ATLANTA (AP) — Video gamers now have a chance to compete for an NBA title, in an actual NBA arena and get paid by some of the same people who pay LeBron James and Steph Curry.
That’s right, the “NBA 2K eLeague” is coming — the first eSports league operated by one of the four major pro sports leagues in the United States.
The NBA and Take-Two Interactive Software announced early Thursday morning that they are bringing some of the world’s best gamers together to compete while representing actual NBA teams, a competition which Commissioner Adam Silver hopes will continue to expand his league’s global brand.
“NBA 2K eLeague” is scheduled to debut in 2018. The league will start with about 8-12 teams — Silver did not say which teams, but noted that eventually all 30 NBA teams will be represented. Each NBA owner is being given the opportunity to build teams at their own pace.
“The idea sounds amazing,” said Stephon Johnson, an Atlanta native and frequent online video game player who attends Grambling State University. “Combining NBA 2K gamers with the actual the NBA would be awesome. A lot of us gamers had once dreamt of playing in the NBA.”
Gamers will be chosen through a recruiting process by NBA teams and Take-Two. They’ll go through a virtual version of a combine and be selected in a draft, which Silver says will either be televised or streamed online.
Each NBA franchise will select five gamers to represent its team.
From there, the team of gamers will play in an 82-game regular season, advance to a playoff and the top teams will compete for a championship, which most likely will take place at an NBA arena, Silver said.
