NBA 2K14: Can Defense Win You A Championship?

[Rockie_Fresh88]

Re: NBA 2K14: Can Defense Win You A Championship?

This is cool. You could've added more diverse players who are still defensive minded. Like Batum, Hibbert, Rondo, etc.

For the players you picked I was impressed with the record. I wish ppg allowed was lower than 99 though.

Hell I'm going to try this lol

[z.arthur23]

Awesome job with this. Fascinating read. Any chance you can do a similar thing with offensive players, just for comparison's sake?

Thank you! I actually want to do one with strictly 3-point shooters and see how a sharp-shooting team ends up.

[z.arthur23]

This is cool. You could've added more diverse players who are still defensive minded. Like Batum, Hibbert, Rondo, etc.

For the players you picked I was impressed with the record. I wish ppg allowed was lower than 99 though.

Hell I'm going to try this lol

I was bummed about the 99 point per game, too. I tried everything in my power to get Batum because he's somehow only a 78 I believe, but just couldn't make it happen! I would have liked to see the difference if I had, though.

[miller31time]

Re: NBA 2K14: Can Defense Win You A Championship?

I'm sorry but this is one of the dumbest articles I've read on this forum.

It would be like putting together a team full of 3pt specialists (all under 80 overall), then when they didn't win a championship concluding that championship teams should have no good shooters.

Championship teams are generally elite on both offense and defense. The fact that a team like the one assembled in this "experiment" won more than 25 games is probably more damning of the simulation engine than anything.

[The 24th Letter]

Re: NBA 2K14: Can Defense Win You A Championship?

I'm sorry but this is one of the dumbest articles I've read on this forum.



It would be like putting together a team full of 3pt specialists (all under 80 overall), then when they didn't win a championship concluding that championship teams should have no good shooters.



Championship teams are generally elite on both offense and defense. The fact that a team like the one assembled in this "experiment" won more than 25 games is probably more damning of the simulation engine than anything.

I figured a "I disagree for the sake of disagreeing" post was coming...but I don't even understand the point you are making....your 3pt shooters analogy isn't even close to goal of the experiment..

[doctorhay53]

Re: NBA 2K14: Can Defense Win You A Championship?

I wonder about the effect on team chemistry of throwing a bunch of guys together and then simulating the season. Do you think this affected the results at all?

edit: also, 39-43 in the east and only the 8th seed? "Is this a fake video?"

[miller31time]

Re: NBA 2K14: Can Defense Win You A Championship?

I figured a "I disagree for the sake of disagreeing" post was coming...but I don't even understand the point you are making....your 3pt shooters analogy isn't even close to goal of the experiment..

First of all, I apologize for coming across as an ***. I'm not normally like that.

Secondly, my point is that putting together of team of under 80s and expecting them to do anything significant, then when they inevitably fail conclude that the opposite of their "strength" is the key to winning is a false premise in my opinion.

If you built a team of all offense, no defense under 80s, you'd find them to be equally as bad, if not worse. And your conclusion, if following the same path, would be that offense doesn't win championships.

Neither is correct as an elite balance of both generally is the path to success (in my opinion).

[david20lampton]

I loved this idea. With a sports game it can become repetitive to play and try to achieve the same goals over and over again. This was a great test. I am going to try and make one defensive minded team and also make one offensive minded team and put them in the same season to see how each one ends up. Keep up the good work.

[AntiBandwagoner]

Great write up. Nice to see 2k's sim system working pretty well.

[The 24th Letter]

NBA 2K14: Can Defense Win You A Championship?

First of all, I apologize for coming across as an ***. I'm not normally like that.



Secondly, my point is that putting together of team of under 80s and expecting them to do anything significant, then when they inevitably fail conclude that the opposite of their "strength" is the key to winning is a false premise in my opinion.



If you built a team of all offense, no defense under 80s, you'd find them to be equally as bad, if not worse. And your conclusion, if following the same path, would be that offense doesn't win championships.



Neither is correct as an elite balance of both generally is the path to success (in my opinion).

Gotcha..

I don't think he was necessarily looking to be significantly successful despite the title....just seeing how a team full of defensive specialists would fare over the course of a season...and how their ratings would come into play...but I could be mistaken...

[miller31time]

Re: NBA 2K14: Can Defense Win You A Championship?

Gotcha..

I don't think he was necessarily looking to be significantly successful despite the title....just seeing how a team full of defensive specialists would fare over the course of a season...and how their ratings would come into play...but I could be mistaken...

No, I think you're correct - that was what seemed to be the purpose. But what would a team full of 60-80 rated players have to achieve to satisfy his goal of "defense wins championships"? His quote at the end about how the team not getting out of the first round signifies to him that offense indeed wins championships is what irked me. No team full of 60-80 rated players, irrespective of whether they're offensive specialists, defensive specialists or all-around players, is going to win anything significant. Therefore, it's intellectually dishonest to make finite conclusions one way or the other because the data and experiment was faulty to begin with.

Had he left out the expectations and conclusion, I wouldn't have a problem because it would have just been a fun little experiment.

[RipCityAndy]

Nice post. I'm not surprised with the result though. Limiting the player ovr to 79 is the huge limitation. An interesting iteration of this experiment would be slowly incrementing the ovr ceiling and determining how that affected the outcome.

Another fun experiment would be a team with all sub 60 rated three point shooters.

[grodbetatted]

No iggy in the squad?

[itzdaviddxd]

Re: NBA 2K14: Can Defense Win You A Championship?

Can you try a team with good offense and bad defense to prove the counterpart to this?

[Phillyboy57]

Obviously defense wins championships. Look at the past 3 NBA Finals. Against Dallas the Heat could not figure out the Dallas zone and lost. Against OKC, Heat limited KD and stomped them. Against the Spurs Bosh blocks that 3 and the Heat win another title. Look at the NFL every year its the team with the best scoring defense in the Super Bowl.