The Brooklyn Nets have begun to distinguish themselves from the other 2019 NBA 2K League expansion teams.
The Nets will pick second in the first-ever NBA 2K League expansion draft, scheduled for September 24, behind the Atlanta Hawks (to be known as Hawks Talon GC) and before the Minnesota Timberwolves and Los Angeles Lakers. The draft will be held snake-style, so the Nets will have the penultimate pick of the two-round draft. The team will also have the 12th overall pick in the four-round 2019 NBA 2K League entry draft.
But the Nets aren’t content to approach the draft slowly. In fact, their hires have indicated that the team is trying to live up to the Nets’ 2017-18 season motto: “We Go Hard.”
Earlier this week, My Player Basketball Association (MPBA) leader Ivan Curtiss, known as OGKINGCURT, announced that he had joined Brooklyn in the capacity of NBA 2K Consultant. Curtiss spent last season as one of Bucks Gaming’s draft analysts and then as its community manager. As one of the MPBA leaders, Curtiss provides the Nets with a wealth of experience in terms of player analysis. The MPBA is commonly regarded as the most competitive online NBA 2K Pro-Am league, and many of the NBA 2K League’s stars played in the MPBA in past iterations of the game.
“I’m grateful that Brooklyn has put their faith in me to help build a competitive organization going into season two,” Curtiss said.
“It’s an honor that comes with great responsibility, but believe me, I’m more than ready!”
The Nets also brought on Nick Gartrelle, as first reported by DIMER. Gartrelle is well-regarded member of the NBA 2K community and has experience teaching at basketball camps.
“This is about more than NBA 2K for me,” said Gartrelle, who hopes to continue with his basketball education alongside his work with the Nets’ NBA 2K League team.
“I want to thank Famous Enough [Derric Franklin, the leader of season-one runners-up Heat Check Gaming], Roger Caneda [former Mavs Gaming GM/Partnerships, now Philadelphia Fusion], 2kCompGames, and BlkFrankWhite1. Those people on top pushed me and kept telling me to go for it when I didn’t think I could do it; they gave me hope and they set up and showed me the blueprint.
I especially want to thank OGKINGCURT for believing in me from the day I met him in Indiana until now.”
The combination of Curtiss and Gartrelle should serve the Nets well in their first offseason as an expansion team. The duo brings a wealth of experience in the community, a familiarity with 2K and its players, and skilled 2K and basketball analysis skills to the organization.
No other expansion franchise has announced their hires yet despite the draft being just 11 days away.
As indicated by SBNation site NetsDaily, Brooklyn’s NBA 2K League team is likely to be called Brooklyn Gaming. BSE Global, the Nets’ controlling company, trademarked the name earlier this year.
