I think the post game is underutilized by many in 2K, especially as the NBA game skews even further towards 3s and layups. I'd like this thread to serve as a spot for everyone to share their tips on becoming a beast in the post on 2K18. The variety of moves and the added smoothness of chaining those moves together should give us more ways to score in the post than ever before. That includes but is definitely not limited to...most effective moves and animations, best spots to score from in the post, scoring with and without the dribble, and best post plays and playbooks. I know there's a general tips thread, but I think there's a deeper dive to be done on the post game. I know my post game could definitely use some work, so all advice is appreciated!
I'll start with the results of some labbing I did on post hooks...
THE CONDITIONS
-Played 8 first quarters with the Pelicans against the Warriors on Superstar difficulty so that all players had peak stamina and I was less likely to see substitutions
-I exclusively called simple post-ups (Punch 5) with Boogie (97 post hook) for 4 of those quarters and with AD (92 post hook) for 4 of those quarters
-I flip-flopped their positions so each would be guarded by Draymond Green for 2 quarters and Zaza Pachulia for the other 2
-When I would catch the ball in the post, I'd do at least one backdown of the defender once engaged, and most of the time I'd shoot right then because it seemed to get me the best chance of a clean look with a lesser contest
-The goal was to see generally how effective post hooks are, and to see how their effectiveness changed when facing two very different types of defenders...a smaller but much better and better-badged defender (Draymond) vs a larger but inferior defender without defensive badges (Zaza, who is almost exactly the same size as Boogie)
-I mostly shot from the edge of the paint in the low post and used both sides about equally
-I shot 75-80% of the shots going towards the baseline instead of towards the paint, as I've generally found those more effective and easier to get off
THE RESULTS
Boogie: 6/19 against Draymond and 6/25 against Zaza (12/44 overall - 27%)
AD: 9/21 against Draymond and 8/15 against Zaza (17/36 overall - 47%)
THE CONCLUSION
Boogie has the superior post control, size, strength and hook shot rating, which leaves only a few possibilities for why he'd shoot so much worse than AD against both defenders...
Post hook animations: AD's post hook animations, especially towards the baseline, seemed to get more clearance from the defender laterally and a slight bit more vertically. They also seemed to be a tick faster between starting the animation and the release of the ball, and the defenders were noticeably less likely to get a good contest on AD's hooks.
User error: Obviously this is a small sample size, and while I tried to utilize them in the same way, it's possible something I did skewed the results.
While the computer doesn't give shot feedback on post shots, it seemed to me that anything the defender did that would even register as a light contest would drop the chances of my shot dropping to almost zero. If I got off the defender clean and went up quickly with no contest, especially with AD, it was almost automatic that the shot would drop. It seems to me that the success of the post hook is almost entirely dependent on getting what would be considered an "uncontested" look. The major difference between Boogie and AD is their post animations. AD's are much better in the ways that matter to have success on that particular shot.
I'll start with the results of some labbing I did on post hooks...
THE CONDITIONS
-Played 8 first quarters with the Pelicans against the Warriors on Superstar difficulty so that all players had peak stamina and I was less likely to see substitutions
-I exclusively called simple post-ups (Punch 5) with Boogie (97 post hook) for 4 of those quarters and with AD (92 post hook) for 4 of those quarters
-I flip-flopped their positions so each would be guarded by Draymond Green for 2 quarters and Zaza Pachulia for the other 2
-When I would catch the ball in the post, I'd do at least one backdown of the defender once engaged, and most of the time I'd shoot right then because it seemed to get me the best chance of a clean look with a lesser contest
-The goal was to see generally how effective post hooks are, and to see how their effectiveness changed when facing two very different types of defenders...a smaller but much better and better-badged defender (Draymond) vs a larger but inferior defender without defensive badges (Zaza, who is almost exactly the same size as Boogie)
-I mostly shot from the edge of the paint in the low post and used both sides about equally
-I shot 75-80% of the shots going towards the baseline instead of towards the paint, as I've generally found those more effective and easier to get off
THE RESULTS
Boogie: 6/19 against Draymond and 6/25 against Zaza (12/44 overall - 27%)
AD: 9/21 against Draymond and 8/15 against Zaza (17/36 overall - 47%)
THE CONCLUSION
Boogie has the superior post control, size, strength and hook shot rating, which leaves only a few possibilities for why he'd shoot so much worse than AD against both defenders...
Post hook animations: AD's post hook animations, especially towards the baseline, seemed to get more clearance from the defender laterally and a slight bit more vertically. They also seemed to be a tick faster between starting the animation and the release of the ball, and the defenders were noticeably less likely to get a good contest on AD's hooks.
User error: Obviously this is a small sample size, and while I tried to utilize them in the same way, it's possible something I did skewed the results.
While the computer doesn't give shot feedback on post shots, it seemed to me that anything the defender did that would even register as a light contest would drop the chances of my shot dropping to almost zero. If I got off the defender clean and went up quickly with no contest, especially with AD, it was almost automatic that the shot would drop. It seems to me that the success of the post hook is almost entirely dependent on getting what would be considered an "uncontested" look. The major difference between Boogie and AD is their post animations. AD's are much better in the ways that matter to have success on that particular shot.
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