Best Teams in NBA 2K18

The 2017-2018 NBA season tips off on October 17 (with LeBron’s Cavs going up against Kyrie’s Celtics – so much drama) but you can experience some hoops action right now with NBA 2K18. Playing as your favorite team, however, might not be the best idea if you want to win games. You can probably destroy people online as the Golden State Warriors, but the Brooklyn Nets? Sounds like a double-digit loss in the making. 

If your team sucks and you don’t know who to play as, no worries. Below are the best teams in NBA 2K18, according to 2K Sports. Let the debate begin.

10. Dallas Mavericks

• Offense: 7th
• Defense: 16th

I’m surprised the Mavs made the top 10. End of the day, though, they still have former NBA MVP, Finals MVP and champ Dirk Nowitski, who can score from just about anywhere. I’m also looking forward to seeing what he and a healthy Wesley Matthews and Harrison Barnes can do. Additionally, I think Nerlens Noel will do some damage at the center position, so while Dirk has plenty of miles on his legs, this team might be good enough to play spoiler out west, and help you make some noise in 2K18.

9. Washington Wizards

• Offense: 9th
• Defense: 11th

The Wizards are THAT NBA team that always seems ready to break through to the next level, but fall victim to some other team standing in their way. Thankfully you don’t have to worry about that much while playing 2K18, thanks to superstar point guard John Wall, shooting guard Bradley Beal and the capable Marcin Gortat in the paint.

8. Toronto Raptors

• Offense: 9th
• Defense: 11th

This is the Washington Wizards all over again. I like watching Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan do their thing on the court. There just always seems to be another team ready to knock them off. But factor in the three-point shooting and shot-blocking ability of Serge Ibaka, and you’ll be able to keep many games competitive.

7. Houston Rockets

• Offense: 4th
• Defense: 21st

The scariest thing about Houston is that defensive stat, but this is what you get with a Mike D’Antoni coached team. You’ll put up a mess of points with the near unstoppable James Harden and Chris Paul, but the final scores to these games might be 121-118.  That said, literally every shot will be worthy of a Mike Breen “BANG!” Oh, and don’t forget to share the rock with Ryan Anderson and Trevor Ariza because your opponents will probably spend much of their time chasing Harden and Paul.

6. Los Angeles Clippers

• Offense: 16th
• Defense: 4th

No need to sugarcoat it. Losing Chris Paul to Houston is a big deal for this Clippers team, but they still managed a respectable overall rating in the game. Exchanging Paul for Patrick Beverly will result in some issues at point guard, but you still have DeAndre Jordan blocking shots, Blake Griffin wreaking havoc on the offense and even Danilo Gallinari hitting treys from beyond the three-point arc. Don’t fool yourself, though. These are not last season’s Clippers.

5. Milwaukee Bucks

• Offense: 10th
• Defense: 5th

This Bucks team is the squad that no one wants to draw in the playoffs. You can’t go wrong with them in 2K18, either, thanks to Greek Freak Giannis Antetokounmpo and a youthful Jabari Parker. Master playing with these guys and you’ll annoy all those bandwagon Warriors fans.

4. Boston Celtics

• Offense: 5th
• Defense: 12th

Isaiah Thomas was more than an exceptional point guard for the Celtics. He was the heart and soul of the team, so losing him to Cleveland hurts. On the bright side Boston received NBA champ Kyrie Irving, so it’s a mostly even trade, right? Sure he thinks the Earth is flat, but Kyrie can flat out score, and his supporting cast of Al Horford and Gordon Hayward will help you instill fear and plenty of rage into online opponents.

3. San Antonio Spurs

• Offense: 3rd
• Defense: 3rd

If only Kawhi Leonard didn’t go down with a nasty injury in last year’s playoffs against the Warriors, it could have been Spurs versus Cavs in the NBA Finals.  OK, maybe not, but the bottom line is you can’t go wrong picking San Antonio in 2K18. Kawhi is a top 5-player in the league and video game, LaMarcus Aldridge is solid down low and since this is a video game, you’ll probably squeeze some fountain of youth production from the aging Tony Parker and Pau Gasol.  

2. Golden State Warriors

• Offense: 2nd
• Defense: 2nd

Winning last year’s NBA Finals 4-1 and retaining all five starters somehow results in being the second most dangerous team in NBA 2K18? Sorry, we don’t buy it. The Dubs should be the top squad in this game with the rest of the league in the rearview.  We don’t care about that silly perceived rift between Kevin Durant and Steph Curry (following KD’s Under Armour diss). The Warriors have so much firepower that they can destroy every team in the game. Four of the five starters can make threes and take it inside, and on the rare chance that someone misses, center Zaza Pachulia will rebound the ball and kick it out to the open man… or covered man. When it comes to Golden State, everyone is open all of the time. Even Zaza!

1. Cleveland Cavaliers

• Offense: 1st
• Defense: 1st

We love LeBron James, but the fact is last year’s Cavs didn’t put up much of a fight against a stacked Warriors team. Picking up Isaiah Thomas from Boston is a nice addition over the seemingly disgruntled Kyrie Irving, but that isn’t enough to make this team number 1. Then again, LeBron is the greatest active player in the league. Game tied? Five seconds to go and James with the ball? Yeah, I’ll take that scenario every day.