The 10 highest-rated Portland Trail Blazers in NBA 2K history, 5 to 1:
Per Game Statistics in 2008-09: 22.6 PPG | 4.7 RPG | 5.1 APG | 57.3 TS% | POR record: 54-28
By this point, Brandon Roy’s meteoric rise to becoming one of the NBA’s best had reached a nirvana; the heart of his prime. Kobe Bryant had referred to him as “the most difficult player to guard,” something his 22.6 point per game average couldn’t begin to do justice.
Roy ramped his game up in the postseason, too, averaging 26.7 points per game on 45.9 percent from the field, 47.9 percent from 3, and 87.0 percent from the field. Best of all, the Portland Trail Blazers were back into the postseason for the first time since 2003. Roy was ranked the No. 31 best player in the league in NBA 2K9.
Per Game Stats in 2014-15: 23.4 PPG | 10.2 RPG | 1.0 BPG | 46.6 FG% | POR record: 51-31
Over a stretch from 2010-11 to 2014-15, there was a legitimate argument for LaMarcus Aldridge being the game’s best power forward. Aldridge’s calling card has been consistency, but the peak of his powers likely came in his final two years in Portland.
NBA 2K15‘s launch coincided with Aldridge’s otherworldly 2014 postseason, where he averaged 26.2 PPG and 10.2 RPG on 45.2 percent shooting. Strapped with badges and elite offensive attributes, tied for the No. 10 player in the NBA this season.
Per Game Stats in 2001-02: 19.3 PPG | 8.2 RPG | 1.3 BPG | 46.9 FG% | POR record: 49-33
Rasheed Wallace likely benefitted a bit from a more generous, upstart NBA 2K rating scale; a whopping 21 players had an overall of 90 or higher in NBA 2K2. And as you’ll soon find out, Wallace wasn’t even the highest-rated player on his team.
‘Sheed’s high rating is understandable to a degree. In playing for a team that had a bench that could defeat most teams’ starting lineups, he never quite had the luxury, nor the mentality of putting up Chris Webber, Kevin Garnett-type numbers. But few players were as skilled as the 4-time All-Star.
Per Game Stats in 2000-01: 11.3 PPG | 5.2 RPG | 4.6 APG | 54.1 TS% | POR record: 50-32
Scottie Pippen may have fell short of a Chicago-style three-peat in Rip City, but he enjoyed a back-to-back of another kind — 94 overall nods in NBA 2K and NBA 2K1.
According to 2K, Pippen wasn’t a shell of himself even at his advanced age, either. His 2000-01 statistics look like something you’d see from say, Lance Stephenson, but perhaps they’re taking into effect Portland’s deep roster, and Pippen’s flair for the intangibles and defensive, non-box score contributions.
For entertainment’s sake, here’s a look at Pippen’s year-to-year 2K history.
Per Game Stats in 2019-20: 30.0 PPG | 8.0 APG | 4.3 RPG | 62.7 TS% | POR record: 35-39
And at No. 1, cover star Damian Lillard owns the top nod with his 94 overall in this year’s NBA 2K21 (unless you’re considering Drexler’s 97 and Walton’s 95 on the all-time scale). He produced one of the NBA’s most brilliant, unique offensive seasons in league history, and was rewarded as such. We threw the question to Twitter; most fans believed that he was a tad bit underrated for a cover star.
There’s likely not much to be said about Lillard’s excellence that we haven’t said already here at Rip City Project. Lillard owns a coveted 94, with 40 badges — 27 gold, and one Hall of Fame, and that ties for the No. 8 spot in the talented-as-ever current NBA.