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USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
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Bryan Kalbrosky

The top 24 rookie ratings in NBA 2K since NBA 2K10, with Victor Wembanyama at No. 1 overall

It isn’t easy to determine a rating for a rookie who hasn’t played in the NBA, but rookie superstar Victor Wembanyama is already breaking the mold.

We took a look at how Wembanyama compares to every other rookie in the video game for the past decade or so. We chose the top-24 players because it’s NBA 2K24 and Kobe Bryant, who wore No. 24, is on the cover.

Using the HoopsHype database, we were able to sort through every rookie rating in NBA 2K since NBA 2K10. These were the rankings for each player as they first entered the game.

It is worth noting that due to the lockoutNBA 2K12 did not include any of the rookie class (e.g. Kyrie Irving and Kawhi Leonard) when the game was first released. Even once they were added to the game, however, none had a high enough rating to make this list.

Some honorable mentions whose debut ratings just barely missed the cut for our list and were rated a 77 include Anthony Edwards (2K21), Trae Young (2K19), Jayson Tatum (2K18) and Andrew Wiggins (2K15).

Meanwhile, some players who did not come close but have had tremendous professional careers include Nikola Jokic (68), Pascal Siakam (67), Giannis Antetkounmpo (60) and Rudy Gobert (52). So an original NBA 2K rating is not always the best indicator for future success in the NBA.

For what it is worth, the mean/median/mode for a rookie in NBA 2K since 2009 is between 71 and 72. So the following players who began their pro careers with a 77 or higher deserve some quick praise:

1
Victor Wembanyama

Lucas Peltier-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 84

YEAR: 2K24

2
Zion Williamson

Daniel Dunn-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 81

YEAR: 2K20

3
John Wall

Thomas Campbell-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 81

YEAR: 2K11

4
Lonzo Ball

David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 80

YEAR: 2K18

5
Cade Cunninghan

(Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

RATING: 80

YEAR: 2K22

6
Markelle Fultz

Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 80

YEAR: 2K18

7
Luka Doncic

Andrew Dieb-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 79

YEAR: 2K19

8
Anthony Davis

Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 79

YEAR: 2K13

9
Ben Simmons

Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 79

YEAR: 2K17

10
Ja Morant

Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 79

YEAR: 2K20

11
Deandre Ayton

Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 2K19

YEAR: 79

12
Jalen Green

Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 79

YEAR: 2K22

13
Karl-Anthony Towns

Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 78

YEAR: 2K16

14
Paolo Banchero

Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 78

YEAR: 2K23

15
Evan Mobley

Michael McLoone-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 78

YEAR: 2K22

16
Brandon Ingram

Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 78

YEAR: 2K17

17
Scoot Henderson

Lucas Peltier-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 78

YEAR: 2K24

18
Jabari Smith Jr.

Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 78

YEAR: 2K23

19
RJ Barrett

Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 78

YEAR: 2K20

20
Marvin Bagley III

Justin Ford-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 78

YEAR: 2K19

21
Jaren Jackson Jr.

Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 78

YEAR: 2K18

22
Brandon Miller

Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 78

YEAR: 2K24

23
Jabari Parker

Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 78

YEAR: 2K15

24
Josh Jackson

Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

RATING: 78

YEAR: 2K18

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