NBA 2K19 began dishing out ratings recently for the latest rendition of the video game franchise, which hits the stores on 11 September 2018. These ratings generally create immense buzz around the league, and players themselves often chime in regarding their score, as you can see by Boston Celtic Jayson Tatum’s tweet below. Traditionally, these ratings represent an accurate depiction of an NBA player’s value going into the new season – and with it – a measurement of each team’s strength. So far, only Kawhi Leonard’s rating has been released for the Toronto Raptors, so let’s get ahead of ourselves and predict the rest of the team’s NBA 2K19 ratings.

As of last season’s installment, only 11 out of 30 NBA teams had at least one player with a rating above 90. All 11 teams clinched a playoff berth, and no team in the Eastern Conference had more than one player above 90. The Raptors didn’t have such a player last year, as the highest rated were DeMar DeRozan (89), Jonas Valanciunas (85), Kyle Lowry (84), and Serge Ibaka (80). Still a solid core of 80s with years of developed chemistry, but not enough to overtake a team with a 97 rated player in LeBron James (changed to 98 this season) alongside an 87 rated player with the rest being in the 70s. This highlights the importance of teams carrying an above 90 rated player in their roster in order to guarantee playoff success.

The Warriors deployed two players rated above 90 last season (Kevin Durant, and Steph Curry) with Klay Thompson owning an 89 player rating, and oh-by-the-way they just added another 90 in DeMarcus Cousins. The Houston Rockets also deployed two players rated above 90 in James Harden and Chris Paul with a bunch of players rated in the 70s and pushed the champs to seven games.

So without further ado, let’s predict the Raptors’ NBA 2K19 ratings.

F – Kawhi Leonard

2K18 Rating: 95

2K19 Rating: 94

As mentioned above, Kawhi’s rating has already been released and came in at 94, making him the highest rated Raptor since Vince Carter (95) – receiving a slight deduction from last year’s 95. The drop is understandable as he dealt with injury for most of the season, and we won’t know how the injury will affect his play. However, if he’s anywhere near the player he was two seasons ago, expect this rating to increase by a couple of points. More importantly, the Raptors now have a 90+ rated player alongside three solid 80+ players and others in rapid development – a sign of great things to come.

C – Jonas Valanciunas

2K18 Rating: 85

Projected 2K19 Rating: 85

Valanciunas’ stats stayed even across the board. He saw a slight increase in points per game (from 12 to 12.7), along with his field goal percentages, but his rebounding numbers decreased by a full point. In short, all of the stats nearly mirrored the prior year, so the rating could remain unchanged.

G – Kyle Lowry

2K18 Rating: 84

Projected 2K19 Rating: 83

Lowry’s numbers decreased in nearly every category, mainly attributed to having played five less minutes per game. The most significant hits to Lowry’s numbers were his field goal percentage, as it dropped nearly five percentage points, and his points per game, which dropped by six a game. It’ll be interesting to see how Nick Nurse plans to use Kyle Lowry and what sort of workload he’ll be having. Expect at least a one point drop for the All-Star point guard.

F – Serge Ibaka

2K18 Rating: 80

Projected 2K19 Rating: 80

Ibaka’s numbers slightly dropped across the board, but none of them significant enough to take away his current player rating. Issuing Ibaka a 79 rating would be surprising. His decreased production could attributed to less playing time.

G – Fred VanVleet

2K18 Rating: 76

Projected 2K19 Rating: 79

VanVleet improved dramatically in virtually every single category. He had a breakout season and his rating should see an obvious increase, but it’s hard to say how much. I’m erring on the side of caution and providing only a three point increase to his numbers with hopes that it is much higher. At the very least, FVV should see a number “3” next to his name on offense indicating a lethal three-point shooter given his numbers last season.

F – Pascal Siakam

2K18 Rating: 76

Projected 2K19 Rating: 77

Siakam improved last season in comparison to his rookie season, but not significantly. He was a better passer and hit a few threes. His rating promises a one point increase, but won’t be surprising if it stays the same.

G – Delon Wright

2K18 Rating: 76

Projected 2K19 Rating: 78

Wright also improved across the board during his third NBA campaign and should be able to see a two point increase to his rating.

F – OG Anunoby

2K18 Rating: 75

Projected 2K19 Rating: 78

Anunoby’s rookie campaign was promising. He’s primarily regarded for his defense, but his offensive numbers should uptick this season with an increased workload and minutes per game. Lookout for a breakout sophomore season from Anunoby.

G/F – C.J. Miles

2K18 Rating: 75

Projected 2K19 Rating: 75

Miles’ rating shouldn’t change a bit – stats mirrored previous seasons. He’s a solid 75.

G – Danny Green

2K18 Rating: 75

Projected 2K19 Rating: 75

One could get away with copy pasting Miles’ rationale from above into Danny Green’s. His rating should remain at 75 for next season. Miles is a better shooter than Green, but Green is an absolute beast on the defensive end. This is what’s going to earn him a starting spot, and more playing time.

F – Norman Powell

2K18 Rating: 74

Projected 2K19 Rating: 74

Powell saw some numbers go up and others go down, as he had an inconsistent season. He received less playing time than the prior year, and became more inefficient. It’s hard to tell how those numbers will influence his rating, but I have them unchanged.

And finally, here’s what the top five teams in the Eastern Conference look like as far as NBA 2K18 ratings. (* denotes confirmed NBA 2K19 rating)

Toronto Raptors (94*, 85, 84, 80, 76, 76, 76, 75, 75, 75, 74, 72)

Boston Celtics (93, 88, 87*, 86, 81, 80, 78, 78, 78, 75, 70, 70)

Philadelphia 76ers (90, 87*, 80, 80, 78, 77, 76, 75, 75, 75, 74, 69)

Washington Wizards (89, 87, 85, 82, 78, 78, 77, 77, 77, 73, 72, 72)

Indiana Pacers (88, 83, 80, 80, 79, 78, 78, 76, 76, 76, 74, 72)