NBA 2K League welcomes Nets, three other teams

ESPN’s Jacob Wolf reports the Nets will be among four new members of the NBA 2K League, the NBA’s big foray into esports.

The others, reports Wolf, will be the Lakers, Timberwolves and Hawks. The new teams will bring the number NBA clubs with esports components to 21. The NBA made joining optional.

The Nets confirmed the news, tweeting out a video...

The league launched May 1, with 17 teams, the remainder declining to join for a variety of reasons. The only big market teams without representation now will be the Bulls, Clippers and Rockets. Like the first 17, the Nets and the others will have to pay a $750,000 fee to join.

Brett Yormark told reporters in June that the Nets had adopted a wait-and-see attitude on the league’s first year. Barclays Center is already the home venue for large-scale esports events.

The inaugural season of NBA 2K League concludes a week from Saturday with the Finals, which will be broadcast from Brooklyn Studios in Long Island City, NY. Nets officials reportedly toured the facility last week.

Viewership for the startup league increased throughout the season with big games peaking at 28,000 concurrent viewers. In general, recent broadcasts and regularly peak in the five digits. (The Nets television broadcasts on YES Network average around 30,000 viewers.)

The League has its own Draft of top players and the best are paid more than G-Leaguers. Each team has its own logo which incorporates the NBA team’s design elements but is different from the big club’s.

• NBA welcomes Hawks, Nets, Lakers, Wolves franchises to NBA 2K League - Jacob Wolf - ESPN