No, the swoon in the retail price of NBA 2K19 on all platforms isn’t because it has stopped being representative of the actual product. Seasonal offerings invariably receive markdowns over time, what with their actual value dwindling closer to the end of a given season and the beginning of a new one. That said, the year-on-year progression of the National Basketball Association has certainly had an effect on perception. These days, scoring is way up and stat lines will more often than not reflect hitherto unreachable numbers.
Not that the games have become less exciting because of their seeming hyperrealism. In fact, they have become even more compelling fare. Who doesn’t want to see, say, Russell Westbrook put up yet another triple-double? Or Giannis Antetokounmpo dominate the paint with dunk after dunk? Or James Harden run rings around defenses focused on his supposedly predictable style of play? The reigning league Most Valuable Player has, in particular, redefined the meaning of “possible” in the context of current rules.
To be sure, Harden has his fair share of detractors. From an aesthetic standpoint, there is little to like about his propensity to draw fouls with cunning and guile. Even as coaches and other players have conceded his skill in coaxing referees to view the contact as far from incidental and, more importantly, initiated by the defender, they are likewise frustrated by their inability to counter it. Moreover, he has employed a unique version of the stepback move that borders on traveling but is hardly ever called; it allows him to create separation and thereby take full advantage of his above-average marksmanship from three-point territory.
In any case, Harden has become the modern-day definition of an unstoppable offensive force. All and sundry — oddsmakers included — are flummoxed by his offensive explosions; the over-under on his scoring continues to rise, juxtaposed by declarations from the competition that game plans are deemed to have worked if his output is limited to less than 40. Under the circumstances, no video game can approximate his real-life exertions. When he’s a cheat code unto himself, fans can’t be blamed for wanting to watch instead of play.
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994.
