NBA 2K13 Full Season Simulation
By Phil DeMeo
The highly anticipated NBA 2K13 video game is now in stores for all basketball fans to earn bragging rights from their friends. I have played the game and it is much better than last years. It is a lot more fluid game play and obviously the graphics are enhanced. I had a little fun and simulated a season to see how the season would end up.
I just want to start off by saying that the New York Knicks are ranked 12th overall and 19th on offense, meanwhile they are ranked 5th on defense. Yeah I don’t understand either. The Nets also beat them on Opening night in Brooklyn.
May 9, 2012; Miami, FL, USA; New York Knicks small forward Carmelo Anthony (7) during the second half of game five in the Eastern Conference quarterfinals against the Miami Heat of the 2012 NBA Playoffs at the American Airlines Arena. Miami won 106-94. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE
Knicks Final Stats:
Carmelo Anthony – 28 PPG 6 RPG
Amar’e Stoudemire – 21.5 PPG 7.2 RPG
Iman Shumpert 13.1 PPG
J.R. Smith – 11.3 PPG
Raymond Felton – 8.3 PPG 3.1 APG
Jason Kid 6.6 PPG 7.5 APG
Tyson Chandler 3.5 PPG 9.4 RPG 1.8 BPG
As expected, Carmelo Anthony has a huge scoring year finishing third in the league just behind Team USA teammates Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant. Amar’e Stoudemire gets back to form scoring 21 a game. This might foreshadow the Knicks offensive problems this season, but after Melo and STAT, the Knicks will have trouble finding another consistent high scorer. Shumpert will be the 3rd leading scorer with 13 right in front of JR Smith’s 11 per game. This is a solid number for the duo but one of them will have to score a little more a game so the Knicks have another legit scoring threat.
Raymond Felton and Jason Kidd do what is expected of them and serve as a solid point guard duo. Nothing special here but Felton would need to at least double his assists if he wants to be considered a success as Jason Kidd could score a little more. I think Chandler will score more than 3.5 points a game but his defense will be just on point again and make everyone on the defense better.
Season Awards:
MVP – LeBron James – 25 PPG 8 RPG 5 APG
Rookie of the Year – Anthony Davis – 14 PPG 10 RPG 2 BPG
Feb. 15, 2012; New York, NY, USA; New York Knicks point guard Toney Douglas (23) dribbles the ball during the second half against the Sacramento Kings at Madison Square Garden. Knicks won 100-85. Mandatory Credit: Debby Wong-US PRESSWIRE
Sixth Man – Toney Douglas – 10 PPG 3 APG
Defensive Player of the Year – Dwight Howard-11 RPG 2 BPG
Coach of the Year – Eric Spoelsta 64-18
All-NBA First Team
Brandon Jennings – 22 PPG 9 APG
Russell Westbrook 28.4 PPG 6 APG (Scoring Champion)
LeBron James – 25 PPG 8 RPG 5 APG
Kevin Durant – 28.1 PPG 9 RPG
Dwight Howard – 21 PPG 11 RPG
All-NBA Second Team
Kyrie Irving – 25 PPG 7 APG
Kobe Bryant 25 PPG 5 APG
Josh Smith – 21 PPG 9 RPG
Kevin Love – 24 PPG 12 RPG
DeMarcus Cousins – 18 PPG 10 RPG
All-NBA Third Team
Deron Williams – 22 PPG 8 APG
Monta Ellis – 23 PPG 6 APG
Danny Granger – 23 PPG 6 APG
Blake Griffin 18 PPG 12 RPG (Rebound Leader)
Al Jefferson – 20 PPG 9 RPG
All-Defense First Team
Dwyane Wade
Paul George
Kevin Durant
Paul Millsap
Dwight Howard
All-Defense Second Team
Kobe Bryant
Stephen Curry
Josh Smith
Tyrus Thomas
Anthony Davis
July 17, 2012; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Dion Waiters (3) drives to the basket as Phoenix Suns forward Matt Howard (54) defends during the game at the Thomas and Mack Center. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-US PRESSWIRE
All-Rookie First Team
Damian Lillard – 15 PPG 6 APG
Dion Waiters – 15 PPG 4 APG
Michael Kidd-Gilchrist – 14 PPG 7 RPG
Thomas Robison – 11 PPG 10 RPG
Anthony Davis – 14 PPG 10 RPG
All-Rookie Second Team
Bradley Beal – 13 PPG
Austin Rivers – 8 PPG
Terrence Ross – 7 PPG
Jeremy Lamb – 7 PPG
Harrison Barnes – 12 PPG 6 RPG
There were a few surprises in these season awards. No Derrick Rose, Carmelo Anthony, Tyson Chandler, James Harden, Chris Paul, Tony Parker, or Rajon Rondo on any of these teams. The MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, and Rookie of the Year were very predictable but Toney Douglas winning the Sixth Man of the Year award makes my jaw drop. Brandon Jennings had a break out year as Russell Westbrook over took Durant’s 3-year reign as scoring champion.
Let’s take at the Playoff Picture:
Eastern Conference:
- Miami Heat – 64-18 (NBA Best Record)
- Chicago Bulls – 55-27
- Milwaukee Bucks – 48-34
- New York Knicks – 45-37
- Brooklyn Nets 42-40
- Indiana Pacers – 42-40
- Washington Wizards 42-40
- Philadelphia 76ers – 38-44
There were a few surprises here. The Bucks not only making the playoffs but also being a top team in the east. Jennings and Ellis lead this team to a great season. The Washington Wizards also took a big step by making the playoffs. The Boston Celtics failed to make the playoffs after losing Ray Allen, as did the Atlanta Hawks after losing Joe Johnson. New York basketball gets its dreams come true as the Knicks and Nets square off in round one.
Western Conference
- Oklahoma City Thunder – 61-21
- Los Angeles Lakers 55-27
- Denver Nuggets – 53-29
- Memphis Grizzlies – 46-26
- Los Angeles Clippers 48-34
- Phoenix Suns 45-37
- Minnesota Timberwolves 44-38
- Sacramento Kings 42-40
No surprise with the Thunder and Lakers taking the top two spots in the West. Nuggets, Grizzlies, and Clippers are right where they are projected to be as the Suns, Timberwolves, and Kings all take huge strides and surprise people by making the playoffs. It is pretty amazing how the Spurs missed the playoffs after they finished with the Western Conference’s No. 1 seed last season. The Mavericks and Jazz also fail to make the playoffs after making it in 2012.
First Round Results
East:
Heat over 76ers 4-2
Nets over Knicks 4-1
Bucks over Pacers 4-3
Wizards over Bulls 4-2
Miami winning was the only predictable first-round series. Milwaukee in a 7 game series over the Pacers seems like some tough-nosed basketball. The Wizards beating the Bulls is a huge upset as the Bulls failed to have playoff success and exit in the first round two years in a row. With all this, the Nets beating the Knicks in five games on the Garden’s floor has to be the story here. Bragging rights and the shift in New York basketball could be changed forever.
West:
May 20, 2012; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Clippers guard Chris Paul (3) dribbles the ball during game four of the Western Conference semifinals of the 2012 NBA Playoffs against the San Antonio Spurs at the Staples Center. The Spurs defeated the Clippers 102-99 to win the series 4-0. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-US PRESSWIRE
Thunder over Kings 4-0
Clippers over Grizzlies 4-2
Nuggets over Suns 4-3
Lakers over Timberwolves 4-0
All higher seeds win here as the dream ends for the Suns, Timberwolves, and Kings. The young Wolves and Kings get some playoff experience but aren’t much for the powerhouse Thunder and Lakers. Clippers beat the Grizzlies just like last season as the Suns push the Nuggets to 7 but fail to complete the upset.
Semi-Final Results:
East:
Heat over Nets 4-3
Bucks 4-1 over Wizards
Knicks fans have wait another whole year to have their shot against the Heat, but they don’t have to go far to watch. The Brooklyn Nets almost pull off the historic upset by losing to the Heat in seven games. LeBron likes Jay-Z but not enough to give his Nets a shot at the championship. The Bucks and Wizards square off as two teams that weren’t picked to make the conference championship. The Bucks take care of the Wizards early and now will try to pull off the ultimate upset as their small market team takes on the big bad Miami Heat.
West:
Lakers over Nuggets 4-3
Clippers over Nuggets 4-2
The Lakers face the Nuggets in the playoffs for the second year in a row and once again beat them in seven games. The Thunder will try to have another playoff repeat if they can beat the Clippers to face the Lakers again, but the Clippers get it together as the NBA Championship will defiantly be played in the Staples Center; the only question is which tenant will playing for the ultimate prize? A Nets-Knicks first round matchup would be huge the NBA but a LA-LA Western Championship would have the NBA drooling. Let the Battle of Los Angeles begin.
Conference Finals Results:
Clippers over Lakers 4-3
Bucks over Heat 4-2
We’ll start off in Milwaukee where the Bucks pull of the all-tie underdog story in beating the Miami Heat. The Brandon Jennings and Monta Ellis experiment works off, as the Bucks will be playing the NBA championship for the first time since the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar days. The Battle of L.A. couldn’t be more exciting as Game 7 would be an instant NBA classic. The Lakers were up 3-1 in the series and just couldn’t put the Clippers away as the Clips tilt the basketball world and beat the Lakers in seven.
2013 NBA Finals: The Underdog Story
Might be only a video game simulation, but the impact of a Clippers-Bucks NBA Finals matchup would be something the NBA hasn’t seen in a long time. Almost every year the Finals have included a marquee franchise or an early season favorite. The Clippers were supposed to be very good but not NBA Finals good. The Bucks would be happy to make the playoffs, but beating the Heat and playing in the Eastern Conference Finals would shock the world. The underdogs of the world would be rooting for them and Brandon Jennings would vault into superstardom (and a huge payday).
The Clippers continue with their huge momentum and stop the Bucks train in their tracks. The Clippers win the series 4-1 as Chris Paul wins Finals MVP honors. The best point guard in the league doesn’t need any regular season honors, as he’ll easily take a championship ring and Finals MVP trophy over making an All-NBA team.