Over the next few weeks, SportsGamer will be breaking down some of the most potent strategies and tactics used in Sony's NBA 09, EA's NBA Live 09, and 2K's NBA 2K9. As the games just recently released, we will be starting with some tips aimed at more casual gamers. Don't worry, after we finish brushing up on the basics, we will start exploring some of the more advanced gameplay tips including play-centric strategies.
To kick things off we'll take a look at a tactic in NBA 2K9 that you will undoubtedly see used a great deal online: the isolation baseline drive. While baseline drives have been effective for years in the NBA 2K series, in NBA 2K9 it's especially difficult to stop. Let's take a look at why it's so effective.
How it works: |
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| Here we see Kobe slowly jogging the ball upcourt. The Spurs have already set in their halfcourt defense and Finley waits to engage Kobe at the 3-point arc. |
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| Just before reaching Finley, Kobe kicks in the turbo to try to get around Finley along the baseline. Both Kobe and Finley are caught in the animation above as they jostle for position toward the baseline. |
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| As both players reach the baseline, it appears as though Finley has cut off the baseline angle. In years past, this meant changing direction or reseting with Kobe to prevent going out of bounds. |
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| In NBA 2K9 however, Kobe (and other great dribblers) are able to squeeze through with little risk of going out of bounds. As you can see, the baseline animation actually results in Finley getting pushed back to accommodate Kobe's drive. |
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| As soon as the baseline animation concludes, Kobe begins his dunk animation. Because the entire sequence of events happens so quickly, even teams with great weak-side help will have difficulty rotating in time. |
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| In this case, Duncan barely manages a half-hearted swipe before Kobe flushes in the dunk. |
Example 1
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| The isolation baseline drive works even against the game's premier perimeter defenders. Here, Bowen actually manages to ride Kobe all the way to the corner. You would think that if Kobe gets around him at this point that the weak-side help would have plenty of time to rotate, right? | |
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| The reality is that even on Hall of Fame difficulty, the baseline animation happens so quickly that AI can't be depended on to bail you out of a jam. Notice in the image to the left that Kobe's momentum is actually still directed towards the baseline. Again, this is made possible because of an invisible barrier that restricts players from accidentally running out of bounds. | |
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| In this case, the baseline drive results in a Kobe jam plus a blocking foul on Duncan. Apart from its effectiveness in producing points, usage of the baseline drive early in quarters can put your opponent into the penalty very early and create foul trouble for his bigs. | |
Example 2 | |
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| In this example again Bowen is matched up with Kobe isolated on the wing. As part of the NBA 2K9's natural AI (no play-calling necessary), Bynum establishes low-post position just outside the restricted area in preparation for an entry pass. | |
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| Kobe once again makes the baseline turn on Bowen despite good defense and attacks the rim. | |
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| Because of Bynum's low post position, Oberto is close enough to release Bynum and contest the shot. Instead of risking a block, Kobe feeds the ball to Bynum mid-flight for a wide open look from eight feet. As weak-side help is one of the only methods that can stop the baseline drive, it shouldn't be difficult for you to make this adjustment after you begin your jump animation and find the open teammate. | |
Defending the baseline drive: | |
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| In addition to manually bringing the weak-side help which may leave other open threats near the rim, another effective defense is to overplay the baseline. Here, Kobe begins his baseline move after a failed swipe of the ball by Tony Parker. | |
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| Parker disengages from Kobe once he begins his drive (by releasing the lock-on defensive controls). By doing so, Parker no longer gets stuck in the animation where Kobe blows past him. Instead, Parker is able to manually position himself in Kobe's path. Note: there may not be enough time for you to draw a charge but you typically won't draw a blocking charge as Kobe has not yet begun his shooting animation. | |
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| This repositioning was just enough to prevent Kobe from getting the push back animation and his drive carries him out of bounds. | |
Expect to see plenty of isolation baseline drives in online play this year. Anyone who has a premier playmaker such as Kobe, Wade, McGrady, Iverson, Lebron, and a short list of others will have access to the this animation. The player simply needs to be fast (get parallel or better with the defender on his initial move) and have superb ball handling skills. The move is easy to execute with only a little adaptation required and is very difficult to stop without specifically guarding for it. Once the defense adjusts to overplay the baseline, it shouldn't be difficult for any of the players mentioned to fake the baseline drive and go somewhere else (or pull up for an open shot).
