Kareem Signature Series Comparison/Breakdown

[harryl]

Comparison:
http://2kmtcentral.com/18/players/co...8636/8635/8592

The release of 3 different tiers of the same player on the same day is kind of interesting, in how it makes it very clear how 2K differentiates players.

Here is a breakdown of what meaningful and significant buffs get as you upgrade from Sapphire to Ruby to Amethyst.

I'm not all that impressed, considering that this was hyped up at least a week out. Which is not really a complaint because it's lame if truly OP cards are given out in a way that strongly correlates with spending $.

None of these Kareems has 3-point range, so we can all breath a collective sigh of relief on that point. As for what they do bring to the table...

Sapphire to Ruby:

• +13/15 to Speed/Accel
• +10 Vert
• +10 Strength
• +25 Lat Quickness, +11/10 to Block/Contest
• Other sizeable buffs to Defense
• +50 to Driving Dunk Tendency
• +2 Upgradeable Badges (Brick Wall/Pick & Roller)

Basically, you get a more athletic Kareem who is faster and a significantly better defender, in general, with massively better lateral mobility.

Ruby to Amethyst:

Buffs to Shot Close, Standing/Driving Layup

• +10/5/20 Standing/Driving/Contact Dunk
• +10 Draw Foul
• +2/2/5 Post Control/Hook/Fade
• Buffs to midrange shooting, FT, and Off Cons.
• +6/8/10 to Offensive/Defensive Rebounding/Boxout
• +10 Driving Dunk and +50 Flashy Dunk Tendencies
• +1 Upgradeable Badge, +5 HoF Badges, +Alpha Dog and Def Anchor

Basically, Amethyst becomes a dunking monster, a strong rebounder, and gains a meaningful bump to Post Fade that, with boost, could make it a legit weapon.

And the HoF badging is big-time for this stage in the game. Makes him best post-up threat in the game, by a good margin, with all post-up badges at HoF, plus Pick & Roller and Tireless Scorer.

SUMMARY:

Very roughly speaking, the Sapphire is a nice card for the masses to have as an option, but is not necessarily best Sapphire Center. His defense is maybe "above average" at best and his rebounding may be a concern. He's not particularly athletic and poor in LQ, so watch out in 1-5 P&R.

In terms of Attribute Points, he's actually only #7 amongst SA Centers. But he's going to be cheap. I think he's going to be 2K17 Amethyst Yao sort of cheap. And so he's a compelling option to consider at 5, if one is also comparing against Sapphire Moments Gasol, Sapphire Moments Whiteside, Sapphire Historic Dikembe, and others.

The Ruby is pretty nice, in general, and also as a Ruby Center. Nice, but not a dramatic standout in comparison with other Ruby Centers. Still, the Ruby has all the defense of the Amethyst.

The Amethyst is undoubtedly best Center currently available, which isn't saying a lot. I'd say he's generally preferable to Amethyst Rewards Mikan and Lanier. But I would expect that we will see packable Amethyst Centers be comparable or better and we may not be far away from that. With just 330 of these AM Kareems, I would imagine AH price to be...around 300K at first? Not worth it.

It's a really strong card, but not concretely "OP." He's got to do his damage in the paint and he's more than capable, relative to current competition, but he's not overpowering at 90 Strength @ 225lbs. He's fast, but not dramatically so. I wouldn't expect people to dominate games with him, unless they are amongst the few players who work the post really well. Most people who have him won't use him to full potential.

[Bubba13laze]

This was a really good breakdown of the cards and a joy to read. Thanks for writing it up!