NEW YORK, NY - APRIL 04: A general view of the NBA 2K League Draft at Madison Square Garden on April 4, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images)
The second trade window of the 2019 NBA 2k League season was a flurry of activity, as six teams swapped players between Sunday, May 12 and Monday, May 13.
The action began on Sunday with Heat Check Gaming bringing in a native son from T-Wolves Gaming. Hood, a South Florida native, was acquired in exchange for JMoneyRep817. In the Tip-Off tournament, Hood averaged 14.3 points with 1.7 rebounds and a 3-to-1.7 assist to turnover ratio. In four regular-season games for T-Wolves Gaming, Hood’s scoring average improved to 17.5 points but assists decreased (1.8 per game) and turnovers increased (3.5 per game).
JMoneyRep817, also a point guard, moves to T-Wolves Gaming with regular-season game averages of 15.6 points, 5.4 assists and 3.6 turnovers per game in five games. Whether the increased scoring production Hood promises to deliver will be worth giving up the distribution JMoneyRep817 brought to the table remains to be seen, but other teams besides those two were active in trying to improve their fortunes.
On Monday, Hawks Talon GC and Pistons GT completed a trade of 2019 first-round selections. Pistons GT sent MrStylez to Atlanta in exchange for DevGoss, who were the fourth and 13th overall selections in the 2019 draft. The two point guards represent another trade-off of scoring for distribution. MrStylez comes to Hawks Talon GC with averages of 11.2 points, 8.6 assists and 5.2 turnovers while DevGoss averaged 13 points, 1.8 assists and one turnover per game.
Perhaps the biggest transaction of the day involved two players who play as big men positions. Cavs Legion GC sent center Sick x 973 to Raptors Uprising GC in exchange for power forward ALL HAIL TREY. Sick x 973 had started all six regular-season games for Cavs Legion to this point, averaging 18.2 points, 6.3 rebounds and shooting just under 60 percent from the field. All Hail Trey comes to Cleveland with averages of 15 points and 2.8 rebounds while shooting 50.8 percent from the field in five games.
What Cavs Legion might have gained in exchange for Sick x 973’s production is versatility in acquiring ALL HAIL TREY. Sick x 973’s effective range offensively has been limited in comparison to ALL HAIL TREY, who has been a more effective perimeter scorer. Whether Cavs Legion will be able to replace Sick x 973’s defensive presence and rebounding will be the big question moving forward. For Raptors Uprising GC, the benefit of acquiring Sick x 973 is obvious. Having a productive center is crucial to success in the NBA 2k League and he absolutely fits that bill.
The easiest trend to identify in these moves was that all the teams who made moves currently sit on the fringe of playoff positioning. In the current regular-season standings, Hawks Talon GC sits eighth at 3-2. Heat Check has an identical record and is in 10th place. Cavs Legion GC is right behind them at 3-3. Raptors Uprising GC and T-Wolves Gaming are 13th and 14th respectively at 2-3 and 2-4. Pistons GT currently sits at 19th of 21 teams but at 1-4 with 11 regular season games left on their schedule, they are far from out of the running. The top seven seeds are guaranteed a playoff spot at the end of the regular season, with an eighth spot going to the winner of “The Ticket” tournament. If one of the top seven teams in the final regular-season standings wins “The Ticket”, then the eighth team in the final regular-season standings will get in.
There may be more trade activity yet before the window closes but time is growing short for teams to act. It’s unlikely that a player more notable than Sick x 973 will be moved and what impact he will have for Raptors Uprising GC for the rest of the season will be something to watch.