NBA 2K League Relaunches as ‘Entertainment Universe’

A revamped version of the esports league tied to the “NBA 2K” video game franchise launched Monday with a new focus on original, entertainment programming starring NBA players, content creators, and celebrities.

Led by NBA Take-Two Media (NBAT2), a joint venture between the NBA and “NBA 2K” publisher Take-Two Interactive Software, the new NBA 2K League is described as “an innovative entertainment property where competition meets culture, bringing everyone from fans to NBA players and creators together to play, compete, and build community—no matter their ‘NBA 2K’ skill level.”

Run by NBAT2 CEO Andrew Perlmutter, who has been working to reimagine the league since changes were first announced in July 2024, the new 2KL will feature “original content that showcases NBA players and creators competing against each other in unexpected settings, the season will also include online and in-person tournaments, as well as a first-of-its-kind open-ladder competition that places fans directly in the action.”

Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick tells Variety the “main objective” in the league overhaul “is to serve our consumers and to bring them great entertainment that is at the intersection of basketball, ‘NBA 2K’ and just general entertainment.”

“The idea is, show them a good time and make sure that good time is related to ‘NBA 2K,’” Zelnick said. “And the ‘NBA 2K’ universe is huge. It’s not just a simulation game, it’s a lifestyle. It used to be that we put the game out, people would play it for a couple of months and then go on to the rest of their life. Now, ‘NBA 2K’ is a reflection of a cultural interest in all things basketball, in the same way that when you watch a basketball game in person, you’re not just there to see the game, you’re there to be with your friends and to have some food and to cheer and to wear this shirt, and you’re there for affinity and an experience, not just the game itself. So with ‘NBA 2K,’ there’s the game itself, the sim, which is amazing and the best there is, and there’s everything surrounding that.”

The league has named “2K” fan and celebrity streamer Jesser, who boasts more than 35 million YouTube subscribers, as the “honorary commissioner.” Jesser and his team and board of celebrity guests “will serve as the guiding force behind the league–working together to draft players, issue rulings and keep everyone on their toes.”

“He’s highly credible in basketball. He knows basketball,” Zelnick says of Jesser. “He’s highly credible with the video game because he knows and plays a video again. And he’s highly entertaining. That’s sort of in a nutshell what we’re trying to do here. Now, if we do it right, that’s going to create a lot of revenue. And we’re a commercial enterprise, so is the NBA — but our job is to captivate and engage our consumers. That’s what we hope to do here. And we think Andrew has rethought this, in a way. Because purely as a competition, it’s sort of interesting, and there are a lot of people who watched it, we had a lot of viewers. But I think to reframe this as a competitive situation within a lifestyle is much more interesting, much more compelling.”

The inaugural season of the new league tips off with “MyPLAYER Mayhem” – a creator and player-led 2KL competitive reality series that brings their personalities, fanbases, and rivalries into play, on Nov. 4 on the 2K League YouTube channel.

Then beginning Nov. 16, fans can sign up for “Next Fan Up,” the new open ladder competition.

The league re-launch is accompanied by a multi-year partnership agreement with the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) which will allow the league to work directly with NBA players to “unlock greater opportunities to participate in the 2KL, giving NBAT2 the ability to develop stories around specific players.”

“The launch of the new NBA 2K League is an exciting step forward as we engage the next generation of players, creators and fans,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said. “We’re proud to support the evolution of 2K and the numerous ways that the basketball community connects with our sport.” 

Per the new league description. “The 2KL breaks boundaries by inviting everyone to participate and will launch with 6 teams: Boston Celtics, Detroit Pistons, Memphis Grizzlies, Toronto Raptors, Utah Jazz and Washington Wizards. Each team will be represented by a unique duo of creators and NBA players, including Zack 2K, BEARDABEAST, Kofie Yeboah, Gradey Dick, and Duncan Robinson, as well as a select number of fans who have risen through the ranks of 2K gameplay. Throughout the season, they will face off in a series of challenges—on the virtual court and in live events—for one-of-a-kind experiences that showcase the unfiltered personalities of each player.”

“We’ll be running an open competition for any ‘2K’ user,” NBAT2 CEO Andrew Perlmutter told Variety. “So any ‘2K’ user can affiliate with his his or her favorite NBA team, and over the course of the six months, there will be opportunities for those users to earn points, rise the ranks on a leaderboard, and ultimately have an opportunity to represent his or her favorite NBA team in official competition — and then potentially participate in some of the programming with NBA players and celebrities. And importantly, how much you play ‘2K’ and a variety of social media challenges are just as important in earning these points as being excellent at ‘2K.’ So we widen the aperture of who has an opportunity to use their love of ‘2K,’ their love of basketball culture, to actually participate in the league. We think this sort of entertainment-oriented approach that gives us access to who our favorite NBA players and celebrities are in sort of authentic, unfiltered moments of competition and camaraderie, gives us an opportunity to create an entertainment universe that is really powerful and hits this intersection of culture in a really unique way.”