NBA 2K25 has been out for just under three weeks now, and that means fans are starting to get used to how their favorite players perform in the latest iteration of the storied franchise.
Speaking of storied franchises, the Boston Celtics are expected to be one of the best teams in the league this year. As such they have several players with high ratings. Despite that, fans of the Celtics will likely have disagreements with the game’s developers regarding the ratings assigned to some of Boston's best players.
Jayson Tatum’s 95 should be higher
Tatum isn’t just an elite player, but he’s one of the league's few true superstars. He’s an elite three-level scorer who can create his own shot anytime he wants.
He’s also an elite defensive player who can guard positions one through four with ease. He can also go to the five position in a pinch due to his combination of height, strength, and athleticism.
While Tatum can guard the five adequately in the traditional sense, and that just speaks to his versatility, he’s also more than capable of excelling in the small ball five role for brief periods of time. Tatum’s ball handling and shooting ability gives him an edge over many traditional centers, but he’s also capable of banging down on the block with the best of them.
When he plays a small ball center role, though, he typically plays to his strengths by getting the defender out in space, where he can blow by them using his speed and creation ability to set up a step-back jumper that most big men have no hope of contesting.
Defensively, Tatum typically tries to front the opposing player, preventing the ball from ever getting to the interior in the first place. If his primary responsibility does get the ball, though, Tatum isn’t hopeless. He’ll use his instincts and quickness to take strategic swipes at the ball and try to knock it loose. He’s also remarkably good at contesting shots for his size, with a strong understanding of angles and how to block, or at least disrupt an opponent’s shots.
Tatum really should be at least a 92 or 93 on defense given his ability to make an impact all over the court. Offense is where he really shines, though. He should be at 98 and you could even make a case for 99 overall given his ability to score efficiently from anywhere on the floor.
Jaylen Brown’s 92 is egregiously low and borderline disrespectful
Absolutely not. This rating is insulting. If Tatum’s rating is wrong but at least somewhat defensible or understandable, Brown's grade is simply absurd. Seeing this rating, one can’t help but get the sense that the developers decided ahead of time that they couldn’t have Brown rated anywhere near Tatum, because Tatum is viewed as the Celtics’ best player with Brown as his sidekick, rather than the other way around. Yet, that fundamentally misunderstands the Celtics’ hierarchy, and it’s disrespectful to both Brown and Tatum, but especially to Brown.
He’s not just a sidekick, he’s a superstar in his own right. If he wasn’t on the Celtics and was his team’s unquestioned best player, there’s little doubt that he could put up the exact same numbers as Tatum. He might even be better. As it stands, though, he comes pretty close to matching Tatum’s production.
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Defensively is where Brown really shines, though. In fact, he might even be better than Tatum at this end of the court. Brown always had upside as a scorer, but he was really drafted for his defensive potential and his ability to shut down opposing scorers.
Brown should be at least a 95 on both ends, and an overall rating of between 94 and 96 would be reasonable.
Kristaps Porzingis has had a nice career resurgence, but an 87 is a little high
Porzingis is a very good player, and he’s done an excellent job of rehabilitating his career with the Celtics after he was widely viewed as somewhat of a bust due to his high draft status. Yet, Porzingis’ resurgence may be slightly overstated with this ranking. He’s become a very effective player, but it seems as if the game’s developers might’ve been just a little bit too eager to frame Porzingis as an underdog who overcame adversity to be a superstar.
His story is inspiring, just not quite a star, though. In fairness, this rating is not egregious, and it could be defensible. It’s pushing the high end of what Porzingis is capable of and his real abilities, though. Porzingis should probably be ranked as an 85. Maybe an 86 or an 84, but an 87 is pushing it just a little bit.
