Breaking Down the Thunder NBA 2K14 Player Ratings

Via Operation Sports and SI's NBA Section:

Yes, the day is upon us! The day where we get to look at how the NBA 2K crew views our beloved team, and disagree with them to no end.

I'll kick off this article with a few observations about the roster, and conclude with some individual analysis.

• Kevin Durant is the second best player in the game, but only leads Kobe Bryant and Chris Paul by a single point.
• Russell Westbrook is tied for 7th with Dwayne Wade. KD, LeBron, Bryant, Paul, Melo, and Rose are all ahead of him.
• Serge Ibaka, at 84, is tied for the fourth best power forward in the game with LaMarcus Aldridge and Dirk Nowitzki. Tim Duncan (87), Blake Griffin (86), and Kevin Love (85) are all ahead of him.
• Thabo Sefolosha, at 70, is tied for the 55th best shooting guard in the game. Jeremy Lamb, a point ahead of him at 71, is tied for the 48th best shooting guard in the game.
• Kendrick Perkins, at 70, is tied for the 29th best center in the game.
• Obviously, the Thunder have the second highest-rated two player duo with Westbrook and Durant. But when you consider Ibaka as part of a three player combo, you'll find out that they also have the second highest rated three player duo, because Bosh is rated higher, at 82.
• The only center in the game rated higher than 90 is Dwight Howard. The only other center in the game rated above 85 is Andrew Bynum. The only power forward in the game rated higher than 85 is Tim Duncan.

Kevin Durant

2013 Overall: 96

2014 Overall: 94

I really don't think Kevin Durant got any worse last season, and I don't think NBA 2K thought so either. I mean, he's still the NBA's second best player. I'd chalk up his loss of skill to their need to glorify LeBron James. I don't really agree with KD going a whole 5 points lower than LeBron, but whatever.

Russell Westbrook

2013 Overall: 90

2014 Overall: 91

Yep, Westbrook is still Westbrook. He definitely did improve a bit last year, but when you consider that everyone got nixed in the light of LeBron, I'd say that this is a result of his injury. The fact that the Thunder couldn't get anywhere without him has done a lot for his stock, and risen him to the level of NBA elites.

Serge Ibaka

2013 Overall: 85

2014 Overall: 84

It's a huge pile of horsecrap that Ibaka lost a point while Westbrook gained one. Here you could again point to last year's playoffs and his disappointing performance, but I'd say that it's also because they nixed the inside scoring this year. Basically, they're making it harder to get into easy dunk animations and stuff like that, which was a huge part of Ibaka's 2K game. And he can't create his own shot, so there's that.

Jeremy Lamb

2013 Overall: 64

2014 Overall: 71

I guess playing in the D-League really did a lot for Lamb's game. Honestly, making him the fourth best player on the team is just a tad hype-heavy. I mean, didn't Reggie Jackson average 13.9 PPG in last year's playoffs?

Reggie Jackson

2013 Overall: 69

2014 Overall: 70

Yeah, I really don't get this at all. I mean, I don't think he should be sky-high or anything, but he established himself last year as the fourth most skilled player on the team, clearly. Plus, his inside scoring rating doesn't accurately reflect his athleticism.

Kendrick Perkins

2013 Overall: 68

2014 Overall: 70

Lol.

Thabo Sefolosha

2013 Overall: 70

2014 Overall: 70

Yeah, he's a known quantity at this point.

Derek Fisher

2013 Overall: 70

2014 Overall: 69

Oh, the ravages of age, making Derek Fisher ever so slightly worse.

Nick Collison

2013 Overall: 72

2014 Overall: 64

WHAT?! This is pretty much totally and utterly inexplicable. His stats actually improved a small tad last season, and he performed the same role on the team. I just don't understand....

Perry Jones III

2013 Overall: 63

2014 Overall: 63

Nothing seen outta him, so nothing changes.

Hasheem Thabeet

2013 Overall: 64

2014 Overall: 57

Again, another totally unexplained drop. Given the ratings of Reggie Jackson and Serge Ibaka, I'd say the developers are rewarding toward actual skill and shying away from physical assets.

Daniel Orton

2013 Overall: 63

2014 Overall: 56

Given that he hardly played, I don't understand this. But given how I hardly saw him play, I can't really criticize it either.

Rookies/New Guys:

Ryan Gomes 65, Andre Roberson 65, Steven Adams 57

All of these ratings are pretty fair. Ryan Gomes may or may not be on an unguaranteed contract, and we don't know how close he is to his previous level. Meanwhile Roberson is coming into the league with a better skillset than Adams, but a considerably lower ceiling.

What do you think of the NBA 2K14 ratings? Let us know in the poll and comments!