The NBA’s Top 10 Moves That Belong In A Video Game

For NBA fans, it’s that time of year again: The fall is here. There’s crisp fall air, it’s starting to get colder at night and we’ve all started to break out our wind breakers. You look out the window and see some of the leaves on the trees are starting to die. That’s when it hits you — training camp for your favorite team is right around the corner. It’s almost October, and that means that it’s almost time for the NBA 2K franchise to release another game. Along with the 2K release will be the release of NBA Live 13, a return by EA Sports after a two-year hiatus gamers have been looking forward to.

With these releases and excitement in mind, we’ve generated a list of the 10 best moves in basketball in real life that belong on a video game. These are moves that just leave you speechless — and opponents staggering.

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10. RAJON RONDO’S BALL FAKE

Rondo’s ball-fakes are one of the most deceiving moves on the floor. It’s something you would see on the local basketball court up the street from your house or maybe a recreation center, but the NBA? Rondo has taken this move and added various spins on it to make it his own. He fakes defenders out of their shoes and creates open lanes for passes or easy points. This is easily one of the craziest, yet simplest, moves in the game today.

9. KEVIN DURANT’S DEEP THREE

When playing NBA 2K, you’ll notice that Clark Kellogg has a saying about three-point shooters. Sometimes, after making a three, Kellogg will say a character has “in-the-gym” range. That’s what Kevin Durant possesses every time he steps on a basketball court. Whether the shot is 15 feet or 40 feet, Durant is going to have a shot at making it given a clean look — or contested. His long arms and perfect arc are what make his threes such high-percentage shots. When he steps over the halfcourt line you better put a man on him.



8. KOBE BRYANT’S FADEAWAY

The Bryant fadeaway has always been something that has an unrealistic feel to it. Bryant is able to get up high above a defender’s contest and hold the ball for what seems like an eternity while hanging in the air before shooting. Whether he has perfect timing or not, on this shot it seems like it’s going in every single time. Very rarely is this shot able to be blocked because of the separation he creates between himself and the defender. Though it isn’t the best shot selection in the world, it’s still something that’s amazing to view.


7. LEBRON JAMES’ NO-LOOK PASS

James has all of the makings of a video game character — but his passing abilities are just one facet of his game that make him unstoppable on the floor. He’s one of the best passers in the game today and probably one of the best — right there with the great Larry Bird — at the forward position. The way he’s able to execute no-look passes off of the bounce and through the paint is something that is hard to fathom as first for the human mind. These jaw-dropping passes through traffic are something to behold.



6. RUSSELL WESTBROOK’S PULL-UP J

Westbrook’s pull-up jumpers are simply amazing in his ability to turn one of the simplest moves into something that is truly unguardable. It’s very similar to Bryant’s fade-away jumper because of the way Westbrook elevates over the defense. He’s able to shoot over 7-footers with that shot at the height of 6-4 — that’s something that no one else in the NBA can do at that height. His explosiveness shows as he goes up and holds the ball until he’s over the defense and a perfect release in attainable. How’s that for a cheat code, right?



5. TONY PARKER’S PAINT NAVIGATION

Parker gets through the paint the easiest in the NBA, like a snake with the ball. He’ll go through a defense and find the smallest crease to lay the ball in with the perfect trajectory and angle, using whatever move he can to get there also. His moves range from spins to side-steps to scoops to tear-drops; Parker’s arsenal is something that you’d give to a created player with an overall rating of 99 on close shooting. Though executing these moves on the controller is sometimes hard, when you do pull it off it’s almost through osmosis, just feeling your way through the game — just as Parker does in real life.



4. DWYANE WADE’S BLOCKS

Wade led the league in blocks for guards last season with 1.3 blocks per game, by, at 6-4, being able to block the shots of players who are over 6-10. The way he’s able to help from the weak side and defend a shot is something that no one else in the league is able to do from the two-guard position. He’s a master of the chase-down block but he’s blocking bigs straight up just as much. That makes it that much more impressive. On a video game, Wade’s block rating would be out of this world. Destroying shots at his size isn’t something that we’ve seen before.



3. JAMES HARDEN’S BODY CONTROL

Harden is another crafty player who has made the list despite a rather tentative and unassuming look. Harden doesn’t strike you as the type to have a skill that would be on a video game. However, his body control is an innate skill very few possess in the NBA now. The way he is able to get through traffic in only two steps and finish at the rim is remarkable. He has an uncanny way of exposing the ball and getting as close as possible to the rim before scooping it up through contact. In a video game, this type of player is a rather annoying presence because of all of the and-ones he generates.



2. DERRICK ROSE’S CRAZY LAY-UPS

When D-Rose is on the floor, he’s the most explosive player in the NBA. No one is able to start and stop better than him when healthy and his explosiveness and ability to hit circus shots are a combination that no one else has on the floor. Able to contort himself in whatever direction is needed in order to have a clean angle at the backboard or the rim, Rose can see a crease like Parker in the lane but translate it into a finish at the rim. His lay-up package would be something that every created player on a video game would need to boast.



1. DIRK NOWITZKI’S ONE-LEGGED FADEAWAY

This is the most unguardable shot in basketball. The way that Dirk does it is very crafty and caught opponents off guard at first by using his leg to gain separation. It allows the shot to release while leaning back at the steepest angle possible, reaching the highest arch of any shot in basketball this side of a Derek Fisher three. No one is going to get their hands on it as it goes up. That’s a featured shot that almost everyone wants to have. Whether real life or virtual gameplay, there is no way of stopping that shot. It’s the ultimate cheat code in the NBA.

What do you think should be No. 1?

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