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NBA finalizing NBA 2K Tournament featuring Kevin Durant

The sports world is on pause due to the coronavirus pandemic but the NBA has a plan to bring fans the safest form of basketball: a players-only NBA 2K tournament which will begin on Friday and air on ESPN. 

By Chris Milholen

The first time we’ll see Kevin Durant play for the Nets will be ... Friday! ... on ESPN!! ... online.

From the hardwood to the controllers, 16 NBA players, including KD, will participate in a televised NBA2K tournament starting Friday. The competition will take place over a span of 10 days. The league is still finalizing some details of the tournament according to Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports, but one thing is set: players will go against their peers from the comfort —and safety— of their own homes.

The Boardroom, Durant’s company, released the bracket for the NBA2K tournament. Durant, who has a 96 rating in the game, headlines the 16-player pool and technically will make his Brooklyn Nets debut not as a player but a gamer through the magic of the controller.

Durant is the highest rated player in the tournament and the No. 1 seed. His first opponent according to The Boardroom’s bracket will be Derrick Jones Jr of the Miami Heat, the 16th seed.

Here’s the rest of the field...

And here’s the schedule, per Fred Katz of The Athletic...

How soon will we have a betting line?

Meanwhile, the G League will have their own NBA 2K tournament, called the “NBA2K League Three For All Showdown,” which starts Tuesday night. For the Long Island Nets, CJ Massinburg, Jaylen Hands, and Devin Cannady will man the controllers.

There will be two stages of the G League tournament.

The first stage will be an online 3-on-3 tournament featuring a mixture of fan-organized teams, social media influencers, and top female 2K players. All will compete in the NBA 2K2020 MyPark game mode for the chance to play against NBA 2K League official teams and a share of a $25,000 prize pool. This stage will be broadcast and aired through Twitch and YouTube channels of the NBA 2K League.

The second stage of the tournament will be from Tuesday, March 31 till Friday, April 3. The tournament will feature G League players along with NBA 2K League players, WNBA players, social media influencers, top female 2K players, and the tip performing teams from the first stage, the fan-only stage. They will all compete through distinct XBOX and PS4 brackets.

The first rounds of each bracket will be a best-of-three series while the final-round matchups will be a best-of-five series.

Let the games begin!

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