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The NBA has dipped its toes further into esports by putting together an NBA 2K tournament that pits 16 of the league’s actual basketball players against one another in a knockout competition, played on Xbox One.
Not only will the winner be crowned an NBA 2K20 champion, but they will also be able to select a charity to receive a $100,000 donation from 2K, the NBA and the NBPA.
Matches will be one-on-one games, and fans can watch the action live this weekend and throughout the next week on ESPN or online. There is also the opportunity to wager on each individual contest as well as the outright tournament winner on online betting sites.
Each participant will choose eight NBA teams that they will be eligible to play with, although they can only use each franchise once. Rounds one and two will be one-and-done, and the semi-finals and finals will be best-of-three series.
A number of the best betting sites on the market have released odds for the winner of the competition, and prices vary rather significantly across different sportsbooks.
The two players that appear at the top of the betting across the board are Devin Booker and Kevin Durant. The former is an avid gamer, while the latter is the highest-rated player with an overall rating of 96.
Closely following the two favourites in the betting are Booker’s Pheonix teammate Deandre Ayton, and the 90-rated Trae Young.
The bracket is seeded, and the first round has thrown up some intriguing ties. Durant, the number one seed, is an 8/15 shot to see off Derrick Jones Jr, while Booker is an even shorter 7/20 with some bookmakers to beat Denver’s Michael Porter Jr.
Durant vs Jones Jr will be the first game of the event, with Durant playing as one of the Brooklyn Nets, Chicago Bulls, Dallas Mavericks, Golden State Warriors, Houston Rockets, LA Clippers, Oklahoma City Thunder or Utah Jazz.
Also in that half of the draw is Montrezl Harrell vs Domantas Sabonis and Donovan Mitchell against Rui Hachimura.
Young is the #2 seed, and his opening contest is against Harrison Barnes. Young is as short as 11/20 with some sportsbooks but others have him at 8/11.
Ayton is a 13/20 favourite in his last 16 game against Bulls guard Zach LaVine, and rounding out that side of the bracket is Hassan Whiteside vs Patrick Beverley plus Andre Drummond vs DeMarcus Cousins in a matchup the bookies make almost a 50-50.
The tournament begins on Friday evening and is set to conclude on Saturday April 11th, with games also taking place on Sunday April 5th and Tuesday April 7th. It is one of many unique esports events taking place in the coming days as more and more traditional sports embrace new formats.
In brand new competitions such as this, there is less data available for bookmakers to determine odds, so punters should look around for the best prices and offers before placing a wager. Bet365 offer a wide range of esports markets, so that is generally a good place to start.
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