With the release of the heavily anticipated NBA 2k22 less a month away, player ratings are starting to be unveiled to the public. Recently, Indiana Pacers All-Star Domantas Sabonis was one of the earliest players to have their ratings laid bare to fans.
After ending the season with an 87 rating in the last iteration of the video game, the NBA 2k21, the Lithuanian big man will begin the year with a lower rating at 86, placing him behind the likes of Utah’s Rudy Gobert, who was rated 88 and Chicago’s Zach LaVine, who garnered an 87 mark. It must be noted that so far, only a little faction of players have had their ratings revealed.
Indiana Pacers All-Star Domantas Sabonis’ NBA 2k22 rating solidifies his status as one of the league’s most undervalued talents
While an 86 rating is far from a subpar mark for an All-Star-caliber player like Sabonis, a higher rating would be more justified, especially considering his leap in the past season. The Pacers center is not only one of the league’s best post scorers, but he is also a tremendous rebounder and most impressively, his passing ability is uncanny and unmatched by any center in the association not named Nikola Jokic.
Gobert, a three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year and one of the pilots of last year’s top regular season team, assumed his same rating in the previous version of the video game despite being exposed in the postseason for his lack of a scoring touch and mobility to guard the perimeter. In comparison, some decorated players who regressed in the playoffs have lower ratings this time, like Philadelphia’s Ben Simmons, who went from a mark of 86 to 84.
While the French center has led Utah to better heights compared to Sabonis, his only definitive edge over him is on defense, where he is incredibly disruptive. In other areas of the game, like scoring, passing and shooting, Domas has the clear edge while both are of equal standing as rebounders. Statistics aren’t everything in actual basketball, but in a simulated platform, they are, without a doubt, the most important.
The Blue and Gold’s general lack of national attention may be partly to blame. Another factor that may have held Sabonis back was Indiana’s failure to make any noise in the Eastern Conference last season, missing the playoffs for the first time in years.
Of course, this may also be a result of 2k’s yearly recalibration with ratings, with players often starting out at different marks compared to other iterations. Heck, the highest rated players in the upcoming game, a four-way deadlock between LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Stephen Curry, were only given a rating of 96.
While I may not be fond of where Domas will be starting off ratings-wise in NBA 2k22, he has a lot of opportunities to take that up a notch or two in the following season as long as his development continues its trajectory. Better yet, if his rating does receive a boost, it should be reflective of the Indiana Pacers faring much better in the 2021-22 NBA season.