This is the doldrums of the NBA calendar.
The 2021 season is over but the 2022 season has not quite begun. The league is quiet — perhaps, too quiet — and there is not likely to be any more moves. Something might creep up — like the Lauri Markkanen sign and trade to eliminate the last major free agent on the market — but there is nothing much going on.
Training camps do not begin for another month. The NBA’s 2022 season became a little real with the release of the schedule last week. But it does not become real for a lot of fans until the release of the next edition of NBA 2K.
That is coming very soon and fans of both the Orlando Magic and the game are eager to see where the team ranks. It at least gives casual fans a sense of how good the team might be or present conceptions of the team.
The Orlando Magic could well be the worst team in the upcoming NBA 2K22. We break down what players might be rated as the game nears its release.
The Magic have not been a great NBA 2K team since Dwight Howard left. That is the reality of being a team without a clear star and without much relevance in the national landscape. Orlando has struggled to start the year with any players ranked better than 84 — a middling number that is a borderline All-Star.
The best Magic players are on the historic teams or in the deeper cuts of MyTeam — Orlando had nine players get a perfect 99 card including three players in the Invincible set.
Fans of the video game have long loved Jonathan Isaac and Mohamed Bamba — both made the Retro 2K set in the game and a 98-rated Isaac was part of the Fan Favorite set.
It is not that Orlando does not have players who can sell even on the current team. The team has popular players. At least when all the stats are juiced up.
The game is getting set to flip over with the new version of the game shipping out Sept. 10. In all likelihood, the Magic will be the worst team in the game. Without a clear star or a marquee player, the players on the team are not going to start off well at all.
Using last year’s evolution of the MyTeam mode — they released three sets of cards based on the current season — we will try to predict where Magic players will fall. Luckily some of the ratings for the team are confirmed. And that at least gives us a start.
We will go through the roster in order of the rotation we expect. This is how we would rate the players on the team. But as you will see, the game likely sees things differently.
Orlando Magic: Predicting NBA 2K Ratings
Silver Tier
For those who do not play the game, I am a big player of the MyTeam mode. It is essentially a trading card-based game where you collect players from different teams and eras to build a fantasy team and play against others and complete challenges.
What can I say? I am a sucker for the historical players they load the game with throughout the year.
But each year, the game starts off with just the current roster. Those ratings are slightly different than the ratings you woiuld get in the Play Now mode. But it gives us a good base to predict where players might land because of how the players progress with each new edition of that player that comes out.
If you like collecting basketball cards or NBA Top Shot, this mode is for you.
The cards in this game mode are split into different tiers, coded by color. The lowest tier is bronze (67-69 overall) and the next is silver (70-75). This is a short hand for the end of the bench, in other words.
Moritz Wagner
2020 Curent Set: 75 . . . 2021 Current NBA: 76 . . . Final Play Now: 74
Moritz Wagner had quite the journey throughout the 2021 season. He started off with the Washington Wizards at the end of the bench. He then got traded to the Boston Celtics, fell out of the league and got picked up by the Orlando Magic. It was not really a great season for him.
He impressed enough though to earn a second contract with the Magic. But the game is not too fond of Wagner.
https://twitter.com/2KDeutschland/status/1428041505822941185
Wagner already has his 2K rating, coming in at a 74. There was no change from where he ended last year. But as you can see, his rating is clearly trending down.
That makes Wagner at least halfway playable. But he still remains on the end of the bench and someone that players will not reach for when they turn on the game.
Predicted Rating: 74
Ignas Brazdeikis
2020 Current Set: 69 . . . 2021 Current NBA: 71 . . . Final Play Now: 70
Ignas Brazdeikis spent his entire season at the end of the bench. And there probably is not much hope for him to go anywhere else.
Brazdeikis remains one of the best scorers in the G-League. But that is not exactly going to get anyone excited. He spent the entire season in Play Now at a 70. There is no reason to think his outlook has changed.
In his short run with the Magic, he played well. Brazdeikis earned a two-way contract with the team. But that is not going to help his overall rating much.
Brazdeikis is still likely to be at the end of the bench. And he likely will be among the worst-rated players in the game.
Predicted Rating: 69
Orlando Magic: Predicting NBA 2K Ratings
Falling out of the rotation
Mohamed Bamba
2020 Current Set: 77 . .. 2021 Current NBA: 77 . . . 2021 Series 3: 76 . . . Final Play Now: 77
Mohamed Bamba is one of the few players who saw a decrease in his player rating in the MyTeam mode. This is despite being one of the game’s most popular players to play with.
Who does not love a shot-blocking 7-footer who can hit from the outside. That was always the idea behind Bamba.
That is why he got a 94-rated card in the MyTeam Fan Favorites set and then a perfect 99-rated card later int he game. He even got an 89 Retro 2K card (essentially a re-issue of card art from a previous season). Bamba remains a great video game player.
Orlando Magic
But obviously, that has not translated to the court yet. Bamba is near the end of his rookie contract and it is not clear what his role is in the league. It is not even entirely clear what his role might be entering this season.
Bamba’s run last season was a bit of a roller coaster. He started the year at 76, then dropped to 74 in January before rising back to 76 toward the end of the season after the trade deadline.
It is hard to see him improving much on his rating from last year. Bamba is still a mystery. But have no doubt that an optimized version of Bamba will pop up in the game at some point, reminding everyone of his potential.
Predicted Rating: 75
Michael Carter-Williams
2020 Current Set: 75 . . . 2021 Current NBA: 75 . . . 2021 Series 3: 73 . . . Final Play Now: 73
Michael Carter-Williams will start the year on the injured list after undergoing ankle surgery. The guard has a long way to go to be a consistent offensive player.
Even though he has established himself as a good defender, he is still not much of an offensive player. Carter-Williams is still considered a fringe rotation player at best. And that is likely his role for the Magic this year once he is healthy. They need the veteran presence.
But that will not do much in a video game either. Carter-Williams had an injury-filled year — really an injury-filled career — and things do not look like they are changing much.
Carter-Williams had some good moments and has his supporters still. But the lack of shooting and injury history will likely see him take another step back this season.
Last year, was just not a good year for him.
Predicted Rating: 72
Orlando Magic: Predicting NBA 2K ratings
Newbies
Robin Lopez
2020 Current Set: 72 . . . 2021 Current NBA: 73 . . . 2021 Series 3: 76 . . . Final Play Now: 77
A lot of people questioned the Orlando Magic’s signing of Robin Lopez. Why add another center — even if it was just a one-year deal for a relatively scant $5 million?
Lopez though turned in a strong season last year and earned a look at a rotation once again. The veteran player has been a solid defender and good teammate. But he mastered the little hook shot and just does all the intangible things that make him a valuable player and a great teammate.
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But last year stood out. It was one of his best seasons in a while and Lopez showed with the Washington Wizards he could do a little more than just the in-between stuff.
Lopez is still not a popular player in the 2K world. He is a bit of a lumberer and is not much more than a defender at this point. But expect him to get a little bump this year after a strong season last year.
Projected Rating: 75
Franz Wagner
The Orlando Magic rookie already has his 2K rating thanks to the international accounts. Franz Wagner will be ranked the same as his brother at 74.
That caught some Magic fans a bit off guard. The younger Wagner is considered a better player even right off the bat.
Rookies typically have a lower rating than most people expect. Everyone is always irrationally excited about rookies. But they are always, even at their best, in the middle of the NBA landscape. Even a class as great as this (we will get to that).
Wagner though is someone who is not particularly flashy. So a lower rating is maybe not that surprising.
Magic fans were probably hoping for someone a bit flashier with the eighth pick in the draft. Someone who would get a lot of love in 2K. But the Magic have often gone for players who are solid with their intangibles and basketball IQ.
That is who Wagner is. Even if that does not make him great for the video games.
Projected Rating: 74
Orlando Magic: Predicting NBA 2K ratings
The Young Guys
R.J. Hampton
2021 Current NBA: 72 . . . 2021 Series 3: 73 . . . Final Play Now: 74
R.J. Hampton was one of the true revelations of last season after the trade deadline. The Orlando Magic knew they were getting a really talented player who just needed the opportunity. Hampton really took the opportunity and ran with it.
For him, running goes pretty fast.
Hampton had the progression you wanted to see from a rookie player. He got better and crested with his best month at the end of the season.
Of course, coming on a team that was not playing for much brings with it plenty of points for concern. But those are easily brushed off at the moment.
This season will be Hampton’s first real season. It will be his first real chance to grow and develop with at least a clear path toward playing. Someone is going to get squeezed out of the rotation — or not get enough time to play.
That will probably be reflected in his rating to start the season.
But Hampton may well be among the most popular “silver” level players in the game. He might even verge on gold to start the season.
Projected Rating: 75
Cole Anthony
2021 Current NBA: 72 . . . 2021 Series 3: 75 . . . Final Play Now: 76
Cole Anthony started the year really hot. When the MyTeam mode released its 2020 rookie class cards before the NBA Draft, Anthony quickly became one of the most popular cards. He was a great shooter and scorer. A perfect video game player.
King James Gospel
His on-court exploits also were video-game worthy. He definitely had plenty of personality. But his play his rookie year backed it up with a pair of game-winning shots and a ton of great moments throughout the season.
Magic fans certainly fell in love with him.
They are just waiting for the rest of the world to catch up. He at least did get a 96-rated card in MyTeam as part of the Gladiator set. I am still searching for it before the game flips over.
Where Anthony rates in the upcoming game will be the big question. He is still a largely inefficient player and he seems like he will slot in as a reserve player for most of the season.
If there is a player who could get a big bump in his rating heading into next season to make the Magic look a little more competitive, I would bet on Anthony.
For now, though, he is more likely the young player who has the most to gain through the year.
Projected Rating: 75
Orlando Magic: Predicting NBA 2K ratings
Seeing gold
Gary Harris
2020 Current NBA: 75 . . . 2021 Current NBA: 77 . . . 2021 Series 3: 73 . . . Final Play Now: 73
The Orlando Magic needed to acquire Gary Harris to help match salaries. But they certainly were hoping to get a veteran who could shoot and defend. Harris was coming off a strong playoff series and seemed to regain his health.
But his health remains the big question of his career. And while he played in Orlando with little incident on that front, he looked extremely rusty. Harris struggled to shoot and finish. It was not a promising return.
Harris still figures to be part of the Magic’s starting lineup in reality. The team needs his veteran leadership and at least the whiff of his shooting.
But he is probably not going to be in the starting lineup when the game released. Harris’ rating took a nose dive last year.
He started at 76 then dropped to 74 at the turn of the calendar and then finally 73 before the trade deadline, where he stayed the rest of the year. That was a disappointing way ofr his season to end.
There will be better players at his position when the game opens up. Even if Harris is penciled in as the starter at shooting guard.
Projected Rating: 75
Chuma Okeke
2021 Current NBA: 72 . . . 2021 Series 3: 76 . . . Final Play Now: 76
The NBA 2K ratings system did not really know what to do with Chuma Okeke. He was a player who was actually in the store-bought copy of NBA 2K20 before getting removed in the first update. They had him pretty juiced up as a shooter and defender then.
Wiz of Awes
Coming off the ACL injury, it was hard to get any sense for what Okeke could do. Even his 2K rating throughout the course of the year never really settled in — or matched reality.
He started the year as a 72 and then quickly rose to 76 before the season started. It dipped back to 72 to start the season and stayed there until April when it rose back to 76. His strong run through January did not sway much. It was not until the end of the season that he climbed back up to a 76 — a solid gold player and borderline starter in the game’s parlance.
Where the game sees Okeke going will be very interesting to watch. He is probably the player on the team that is most difficult to predict for this year and beyond.
Magic fans were certainly very excited with how he played. He showed potential as both a shooter and defender. When he got confident he had a big burst of scoring that helped the Magic stay afloat through all their injuries.
Okeke could well find himself in the starting lineup again this year. Nobody really has any sense of where he has improved or what his role might be.
But NBA people have long loved Okeke and he gave them no reason to stop last year.
Projected Rating: 76
Orlando Magic: Predicting NBA 2K ratings
Plenty to Prove
Markelle Fultz
2020 Current NBA: 76 . . . 2021 Current NBA: 78 . . . 2021 Series 3: 78 . . . Final Play Now: 78
Markelle Fultz has always been the biggest mystery in the NBA.
Everyone knows the talent he has. When he has played — especially in the 2020 season — he showed he could get to the basket and playmake in the paint. The shooting remains a question and the big missing piece — his Glitched card rated 89 in MyTeam that juiced his shooting numbers was one of the better cards at that rating.
But Fultz has shown he can be a solid player in the league. The question is just how quickly he can return to form after another devastating injury. Last year, Fultz got off to such a good start. There was legitimate excitement for him and his development. Even if he was starting to slow down right before his injury.
The Sixer Sense
Having that big burst of play and then seeing it suddenly shut down was frustrating.
Fultz seemingly has to start completely over now. He is beginning from scratch as he tries to rebuild himself yet again. That seems like the story of his career to this point.
Right now, nobody knows what to expect from him. Nobody knows when to expect him either.
Fultz will still show flashes of the things that made him the first overall pick. But expecting him to be that player the whole time is probably far-fetched at this point with all the injuries he has faced.
Everyone is waiting for him.
Projected Rating: 76
Wendell Carter
2020 Current NBA: 77 . . . 2021 Current NBA: 78 . . . 2021 Series 3: 82 . . . Final Play Now: 82
The one thing Wendell Carter needed, much like Markelle Fultz, was a fresh start. The trade to Orlando proved to be a huge thing for Carter. He immediately got the starting job and ran with it, putting in consistent performances and re-establishing his defensive potential.
The Orlando Magic were not good after the trade deadline. No one is denying that. But Orlando’s best moments came with Carter as the backstop. His big blocks in the wins over the LA Clippers and New Orleans Pelicans always stood out.
Carter still has plenty of potential to build upon. He was always a solid player who could defend and shoot from the perimeter a bit. The Magic saw enough of it to be satisfied with him staying as the starting center heading into this first year of the rebuild.
How much more he can build upon that will remain the question.
Carter though will likely be one of the highest-rated players on the Magic when NBA 2K22 gets released. Even with an inconsistent jumper and not a lot of solid track record behind him. It will not be the same kind of disservice the game gave to Nikola Vucevic (somehow just an 82 overall rating at release of last year’s game).
Or the team has to hope not. Carter is a solid starter at this point and he should come out somewhere in the upper 70s.
Projected Rating: 79
Orlando Magic: Predicting NBA 2K ratings
Not Quite Starter Level
The Orlando Magic are likely only going to have jsut one player ranked in the Emerald tier (80-83 overall rating) when MyTeam tips off in the video game this year. The Emerald tier is a shorthand for clear starters. The next tier — Sapphire (84-86) — is for borderline All-Stars and the next tier is for the surefire All-Stars in the league.
The worst teams in the league will often only have one or two players in the Emerald tier if any at all. The Magic might end up being one of those teams with a bunch of players just under this tier at 79.
By my count, I believe the Magic will have one Emerald player and he will get his own slide.
Terrence Ross
2020 Current NBA: 77 . . . 2021 Current NBA: 77 . . . 2021 Series 3: 77 . . . Final Play Now: 77
Terrence Ross is a great shooter. That is about the biggest thing he brings to the table. And it usually earns him some souped-up cards for MyTeam at some point. He is popular because the Toronto Raptors version of him is also a great dunker in addition to being a great shooter.
But in the regular game, Ross can sometimes be difficult to play with. Players who are cutters are extremely tough to play with in video games because they rely on the computer going through animations and then timing the pass well.
Ross usually gets relegated to a spot-up shooter in video games and that eliminates a lot of his effectiveness in real life. Not that Ross is a poor spot-up shooter either.
Ross will fall just short of that surefire starter spot. He had a poor 2021 season as his shooting percentage plummeted a bit. He still feels like a bit of an odd fit from this roster, although the team will value his veteran leadership and desperately need his 3-point shooting.
That will not help his overall rating much. Neither will be playing for a bad team.
Ross is a borderline starter in this league. He is one of the best sixth men in the league. And Ross will be one of the most coveted players at the trade deadline this coming February.
Projected Rating: 76
Jalen Suggs
Jalen Suggs is one of the best rookies in this draft class.
NBA 2K said so, revealing his overall rating as a 77, fourth-best in the rookie class. Toronto Raptors fans took some umbrage to that after they took Scottie Barnes with the fourth overall pick.
Maybe do not go off-board next time.
https://twitter.com/NBA2K/status/1428840167406665734
Suggs certainly seemed to play the part in Summer League. He looked as good as advertised in those games. Magic fans are extremely giddy to see him suit up.
But this should be a reminder that rookies are still rookies. It is extremely rare for a rookie player to make an immediate impact. Expectations for rookies are always both overboard and tempered at all times. The NBA is a beast for any new player.
Suggs will still likely be one of the better players on the Magic — both in real life and virtually. But that rating is the one that belongs to a rookie. Even if he might have attributes that make him one of the better players at that tier.
Projected Rating: 77
Orlando Magic: Predicting NBA 2K ratings
Jonathan Isaac
2020 Current Series: 80 . . . 2021 Current Series: 82 . . . 2021 Series 3: 82 . . . Final Play Now: 82
It is pretty incredible the consistency in the feeling about Jonathan Isaac.
He was out the entire season last year and maintained an 82 overall rating. There is no reason to think that will change. It will make Isaac the best player on the team in the game. And Isaac, once he is healthy, will probably be the best player on the team.
Isaac has a long history of being one of the most popular players in the game. Despite his injury, Isaac got cards with overall ratings of 98 in the Fan Favorites set and then a perfect 99 in another set.
Isaac’s defense and rim protection is a video game in real life. And Magic fans are understandably excited to have him back.
Still, there are a lot of questions regarding his offense and his ability to take over games. Isaac is going to be pushed into a leadership role this year all the while recovering from his torn ACL that kept him out all of last season.
And Isaac has general questions about staying healthy in general. He has had only one fully healthy season in his career in four seasons in the league. Orlando invested a four-year contract in him that begins next year, but Isaac still has a lot to prove.
In the context of this video game though, Isaac will be a player who makes a huge impact defensively. If 2K’s developers are claiming they revamped the defense in this year’s game, it will make Isaac all the more valuable with his versatility on that end.
As the game progresses, if he can start shooting better, then Isaac might have an outside shot at making an All-Star Game. And by the time the second series of the current rosters come out at the trade deadline, Isaac might be ready to claim a spot among the near-All-Stars.
And that will set everyone up to buy this game to play as the Magic in NBA 2K23.