It's approaching the start of September once again, and with that comes the impending release of the newest iteration of the NBA 2K franchise. While the popularity of the series has gone south with each passing year, NBA 2K is unmatched in being the only basketball game on the market with authentic-feeling, sim-based gameplay and graphics. And every year, player ratings are always going to be a hot topic among fans — including that of the San Antonio Spurs.
The Spurs are on an upward trajectory, having decided to start from scratch during the 2022-23 season. But they are gradually reaping the rewards of their rebuild, what with Victor Wembanyama set to come even further into his own in his third season while being flanked by a very talented supporting cast led by De'Aaron Fox and Devin Vassell.
Considering how the Spurs have not rushed their roster-building process, they have also accumulated a few talented prospects, such as reigning NBA Rookie of the Year Stephon Castle, 2025 second overall pick Dylan Harper, as well as Jeremy Sochan and Carter Bryant.
San Antonio, provided that their top prospects develop according to plan, will be back to assume their place atop the NBA's totem pole soon enough. But do the NBA 2K26 ratings reflect this upward trajectory?
Here are few NBA 2K26 ratings that don't quite reflect reality for the Spurs.
Devin Vassell must be a top 100 player, surely
NBA 2K hasn't quite released ratings for all players in the league yet, but they did release ratings for those they deemed worthy of being included in the top 100 players in the association. And yet, for some reason, Vassell, a 3-and-D wing whose ballhandling and shot-creation chops have been improving over the past few seasons, wasn't included.
Vassell finished the NBA 2K25 cycle with an overall of 81. That surely should be good enough for him to be included in the top 100. Chances are, he'll be starting NBA 2K26 with the same rating.
But even then, the cutoff for the 2K26 top 100 began with players with an overall rating of 81, which means that it was very subjective as to which player 2K would include in their rankings.
Vassell should certainly be worthy of inclusion in that top 100, arguably over the likes of Shaedon Sharpe, Bobby Portis, or even Onyeka Okongwu. Vassell certainly does more on both ends of the floor than those players, with his skill level developing more and more over the past few seasons.
It's a bit understandable if the 2K brass isn't too high on Vassell following the 2024-25 season. He had a bit of a down year, averaging over three fewer points on worse efficiency than he did the previous season. The Spurs also took the ball out of his hands a bit more, what with the additions of Chris Paul and Castle, not to mention the eventual arrival of De'Aaron Fox, relegating Vassell to a bit of a more off-ball role.
But Vassell is only 25 years old, and he's about to play a huge role for the Spurs as they attempt the leap from young, up-and-coming team to a budding powerhouse. But 2K is all about the sexier name and the flashier game, and Vassell has neither.
How on earth is Spurs star De'Aaron Fox just an 85 overall?
Fox certainly drew the short end of the stick when it comes to his NBA 2K26 rating. Of course, it's worth mentioning that Fox didn't exactly set the world on fire in his short stint with the Spurs thus far. He averaged just 19.7 points per game on 45/27/82 shooting splits in 17 games since his arrival in February.
Those are not All-Star level numbers, and that performance definitely makes him worthy of an 85 overall on NBA 2K26. But it's rather harsh to judge Fox based solely on what he's done lately instead of taking a look at his body of work over the past few seasons and giving him a fairer rating.
It's not like his poor stretch for the Spurs towards the end of the season erases the 25/5/6 he averaged to begin the season with the Sacramento Kings. Sure, that poor stretch for San Antonio should contribute to a ratings decrease on NBA 2K25. But it's 2K26, and everyone deserves a blank slate and a fair shake.
It's also a bit jarring to see Fox rated lower than the likes of Tyler Herro or Julius Randle, or rated the same as Austin Reaves, DeMar DeRozan, and Zach LaVine.
Expect Fox to play his way to a better rating on the very first ratings update once NBA 2K26 comes out on the fifth of September.
