From Underdogs to Champions (Season 2 NBA 2K26)

Simon Carver

Alright, let's jump right in. This was one of those wild seasons where, just looking at the numbers, you’d swear you already know how the story ends. Phillip’s 76ers — absolute juggernaut stuff, 11 and 3 for the top seed, a point differential of plus 12.7. They led the league in just about everything, both ends of the floor. Offense, defense, you name it. If you were betting based on those stats, you’d double down on Philly every time.

Jimbo

And, I mean, it’s not just the record. Every time I checked a box score, it felt like the Sixers were built for video game symmetry. Steph Curry at 14 a night, Max Strus giving you super-efficient numbers, Gobert locking the paint… these guys were out here putting up efficiency clinics. And let’s not ignore that almost everyone on the roster, except for maybe T. Mann down at the bottom, had a positive plus-minus in the regular season. That tells you it wasn’t just one or two guys carrying. The whole squad was pluses.

Simon Carver

Yeah, and then there’s the flip side. Joe, bringing in the Utah Jazz—who barely crawled into the playoffs at 7 and 7, negative point differential. And look, I used to kid myself when I was a rookie broadcaster, tracking box scores on my clunky little cassette deck, thinking win-loss records were gospel. But I always ended up with egg on my face, ‘cause some so-called average team would just get hot at the right time. The Jazz were that team this year, for real. Kevin Durant, laser-focused, led the league at 16.2 per game, but the rest of the crew—if we’re keeping it real—was mostly mediocre with the numbers. Their bench had negative plus-minus, efficiency all over the place.

Jimbo

Yeah, there was a point midseason where if you told me Joe’s Jazz would even win a playoff game, I’d say—eh, maybe with good play from Durant and Porzingis… but the rest? They weren’t scaring anybody, man. I mean, look at the regular season box scores! N. Alexander-Walker has a negative 3.3 plus-minus, Fred VanVleet can’t buy a three, even Porzingis struggled to stay above water in efficiency some nights. They just never put it all together for the whole regular-season....But—

Simon Carver

And, and that's the trap, right? You start thinking regular season is everything. But as we’ve seen season after season—shoot, even the episodes we did on the Pacers or those undefeated Warriors—you can look unbeatable in January and fall flat in May. Do you think, looking back, that the Jazz's regular season struggles set 'em up for that low pressure, nothing-to-lose playoff run?

Jimbo

Honestly? I think it left ‘em hungry. No expectations, nobody picking them. Sometimes those are the most dangerous teams, man—the ones limping in while everyone else is reading their own press clippings. But, yeah, nobody saw what was coming next, not even me, and I follow 2k way too close for comfort. Where was I going with this—oh yeah, the playoffs!

Simon Carver

Let's talk about that transformation. We gotta start with the Sixers. All season, brick wall defense and high-octane offense. Then playoffs hit, and suddenly, that defense goes soft—points allowed jump from 60 to 72 per game. I about fell out of my chair reading that. Their scoring margin shrunk, plus twelve-point-seven down to just one. That’s highway robbery for a number one seed. They scrape by Miami, but then quarterfinals—Brooklyn stuns 'em. It happens fast.

Jimbo

It was like watching a different team! You look at Curry, who was their engine all year—solid, but in the playoffs his efficiency tanks, and his plus-minus gets sliced in half. Klay Thompson, 6th man all year, suddenly forgets how to shoot. His plus-minus drops to minus 3.2. I always say: “you’re only as good as your second unit,” but even the main guys looked rattled. The only one who kinda rose to the moment? Jimmy Butler—dude had a little playoff riser in him, almost doubled his scoring, locked up with a couple games of 2+ steals, but it was like everyone else was playing catch up.

Simon Carver

And then—on the other end—you’ve got the Jazz acting like they just hit some magical playoff reset button. Regular season scoring? Barely 55 a game. Playoffs? Jumped up to almost 76 per. That’s bonkers. We’re talkin’ .555 field goal percentage as a team, .415 from three. KD just goes supernova—23 a night, hitting 65% of his shots, 58% from deep. These are gamer numbers. Nick Alexander-Walker off the bench, he had what, plus 8.2 playoff plus-minus? That’s huge.

Jimbo

Yeah, and that’s where the whole narrative just flips. Alexander-Walker, who, during the regular season, was kind of—well, a minus guy for most advanced stats, suddenly turns into a secret weapon. The Jazz bench just, like, morphs into this hyper-efficient chaos squad. You can tell Joe was rolling out all kinds of five-out or high-tempo lineups. And Randle—don’t forget him—triples his playoff scoring, maintains a nearly plus five plus-minus. Porzingis didn’t even have to score much; he just vacuumed up rebounds and blocks.

Simon Carver

For me, it all just comes back to pressure. The Sixers, once teams started attacking their rotation and getting them running, it was like all the confidence leaked out. Meanwhile, Utah—no fear, nothing to lose, bench clicking, KD in video game mode. Suddenly, the team that seemed easiest to overlook in the regular season is out here sweeping everyone.

Jimbo

It makes me wonder, and I don't know the real answer… but in NBA 2K, is it ALWAYS the bench depth that predicts those playoff upsets? Or is this an outlier—just one magical run that all clicked at once?

Simon Carver

It’s hard to say! Some years, it’s the bench, some years it’s the top-end October form carrying through. I mean, remember the Hawks run we covered in episode five in 2k25—when depth turned the tide, but sometimes you get just… one guy, and everything breaks open. KD did that this season for the Jazz. That’s the pivot. But, hey, let’s look at the Finals themselves—because, wow, showtime for Utah.

Jimbo

Yeah, let’s do it. Utah in the playoffs—straight perfection, right? Nine and oh, didn’t drop a single game, and just swept the Knicks in the Finals. Game one: KD hangs 33 on them, goes 11 of 14—just clinical. That plus-sixteen, by the way, exactly matched the difference in the final score. That’s not just dominance, that’s, like, universal alignment.

Simon Carver

Game two, he drops 27, and everyone else chips in. Randle picks up seven rebounds, Porzingis goes perfect from the field, they get balanced play from the whole rotation. Even Alexander-Walker, who we said doesn’t fill the box, was always making the right read, popping up on the right side of plus-minus. It just felt like the Jazz had the Knicks figured out at every angle. And then Game three, man—Randle, not KD, is the X-factor. Drops 10 points, snags four steals, plays thief’s defense down the stretch. KD gets dogged for six turnovers but still does enough to close the deal. That Utah defense was dizzying—honestly, breaking down their switch coverage for this, I, uh, nearly froze up myself. Seriously, I got flashbacks to my old whiteboard panic attacks. Those rotations... woof.

Jimbo

Hah, you and your whiteboard nightmares. Dude, it’s funny because with KD posting those kinds of numbers, you’d think Finals MVP isn’t even a debate. But, and maybe this is just my bench bias talking, do you ever feel like Julius Randle, or even Porzingis, deserved a moment in the spotlight? I mean, Randle closed out that sweep, Porzingis was a sneaky anchor in the paint. Should Finals MVP ever go to a supporting guy when the star is so obvious?

Simon Carver

I always lean stats, so I get why KD was a lock—but it’s a fair point. Sometimes it’s those timely steals or hustle plays that flip a series. Still, with those shooting splits and raw totals, you kind of have to give it to Durant in the end… unless you’re ready for a hot take war in the inbox. As for the Knicks, maybe someone like Luguentz Dort, who had a good defensive run, could get a box score mention, but it’s a footnote compared to what Utah was doing. Gotta give a nod to how much their second unit elevated the whole championship push.

Jimbo

Yeah, this one was KD’s show. But what made it fun was all those other names—Randle, Alexander-Walker, Porzingis—showing up in big moments. If history has taught us anything, especially in this series, it’s never just one guy, even if it looks that way on the leaderboard.

Simon Carver

So true, and that’s why we come back every season. We can break down stats, rotations, and MVP votes until the controller batteries die, but there’s always another twist around the corner. Anyway, I think that’s a wrap for today. Jimbo, always a pleasure.

Jimbo

Right back at you, Simon. Can’t wait to see what new curveballs next season brings. Phillip will control the Spurs while Joe heads to Indiana...Catch y’all later, and keep those box scores coming.

Simon Carver

We'll see you all next episode. Thanks for listening to the 2k Bros Podcast—take care, everyone.