Booker: “Getting a [NBA 2K League] team in the city would be real nice”

Devin Booker is a fan of the NBA 2K League, it seems.

The Phoenix Suns star told Warren Younger of Cronkite News that he would love to see the Suns add an NBA 2K League team, saying: “That would be dope. I’ve been paying attention. Getting a team in the city would be real nice.”

Phoenix is one of eight NBA franchises without an NBA 2K League team. The organization has not publicly indicated desire to add a team. Carlos Manzanillo, the Suns’ director of business communications, told Younger that the Suns have no immediate plans to buy into the NBA 2K League despite some interest from local NBA 2K talent and some of the team’s own players.

Antonio “UniversalPhenom” Saldivar, a Phoenix native, has played two seasons in the league for Memphis’ Grizz Gaming. A return to Phoenix to play 2K professionally would mean the fulfillment of a childhood dream.

“I think it would be great for the league to have as many teams in it as possible, and it would also be great for the city of Phoenix to have another team to root for,” Saldivar told DIMER. “I believe every NBA team will have its own 2K team, it’s just a matter of when. As a kid you always want to play for your hometown team.”

The NBA 2K League has added five NBA franchises since debuting in 2018 with 17 NBA organizations. The Brooklyn Nets, Atlanta Hawks, Los Angeles Lakers, and 2019 champion T-Wolves Gaming all joined the league for the 2019 season, while the Charlotte Hornets are set to debut in 2020. The league also added Shanghai-based esports organization Gen.G Esports, to debut in 2020; Gen.G’s NBA 2K League team will be based in Los Angeles.

Booker is one of several NBA players to shout out the NBA 2K League. Karl-Anthony Towns and Evan Turner have also mentioned the league on Twitter

The other NBA franchises without NBA 2K League teams are: the San Antonio Spurs, Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Clippers, Chicago Bulls, Oklahoma City Thunder, Denver Nuggets, New Orleans Pelicans.