Jamal Murray Bamboozled By 2K Rating

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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JULY 08: Jamal Murray of the Denver Nuggetts is seen in attendance during the UFC 290 event at T-Mobile Arena on July 08, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
The Denver guard isn't happy about the video game version of himself.

NBA 2K has gained notoriety for not being great about player ratings. While they are mostly fine on the whole most. However, there have been some glaring exceptions. For example, every single WNBA player in 2K20 had the lowest possible dunking stat. While dunks are not commonplace in the WNBA, saying that 6"9 Liz Cambage and 5"5 Leilani Mitchell are equally bad at dunking is objectively wrong.

Meanwhile, fans loved rating reveal season because it allows them to debate who's underrated, who's overrated, etc. After the ratings were "leaked" earlier this week, fans got their first look at how well (or badly) 2k had done year. The top five are to be expected. Nikola Jokić, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Dončić, Joel Embiid, and LeBron James are all rated at 97. Just below them are Kevin Durant and Steph Curry at 96. However, there are a few surprises. Zion Williamson is a 92 despite only playing 29 games last season. Klay Thompson and Draymond Green are an 86 and 83 respectively. Furthermore, Jamal Murray has taken his rating very personally.

Murray Questions 84 Rating

Jamal Murray has come out as one of the most vocal critics of the revealed ratings. The Nuggets guard will start the game as an 84. It's a rating he shares with the likes of Cade Cunningham, Rudy Gobert, Jordan Poole, Franz Wagner, Nikola Vucevic, and Nic Claxton. "Ain't no way my rating that low! How is that possible??," Murray asked on Twitter. Looking into Murray's individual attributes, he has great perimeter shooting and playmaking. However, his ratings suffer from sub-80 athleticism, sub-70 inside scoring, sub-60 defense, and sub-50 rebounding.

It's Murray's second year starting the game as an 84. His best start to a game was as an 86 in 2k21. This is where things stop making a whole lot of sense. 2k21 was based on the 2019/20 season. That year, Murray's line was 18.5/4/4.8 with 34.6% shooting from three. 2k24 is based on the 2022/23 season. Last year, Murray's line was 20/4/6.2 with 39.8% shooting from three. So 2k decided that after an objectively better season, Murray deserved a worse rating than his historic peak. What's even funnier is that there is a version of Murray on the All-Time Nuggets team, and that version of Murray starts 2k24 as an 85 overall.

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About The Author
Benjamin Mock (they/them) is a sports and culture writer working out of Philadelphia. Previously writing for the likes of Fixture, Dexerto, Fragster, and Jaxon, Ben has dedicated themselves to engaging and accessible articles about sports, esports, and internet culture. With a love for the weirder stories, you never quite know what to expect from their work.
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