I know the topic of discussion everywhere in 2K Land is steal spam but I wanted to touch on a few other things today. Now worries tho, I have alot to say regarding #stealspam but we can discuss that later. I did kinda, sorta did predict it was gonna be an issue, however. Link I also chimed in on the lengthy discussion on the OS earlier. Here's it is Link Anyway, what I wanna discuss today are real, balanced and tangible ways to reward the defense rather than unbalanced gimmicky stuff like "too easy steals" lol. The nicest part? Most of these aspects already exist in the game, the outcomes are just wacky. Hopefully that can get fixed, tho... wellllllll here goes:
Here's a video of me playing a guy online for a visual aid to what we're covering. No worries, it won't be super long, he quit pretty early...but there's some good and relevant content in here. FYI, we'll be using the in-game clock as a reference. Anyway, check it out below:
1) Sideline Cheese - Ok so the first thing I want to point out is how this doesn't work anymore. At the 4:40 mark Green's foot goes out of bounds. For those unaware, since forcing players out is a foul in NBA 2K17 cheesers would ride the sideline drawing fouls at will and basically ruined the game late in the cycle. The devs resolved it the only way you can in a H2H setting. They provided a better outcome where sometimes there'd be a foul, but sometimes the ball-handler would turn the ball over for stepping on the line. Single outcome is bad in PVP and its what cheesers look for. If they can recreate a situation over and over that they know only has one result they have everything they need to exploit the game and ruin the experience for all of us...but more on that later, ok? It didnt work--so kudos to 2K for dealing with it.
2) Defender Awareness - So next up we have Ben Simmons' brain fart at 3:59, rewind it all you like, Dario and Covington are back to cover their men and no other offensive player is past half-court yet. So why is he below the elbow when his man (Kyle Lowry) comes up court? No one knows. Seconds later you get the predictable result. BANG. Ben established as a rookie he already has enormous defensive ability (represented in the game as on-ball defensive IQ, help defense IQ and defensive consistency all 80) there is literally no reason this should happen. Hopefully issues like this can be rectified moving forward. We need defensive players to be competent--especially the good ones. I shouldn't have to extend pressure (like I did later in the game) for Ben to act like Lowry can shoot.
3) Offense Recovers - Ok so at the 3:50 mark Saric gets behind the defense but Jonas recovers and gets the block. I have issues with recovery blocks a little (IMO they should be whistled at a higher rate then ones from good position, but whatever) still the fact remains that he blocked it. The bigger issue? Plays like these are too often recovered by the offensive player--that's backwards. FACT: In the vast majority of instances the defense should recover the ball. We should literally be surprised when the offense recovers it. Want to really make progress balancing offense and defense? Stop giving the ball back to the offense after defenders make a good play.
4) Deflections - Welp, next up is the 3:31 mark. Covington deflects Ibaka's pass intended for Kawhi and take a wild guess who recovers it. That's riiiight! Say it with me class: THE OFFENSE RECOVERS....sigh. I've always thought that most deflections should go out of bounds rather than be stolen like you'll see here:
Why? Because being forced to operate late in the shot-clock rewards the defense without making steals excessive and the game sloppy overall. Still, I have to reiterate that the offense recovering in these instances goes against everything we know and should be rare. Want offensive and defensive balance? Want defense to factor more in gameplay? Easy Fix: Stop giving the offense more opportunities to score after they make a mistake. Don't punish the defense for making a good play.
5) Defensive Awareness - Next up the 3:07 mark. Sooooo here we go again: Ummm....Ben? You doing ok? You'll notice that he's below the FT line again even though a good shooter has the ball right at the 3pt line. I slide over and Lowry hesitates to pull. Fortunately he ends up driving straight at Ben and gets cut off. This can't happen guys.We only control one player while the AI controls the other four. We need them to play competently if any of this is going to work lol. Hopefully stuff like this gets fixed sooner than later.
6) Deflections - Last but not least we have the 3:04 mark. It feels like an extension of the Lowry play and in some ways it is. Lowry gets cut off and passes the ball towards Ibaka and since a defender is in position it gets deflected. First let me emphasize how much passes into the paint should be deflected out of bounds. VERY OFTEN. MOST OF THE TIME. WE SHOULD BE SURPRISED WHEN ONE GETS THROUGH. Defenses start by defending the highest FG percentage area on the court and work their way out. Legacy issues like the paint-to-paint passing you see below (especially big-to-big) need to be a thing of the past.
Lets see deflections out of bounds be the norm when users attempt this. Back to the play tho, so Dario deflects it aaaaaaaand...YUP. It goes right to Ibaka with no defender between him and the basket. Now good plays on defense are giving the ball to players in scoring position? Is this the Twilight Zone? Fortunately he passes but the game can't punish the defense this way. Am I advocating for a steal? NOPE. AGAIN: Make the majority of deflections out of bounds since this rewards the defense, anything but having the offense recover the ball when they just made a mistake.
The video ends with Covington getting all in Kawhi's shorts and this guy quitting because a difficult game isn't what he signed up for--so that's a big win for the defense. Still, as I pointed out above, there were too many questionable defensive lapses in a game that never made it to the halfway point of the 1st qtr. The offense consistently recovering good plays from the defense is another matter entirely, 2K has some serious decisions to make regarding the future of defense and how it should be represented in their flagship title. Lets hope they make good choices.
Until next time,
Kushmir
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