The NBA 2K League 2019 Draft is in the books, and it was quite a crazy draft day as 21 teams stockpiled their squads with new players ahead of the upcoming season. With the draft complete, let’s take a look at what transpired today.
The #1 Overall Pick Was…
With the No. 1 pick in the 2019 #NBA2KLeague Draft, @UtahJazzGaming selects Ria! pic.twitter.com/GtDdK6u6sz
— NBA 2K League (@NBA2KLeague) March 5, 2019
Spencer “Ria” Wyman, who was taken by Jazz Gaming. After being drafted, Wyman said during his media session that he knew that he was on the Jazz’s radar for the past two months, so he expected that his name would be called first. Ria said that the Jazz are getting a “hard worker” who “can play with anyone” and is excited to be playing with his new teammates. “We’re going to have a lot of different lineups we can run there in Utah.
It’s going to be fun.”
2019 First Round
Gradient was selected second overall by Warriors Gaming Squad, and Bp was taken third by Kings Guard Gaming. MrStylez_ (#4) and PeteBeBallin (#5) rounded out the top five picks, taken by Pistons GT and Mavs Gaming respectively.
Here’s how the rest of the first round went:
6. Bucks Gaming – Plondo
7. Grizz Gaming – Vandi
8. Celtics Crossover Gaming – Bully
9. Magic Gaming – Reizey
10. Warriors Gaming Squad (from Lakers Gaming) – Kina
11. T-Wolves Gaming – BearDaBeast
12. NetsGC – Wavy
13. Hawks Talon GC – DevGoss
14. Mavs Gaming (from Wizards District Gaming) – Byanymeansmo
15. Raptors Uprising GC – Im So Far Ahead
16. Pistons GT – I1ImayI1I
17. Bucks Gaming (from Blazer5 Gaming) – SlayIsland
18. Cavs Legion GC – LYKaPRO
19. 76ers GC – BreadwinnerLA
20. Heat Check Gaming – Lotty
21. Knicks Gaming – OriginalMalik
New Teams Make Their First Picks
Four new teams (Hawks Talon GC, Lakers Gaming, Nets GC, and T-Wolves Gaming) made their first-ever selections in today’s draft. Michael “BearDaBeast” Key, who was selected #11 overall by T-Wolves Gaming, said that it was “amazing” to be the first-ever player selected by the franchise.
In addition, Key also expressed his excitement to be playing with IFEAST and Hood, who were the first two players to join T-Wolves Gaming. “IFEAST is a dog. Hood
hasn’t been playing pro-am as much, but Hood is an unbelievable player as well. Once he gets back into the field and he’s playing it every day, man, that could be a crazy three.”
Eric Donald Suspended
Official Statement from the NBA 2K League pic.twitter.com/ANL2utVFNk
— NBA 2K League (@NBA2KLeague) March 5, 2019
Prior to the draft, the 2K League announced that Eric “Timelycook” Donald of Kings Guard Gaming is suspended for the entire 2019 season. Donald, who averaged 14.4 PPG during the 2018 regular season, was suspended for sharing “inappropriate and offensive videos over social media”, which is a violation of the league’s code of conduct.
Kings Guard Gaming received a third-round pick as compensation.
Was the First Woman Selected?
Out of the 198 players eligible to be selected in this year’s draft, just two were women: Brianna ‘icygirl” Navin and Chiquita “chiquitae126” Evans. No females were taken in last year’s draft, but this year was different, as Warriors Gaming selected Evans with 56th pick.
Navin was not selected in the draft.
Rounds 2-4
Here are all the selections from Rounds 2 through 4:
SECOND ROUND
22. Kings Guard Gaming – BallLikeSeem
23. Jazz Gaming – EasyMoney
24. Pacers Gaming – Lord Beezus
25. Mavs Gaming – Sherm
26. Bucks Gaming – chaddynick
27. Grizz Gaming – Jayrod
28. Celtics Crossover Gaming – NO xAUTOGRAPHSx
29. Magic Gaming – DT
30. Hawks Talon GC – Rando
31. NetsGC – Shuttles
32. T-Wolves Gaming – TURNUPDEFENSE
33. Lakers Gaming – Kev
34. Wizards District Gaming – USERPICK
35. Raptors Uprising GC – OOC Slim
36. Blazer5 Gaming – Too cool
THIRD ROUND
37. Kings Guard Gaming – Roman
38. Warriors Gaming Squad – Jin
39. Jazz Gaming – Gliz
40. Pacers Gaming – Matty
41. Mavs Gaming – Rux
42. Grizz Gaming – ToXsiK
43. Magic Gaming – KelMav
44. Lakers Gaming – Detoxys
45. T-Wolves Gaming – Dr_JoJo_30
46. NetsGC – Lavish
47. Hawks Talon GC – Jay a FooL
48. Wizards District Gaming – PaulB
49. Raptors Uprising GC – KingQuai614
50. Pistons GT – Jaacko
51. Cavs Legion GC – Strainer
52. Heat Check Gaming – JMoneyRep817
53. Kings Guard Gaming (compensation pick for Eric Donald) – Yusuf_Scarbz
54. Wizards District Gaming (compensation pick for Austin Painter) – ReeseDaGod23
FOURTH ROUND
55. Kings Guard Gaming – Zakyy610
56. Warriors Gaming Squad – Chiquitae126
57. Jazz Gaming – KevDontMiss
58. Pacers Gaming – Man_in_a_car
59. Mavs Gaming – GRANT MONSTER
60. Bucks Gaming – RSG
61. Grizz Gaming – DDouble2K
62. Celtics Crossover Gaming – Suavy
63. Magic Gaming – TuckerLocksUp
64. Hawks Talon GC – XxSTL2LAxX
65. NetsGC – iiTzChas
66. T-Wolves Gaming – NachoTraynor
67. Lakers Gaming – Safiya4ya
68. Wizards District Gaming – xGREATxGILLY13
69. Raptors Uprising GC – TsJosh
70. Pistons GT – ixsplashkingxi
71. Blazer5 Gaming – Jomar12 PR
72. Cavs Legion GC – Savage
73. 76ers GC – oCASSIUS
74. Heat Check Gaming – ChaChingSingh
75. Knicks Gaming – HazzaUK2K
The NBA 2K League’s 2019 season starts on April 2 with THE TIPOFF tournament.
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