NBA 2K's Contribution to Growth of Esports and Basketball

As a casual gamer who would an hour or two playing National Basketball Association (NBA) 2K20 on the PlayStation 4, I love the realism that the game has been bringing to the table and it allows gamers like myself to enjoy the game as if we're watching an actual NBA game. And for most gamers both casual and professionals, NBA 2K has brought in more than just the entertainment.

And while the NBA has already a 22-team resumption plan that will allow the league to resume on July 31 when each of the 22 teams will play eight regular-season games to determine who will move on to the playoffs, there's no doubt that the presence of NBA 2K has helped pacify our needs for everyday basketball action but 2K's contribution goes beyond our living rooms.

More than filling in the gap between fans and real-time NBA action especially during the ongoing 2019 Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) pandemic, 2k, and Esports in general, has been used by the NBA to grow their already huge audience. In fact, a study conducted in 2019 says that in the United States alone 63 million viewers were viewing Esports in 2018 and that's the same number of viewers that the NBA had. And as a result of the audience's growing interest in Esports, more and more gamers are now joining 2K tournaments which have been helping the NBA in terms of keeping the NBA fire burning even virtually. 

But perhaps, the presence of 2K, being more than just a video game, provides more competition amongst professional gamers as the inception of the NBA 2K League in 2018 provided a platform where qualified players will be able to compete against each other. In effect, 17 of the 30 NBA teams have now their own NBA 2K Leagues, and games are being streamed online. And during the NBA hiatus which was brought about by the still-damaging pandemic, some of the NBA stars picked up a controller and competed in the first-ever "NBA 2K Players Tournament" where Devin Booker of the Phoenix Suns emerged as the winner. 

While NBA 2K tournaments will now be a part of the new normal that we're all living in, it has already attracted more interest not just from basketball fans but from audience who don't usually watch basketball in general. And thanks to the streaming platforms that are made available to fans, NBA can remain a part of one's life even if it's during the off-season and that's because of the NBA 2k League being streamed. 

Photo is from Forbes