoot. Brandon Knight still isn't a good point guard, but he proved himself a capable swing guard who might have trade value—both in real life and in the more fictionalized trade AI of the video game world.
Sure. All fun enough. You can probably foster some level of excitement about any team if you try hard enough. What do you mean Hollis Thompson isn't an NBA-caliber starting small forward? How dare you besmirch the video game brilliance of Tony Wroten? I mean, at some point you can use enough training points on Magic players to make them shoot well, right?
Using Milwaukee in 2K15 comes down to banking on its tent-pole stars. Antetokounmpo runs like a deer, leaps like a kangaroo and is so skilled that Bucks coach Jason Kidd threw him at point guard in summer league. Parker is the surest NBA prospect since Anthony Davis; he's 20 points per game walking into the league and should be a consensus selection for Rookie of the Year.
Fun flotsam can be found on any NBA roster. The Bucks give you a chance to build around two potential superstars.
New Orleans Pelicans
The Pelicans sit directly on the border of already too good and usable. Their depth chart is filled with solid talent at every position. Jrue Holiday was an All-Star in 2013; Eric Gordon is a pretty good player and you don't have to deal with the constant pout face he wears in 2K; Tyreke Evans is a video game superstar and was back at rookie-year form down the stretch last season; Omer Asik is useless (SportVU ain't making his case in the virtual world) but Ryan Anderson isn't.
And then there's Anthony Davis. Right. That guy. The one who's going to be the best player in basketball within a few years. The one who at times single-handedly saved the United States in the World Cup, atoning for the myriad of mistakes made by perimeter defenders with the sheer force of his presence.
We may be heading toward the Days of Davis. If he stays healthy and ascends into the top-five conversation—Davis was 14th in win shares last season, so it'll require another significant leap—the Pelicans can be a playoff team. Their lack of depth will force everyone to sit on the bench with crossed fingers, but a 15-win leap is not outside the realm of possibilities.
Using New Orleans acknowledges you want to take a middle-of-the-road approach with your MyGM or MyLeague squads. The Pelicans do not require the multiyear building effort of Minnesota or Milwaukee; they merely require mastering the timing on Gordon's tricky shot and forcing Davis into a center's role.
Playing in the Western Conference also excuses any trepidations I'd typically have about starting the mode with a ready-made superstar. Outside of pet project Minnesota, the West is an eclectic mix of way-too-good teams and ones that sound as much fun as cleaning a dirty swimming pool.
Do you want to spend your time with an aged Kobe Bryant and Jeremy Lin and Julius Randle, the latter being a good young player but not one whose game is conducive to the video game environment? I'm not sure what your definition of fun is, but paying Gordon Hayward max money isn't mine; the NBA's upcoming salary-cap spike is not baked into the NBA 2K15 DNA. Denver might be fun but would require a facelift of the roster to unmuddy the depth chart.
The Pelicans are the only team that hits the happy medium.
Charlotte Hornets
Lance Stephenson Superstar? LANCE STEPHENSON SUPERSTAR!!
Wait, you need more convincing? Fine.
The Hornets are a lesser version of the Pelicans in a weaker conference. There is not an Anthony Davis to be seen on this roster. Al Jefferson is keeping 1965 basketball alive, which makes him admirable and a god-awful person to control in a video game. As a matter of fact, without the benefit of Stephenson's oddball humor, the Hornets quickly start looking like a potential regression candidate in need of some work.
The first decision at your feet is the same one as Rich Cho: How much do we value Kemba Walker? Walker's game in 2K is far more valuable from the defensive side than on offense. His size issues aren't nearly as glaring and his foot speed makes it possible to gamble in passing lanes without giving up a barrage of open shots. I've found using him on offense much more onerous; he's none of the great shooter/great athlete/great passer combination that's valuable in game situations.
Charlotte, at first glance, is a more fun simulation team than actually playing out the 48 minutes. In that comes the inherent challenge. Are you good enough to fix Michael Kidd-Gilchrist's broken jump shot? Is it possible to develop Noah Vonleh into a Chris Bosh-esque two-way force? Can fake coach Steve Clifford handle video game Lance Stephenson?
All are interesting questions that are part of the more macro storyline. The Hornets, as constituted, look like a back-end playoff team in the East. They'll be roadkill for Cleveland or Chicago. Perhaps the most difficult task in the NBA today is taking the leap from perpetual playoff doormat to instant contender. Few are able to pull it off without a major roster deconstruction.
I'm interested in seeing whether doing so is possible in Charlotte, one of the league's biggest feel-good stories of 2013-14. The only rub? We'll have to wait a couple more weeks to find out. NBA2K15 releases on Oct. 7.
Follow Tyler Conway (@tylerconway22) on Twitter
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