Newbie questions

[fluent2332]

Hey all.

I have a few questions. I've played several games against the CPU (which is fun!) and a little over 10 games of Play Now Online (also fun!), and I'm looking for tips and advice on how to defend certain things.

1 - How do you stop the guys who sprint the entire game, running with the PG so fast down the court before you can even get set? I'm thinking that changing the camera angle to a full-court view might help, since I can position my defenders better that way.

2 - How the heck do you stay in front of guys? I use the "intense" D or whatever, by holding the left trigger button, but I still get blown by a lot. I also hold the right trigger which does the fast shuffle, but I still seem to have trouble just staying in front of guys when they drive. Any advice here?

3 - How exactly do you play physical man defense? Sometimes the points of emphasis say to play physical but I'm not sure how to.

4 - Do you suggest setting all the coach settings to Manual? It seems like a lot to keep track of, especially subs. I figure I can set those to Auto, do a Rotation style sub and just keep track of Points of Emphasis and defensive matchups. Any advice here?

5 - Please add any general tips for playing effectively. Do you freestyle a lot and have the coach call plays? Usually I set playcalling to auto (for now, until I learn the team's playbooks), and then put on Lite play-vision and run the plays that way. It works alright but obviously I need a ton of practice with the various sets for the different teams.

Thanks for any help in advance! Ciao.

[QNo]

Re: Newbie questions

1. It's tough to defend. I find that the best way is to switch to half-court press as soon as you're on D, then get back to a man to man when the fastbreak has been stopped. SamPham has a video on this.

2. Don't crowd the dribbler, stay a little further away. Give them some space unless it's a guy like Korver.

3. You don't have to do that yourself, the CPU takes care of that. It means how aggressively your team helps out and goes for steals, blocks, etc.

4. This year it's fine to leave it on auto, I'd only have the playcalling on manual. You can always get into this more the more you've played the game. I still like to do everything manual, but a lot of experienced players let ACE handle subs and POEs.

5. You can manually change the playbook and freelance offense for each team soi you won't have to learn all of them. There's a big thread on these offenses in the main 2k forum on here. Also check out SamPham on YouTube, he has some great tutorials.

[fluent2332]

Re: Newbie questions

1. It's tough to defend. I find that the best way is to switch to half-court press as soon as you're on D, then get back to a man to man when the fastbreak has been stopped. SamPham has a video on this.

2. Don't crowd the dribbler, stay a little further away. Give them some space unless it's a guy like Korver.

3. You don't have to do that yourself, the CPU takes care of that. It means how aggressively your team helps out and goes for steals, blocks, etc.

4. This year it's fine to leave it on auto, I'd only have the playcalling on manual. You can always get into this more the more you've played the game. I still like to do everything manual, but a lot of experienced players let ACE handle subs and POEs.

5. You can manually change the playbook and freelance offense for each team soi you won't have to learn all of them. There's a big thread on these offenses in the main 2k forum on here. Also check out SamPham on YouTube, he has some great tutorials.

Thanks, QNo!

I've been doing everything and having some success, although I am still very bad at the game. I did manage to get a few wins last night, which was good, but either way I'm having a blast with this year's game. Great stuff.

I'm having trouble staying in front of everyone. It seems I need to give more of a cushion. On offense I end up panicking when I don't get the first shot I want, but I'm starting to get more comfortable with the ball movement and getting open shots. It's a very rewarding game this year. I love it.

[QNo]

Re: Newbie questions

Glad you're having fun. With your attitude I'm sure that you're improving very quickly!

[fluent2332]

Re: Newbie questions

Glad you're having fun. With your attitude I'm sure that you're improving very quickly!

Yeah, I think I have been! Although I still get beat, a LOT, by both CPU and user. It doesn't help that I use the 76ers, but I feel like if I learn them enough, I should be able to at least hang with anyone. In previous 2Ks I would do the same thing, and eventually become a decent player, but it takes time and practice to get really good.

I just learned what 3 out 2 in actually means in the game. It runs a motion style offense. Is there somewhere you can call that play yourself? I know there is 4 out 1 in as well, and also Sixers Motion, which appears sometimes but isn't user controlled. Just wondering if there is a way to call those.

Playing pick and roll in the game feels like real life! It's very tricky to become a pick and roll maestro in the game, but I'm working on it.

Add me on Steam sometime if you'd like to play. My Steam username is fluent2332.

[QNo]

Re: Newbie questions

Yes, you can call those D-Pad left -> R1 -> RS up. Added you You're really challenging yourself using the 76ers. I love the idea but you chose the hardest version of it.

[fluent2332]

Re: Newbie questions

Yes, you can call those D-Pad left -> R1 -> RS up. Added you You're really challenging yourself using the 76ers. I love the idea but you chose the hardest version of it.

Yeah, I figured as much. I did manage to get a couple of online wins using them, but it's definitely challenging. Usually I get wrecked, lol. My record is very poor but I still have fun. For me, it's not necessarily all about winning, more about just having fun playing the game.

Will look for you on Steam sometime. Thanks for the tips on how to call the motion plays, too. That will come in very handy.

My man defense needs so much work. I give up a million easy lanes to the basket every game. Blow-bys left and right, lol.