Tag Archives: Trade

Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is a list of five events that are realistic, yet feel unrealistic when they happen to us in basketball video games.

To paraphrase a couple of iconic quotes from literary giants that I mentioned in this week’s Wayback Wednesday, truth is stranger than fiction, in no small part because fiction has to adhere to possibilities that real life doesn’t. We mock events in works of fiction that seem too convenient, yet history is filled with serendipity. In a similar vein, common effects in movies and TV shows that make them more dramatic and entertaining – the sound of a blade being drawn, a bullet ricocheting, and so on – skew our expectations of reality.

In short, we’re not always as accurate as we believe when it comes to gauging whether or not something is realistic. This is certainly true of sim basketball games like NBA 2K, and NBA Live back in its heyday. We wanted to see those games become more and more realistic, and the best releases have achieved commendable results in that regard. With that being said, I’ll be the first to put my hand up and admit that my views of what’s realistic and unrealistic in sim titles have sometimes been rigid or myopic. That’s not to say that realistic moments can’t be represented poorly on the virtual hardwood, but even when they’re done well, they can feel unrealistic to us.

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This is Wayback Wednesday, your midweek blast from the past! From retrospectives of basketball games and their interesting features, to republished articles and looking at NBA history through the lens of the virtual hardwood, Wednesdays at the NLSC are for going back in time. This week, I’m going back to NBA Live 10 and NBA 2K10 to try to replicate The Decision that saw LeBron James go to the Miami Heat.

16 years ago today, LeBron James announced that he had chosen to join the Miami Heat in an ESPN special titled The Decision. Needless to say, it’s one of the most significant events in NBA history. Sure, stars had switched teams before, changing the fortunes of clubs and the landscape of the league. Of course, as a generational talent joining forces with two other stars, LeBron’s move was particularly impactful. The Decision – both the choice in free agency and the special itself – are unavoidable talking points when discussing LeBron James and his legacy.

I’m not going into all of that today, though. Instead, I want to talk about how difficult it can be to replicate moves like The Decision in video games. We see a lot of crazy trades and signings in franchise and career modes, but ironically some of the wildest moves from real life would be considered unrealistic if they occurred in a game, and are incredibly tough or indeed impossible to pull off. With that in mind, is it possible to choose the Heat in NBA Live 10 and NBA 2K10, and have LeBron James make The Decision to take his talents to South Beach? Let’s take a look back…way back…

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is a list of five things that I loved about my NBA Live 2004 Dynasty.

Back in May, I reflected on five things that I loved about my MyCAREER game with the Denver Nuggets in NBA 2K13. That was a fun trip down memory lane, so today I’m doing the same for my NBA Live 2004 Dynasty with the Chicago Bulls! Like my NBA 2K13 MyCAREER, my NBA Live 2004 Dynasty remains one of my all-time favourite basketball gaming memories and experiences. I’ve reminisced about both of them for Wayback Wednesday, but I wanted to revisit some of the key reasons that they were so memorable, and indeed more successful than a few of my other games.

After all, in theory it might seem like a good idea to take cues from games that turned out so well. It’s certainly worth keeping them in mind and having an approach that you know will generally work for you, but some of the things that make a franchise or career mode game so special just can’t be replicated. From the excitement of having a brand new experience to specific scenarios and circumstances, a certain amount of uniqueness goes a long way in those games becoming treasured memories. My NBA Live 2004 Dynasty was a combination of many things that make franchise modes an exciting journey, and these five were major factors in keeping me hooked for hours.

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This is Wayback Wednesday, your midweek blast from the past! From retrospectives of basketball games and their interesting features, to republished articles and looking at NBA history through the lens of the virtual hardwood, Wednesdays at the NLSC are for going back in time. This week, I’m pondering another historical NBA What If, specifically what if Isiah Thomas was traded to the Knicks in 1994?

Let it be known that I’m not a big fan of Isiah Thomas! I certainly respect his skill and accomplishments, and I’d even go so far as to say that like too many players of his era, he’s now become somewhat underrated. However, I’ve never respected his decision to lead the walk-off after the Chicago Bulls finally topped the Detroit Pistons in the 1991 Eastern Conference Finals, and consider it a stain on his character. Also, many of his comments regarding Michael Jordan in recent years have been incredibly petty, and laughably inaccurate. I’d suggest that some of the harsh truths in The Last Dance hurt!

With that being said, he’s undoubtedly one of the all-time greats. On top of being a two-champion and 12-time All-Star, Isiah Thomas remains the Detroit Pistons’ all-time leader in points, assists, steals, and minutes, having spent his entire NBA career with the club. However, there was briefly a possibility that Zeke might end his career with the New York Knicks – a team that he’d later come to be associated with – and one more NBA Finals run. It’s an interesting What If, and with the Knicks back in the NBA Finals, it feels like a good time to revisit it! Let’s take a look back…way back…

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This is Wayback Wednesday, your midweek blast from the past! From retrospectives of basketball games and their interesting features, to republished articles and looking at NBA history through the lens of the virtual hardwood, Wednesdays at the NLSC are for going back in time. This week, I’m pondering another historical NBA What If, specifically what if Charles Barkley was traded to the Lakers in 1992?

When I think of Charles Barkley, I generally picture him in the Phoenix Suns’ iconic sunburst uniforms of the 90s. After all, that’s where he was playing when I started taking a keener interest in basketball. Hoop heads who have been watching longer than I have may well picture him on the Philadelphia 76ers instead, and indeed that stint accounts for half of his career. With that being said, it wouldn’t surprise me if the MVP and NBA Finals appearance in 1993 has led to those fans likewise coming to associate Chuck with the Suns more than the 76ers (or the Houston Rockets).

Of course, had a proposed trade gone through in 1992, it seems a safe bet to say that we’d have never seen Sir Charles in a Suns or Rockets uniform. For a brief moment, Charles Barkley was set to join the Los Angeles Lakers, before the deal went up in smoke. As with any What If involving legendary players, it’s fascinating trying to imagine an alternate history and all of the possible ripple effects. It’s all speculation at the end of the day, but Charles Barkley going to the Lakers is undoubtedly a huge What If, in real life and on the virtual hardwood. Let’s take a look back…way back…

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This is Wayback Wednesday, your midweek blast from the past! From retrospectives of basketball games and their interesting features, to republished articles and looking at NBA history through the lens of the virtual hardwood, Wednesdays at the NLSC are for going back in time. This week, I’m once again revisiting NBA Live 95 for the Super Nintendo, in order to demonstrate how Dominique Wilkins can break the game.

There are several reasons why I enjoy revisiting classic basketball video games. So many titles remain a blast to this day, so I love hitting the virtual hardwood in them. Also, there’s always the possibility of discovering something new, whether it’s a cool feature or mechanic that I overlooked, an explanation for a design choice or technical issue, or a fun bit of roster trivia. And of course, if you mess around with a game, you might stumble across something truly weird! That’s what happened when I reversed the Dominique Wilkins for Danny Manning trade in the Super Nintendo version of NBA Live 95. Here’s a video breaking down a rather unexpected sim engine outcome!

I hope you enjoyed this exploration of a weird phenomenon that we can create in NBA Live 95’s Season mode! I’ll have to mess around a little more and see if I can find any other players that are capable of having the same impact as Dominique Wilkins when traded. In the meantime, let me know if you’ve encountered any sim engine oddities like this one, and also be sure to subscribe to the NLSC’s YouTube channel! In addition to in-depth game retrospectives, essays, and features like this, you’ll also find plenty of gameplay highlight reels, the weekly NLSC Top 10 Plays curated by Dee, episodes of the NLSC Podcast, and more basketball gaming videos.

Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is a list of five real events that I wish had happened during the course of my NBA 2K14 MyCAREER.

My offline MyCAREER in NBA 2K14 continues to be a blast. I’m sure that much is obvious from the fact that I’m in my sixth season, to say nothing of how often I’ve talked about it in articles and on our podcast! In any case, it’s been a fun ride so far, and I’m eager to continue the journey. For the most part, there isn’t much that I’d change. Sure, it’s unfortunate that my bid to go 82-0 was thwarted once again in Year 6, but the elusiveness of that goal is now part of the story. As much as I like realism, the unlikely results and fictional moves have made my virtual career enjoyable.

Of course, it’s also been entertaining to see my game mimic real life in unexpected ways, such as LeBron James joining the Los Angeles Lakers (albeit much earlier in this case). This combination of real life and fiction forms the alternate realities that make multi-season play in career and franchise modes so fun and rewarding. All the same, I’d be lying if I said there weren’t any real events that I would’ve liked to have seen come to pass in my NBA 2K14 MyCAREER. Again, I do enjoy the fictional and unusual outcomes as well, but both the on-court experience and the narrative of my NBA 2K14 MyCAREER would’ve benefitted from reflecting a handful of real events.

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From courtside of the virtual hardwood, it’s Episode #566 of the NLSC Podcast!

The basketball world was shocked by the announcement that the Dallas Mavericks had traded Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers for Anthony Davis. Naturally, we have a few thoughts on the deal, and what it means for both teams moving forward! Criminally underrated players from yesteryear are also on our minds as of late, so this week, we join the community in naming some of the ballers who deserve to be talked about more often. Finally, we recap an excellent co-op session with the PC version of NBA Live 2005, in which we took on the Philadelphia 76ers with the Orlando Magic. We also compare it to NBA Live 06, and other games in the NBA Live series.

Download or play on your mobile device/tablet: CLICK HERE (Running time: 1:44:52 — 72.4MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify

To get involved with the mailbag or to provide any feedback on the show, hit us up in the comments, reach out on social media, or post here in the NLSC Forum! For more information on the NLSC Podcast including episode guides, check out this page in our Wiki. You can also find the show on our YouTube channel, along with the rest of our video content. As always, thanks for tuning in, and go get buckets!

This is Wayback Wednesday, your midweek blast from the past! From retrospectives of basketball games and their interesting features, to republished articles and looking at NBA history through the lens of the virtual hardwood, Wednesdays at the NLSC are for going back in time. This week, I’m taking a look back at Herb Williams and his lengthy association with the New York Knicks.

When we think of players who are synonymous with the New York Knicks, I feel quite confident in saying that Herb Williams probably isn’t the first one that comes to mind for most people. NBA history buffs will likely recall Willis Reed, the Finals MVP on both of the Knicks’ championship teams in the 1970s, or his teammate Walt “Clyde” Frazier. Obviously, Patrick Ewing will be a popular choice, being an All-Star and the franchise’s all-time leader in twenty categories. Carmelo Anthony and Amar’e Stoudemire might be the first Knicks that younger fans think of.

If tasked to keep naming Knicks, then players like Charles Oakley, John Starks, Dave DeBusschere, Bill Bradley, Anthony Mason, Earl Monroe, Allan Houston, Latrell Sprewell, Bernard King, Micheal Ray Richardson, and Dick Barnett will be on the list. Marcus Camby, Kurt Thomas, Charlie Ward, and even Phil Jackson will possibly get a mention. These days, Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle will probably be brought up as notable New York Knicks long before Herb Williams is. This is understandable, yet at the same time, Williams can claim one of the longest tenures in the history of the team, which produced some interesting stories. Let’s take a look back…way back…

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is a list of five weird bugs and design errors that I’ve encountered in the modes of basketball video games.

It bears repeating that no video game, basketball or otherwise, is going to be perfect. If it were possible to design games and software that were completely bug-free, it would’ve happened a long time ago! As basketball games and their modes have become deeper and more sophisticated, the chances of there being a few bugs here and there has only increased. Likewise, while there have been some very smart and passionate people working on basketball video games past and present, not all ideas pan out as well as hoped, leading to what we could reasonably call design errors.

Needless to say, it’s frustrating for everyone when bugs and design errors stand in the way of modes being as fun as they could and should be. In the best case scenario, a patch can fix the problem, or the issue will be resolved in next year’s release at the latest. Sadly that isn’t always the case, and there are times when we’ve been stuck with bugs and design errors for a few games running (and sometimes, even longer). Even when bugs and design errors don’t completely ruin a mode, they still have an impact on the experience, and they become one of the things that we remember most about a title. Here are five weird bugs and design errors that I’ve encountered in modes I play.

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This is Wayback Wednesday, your midweek blast from the past! From retrospectives of basketball games and their interesting features, to republished articles and looking at NBA history through the lens of the virtual hardwood, Wednesdays at the NLSC are for going back in time. This week, I’m taking a look back at the trade confirmation pop-up in NBA Live 2000’s Franchise mode.

The evolution of basketball video games has resulted in the revamping or complete disappearance of features, both big and small. To that end, if you’re a veteran of the virtual hardwood, there’s bound to be at least one feature from an old favourite that you miss in newer titles. Of course, sometimes it doesn’t take long for a useful feature or gameplay mechanic to disappear. We’ve seen numerous short-lived features, some of which are unique to the games they appear in. They may not be popular or even absolutely necessary, but our desire to see them return makes them Wishlist staples.

I have a shortlist of such features, but one of the first that always comes to mind is the trade confirmation pop-up in the very first Franchise mode in NBA Live 2000. It was such a fantastic detail, yet it was gone the very next year, and has never returned in any games since. Not only that, but the concept doesn’t seem to have ever been picked up by NBA 2K, or the Season and Franchise modes in any other series for that matter. This may seem like a very esoteric feature to cover, but if you’ve played Franchise in NBA Live 2000, you’ll know why it matters. Let’s take a look back…way back…

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This is Wayback Wednesday, your midweek blast from the past! From retrospectives of basketball games and their interesting features, to republished articles and looking at NBA history through the lens of the virtual hardwood, Wednesdays at the NLSC are for going back in time. This week, I’m attempting to roll back the rosters in the SNES version of NBA Live 95 so that they’re accurate as of Opening Night 1993.

Last year, I tried my hand at updating the rosters in the Super Nintendo version of NBA Live 95 so that they were accurate as of the 1995 season. As you may be aware, the console versions of NBA Live 95 featured final 1994 season rosters, whereas the PC version was updated for the current year. Updating the rosters in NBA Live 95 for SNES is a cumbersome task. There are no external ROM hacking tools, rosters can only be customised in Season mode, and only starters can be traded. Ultimately, I was able to update 17 of the 27 teams with a 1995 season starting lineup.

Honestly, that was more success than I was expecting! Mind you, there were plenty of inaccuracies on the bench, with players that I was unable to trade. Reflecting on that experiment, I wondered how much accuracy I could achieve in the rosters – both the starting lineups and the benches – if I went the other way, rolling back the lineups in NBA Live 95 SNES to the beginning of the 1994 season. I don’t need much of an excuse to revisit any version of NBA Live 95, so let’s take a look back…way back…

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is reflecting on five weird outcomes in my various franchise and career games over the years.

There are many ways to play franchise modes in basketball video games. I’ve always preferred a more straightforward approach: take control of a team with current rosters, leave injuries and CPU trades on (assuming they’re optional), and play through the season to create my own reality. While this may be more conventional than a fantasy draft or using a heavily customised roster, it’s not immune to weird outcomes. Sim engines are prone to producing unexpected results, from season standings and Playoff outcomes to weird league leaders. Obviously, this happens in career modes as well.

Of course, when we’re talking about realism and weird outcomes with sim engines, it isn’t easy to define what that actually means. Results and player movement may not reflect reality, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they’re unrealistic in nature. In real life, we do see puzzling trades, bewildering awards and All-Star snubs, and teams that are surprisingly better or worse than expected. Some outcomes are unlikely, but weird things do happen practically every year in the NBA. With that being said, sim engines do produce some illogical and weird outcomes that are unrealistic and highly unlikely given the circumstances. Here are five examples that I’ve encountered.

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is a list of five frustrating restrictions that we’ve encountered in various basketball video games.

There are obviously going to be restrictions in basketball video games, some of which we’ll find frustrating. In some cases, those restrictions are due to technical limitations. Others are design choices, and those are the ones that we find more bothersome, as we know it didn’t necessarily have to be that way. In all fairness though, these restrictions can sometimes be for the best. If not for some of them, games would be unbalanced and far less enjoyable. When cleverly implemented, restrictions can prevent exploits and ensure that games are challenging, without ruining the fun.

Striving for realism in sim games also results in restrictions that can be frustrating, but ultimately in an enjoyable way, since they reflect obstacles that teams and players do actually face in real life. To that point though, we’re bound to grumble when we’re restricted in a way that doesn’t accurately represent an NBA rule. As for frustrating restrictions that are simply design choices, there have been some over the years that just haven’t been good ideas. Alternatively, they’re good and sensible ideas in theory, but were poorly executed. Some of those restrictions are recent or rare, but others are recurring issues that we’ve been encountering in basketball games for generations.

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Welcome to this week’s edition of The Friday Five! The Friday Five is a feature that I post every Friday in which I give my thoughts on a topic that’s related to NBA Live, NBA 2K, and other basketball video games, as well as the real NBA, and other areas of interest to our community. The feature is presented as either a list of five items, or in the form of a Top 5 countdown. This week’s Five is a list of five details found in various basketball games that aged rather quickly.

It’s impossible for basketball video games to completely avoid being outdated in their content. Obviously there are benefits to this – as I’ve discussed on many occasions, I love the way hoops games can act as interactive NBA almanacs – but the point is that certain aspects of basketball titles will have already aged by the time we get our hands on them. If nothing else, the rosters need to be locked by a certain date, which gives us fun oddities such as players only appearing on a particular team in video games, players who ultimately never played in the NBA being included in games, and so on.

Of course, now that official roster updates are the norm, it doesn’t matter that a game’s roster has aged by its release. An abundance of content updates and patches ensure that modern games can evolve and stay current far more easily than their much older predecessors could. Of course, there are elements that aren’t updated, and although their outdated nature may not ruin a game, they nevertheless stand out. Some of the examples I’m discussing today aged quickly because of events that occurred after their release, while others were already outdated before the game hit shelves. Either way they’re fun to look back at, especially when a major event is involved.

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