For years, "coaching emphasis" and "offensive setting" in NBA2K have been buggy

[MrFil23]

For years, "coaching emphasis" and "offensive setting" in NBA2K have been buggy or incomprehensible. I'm disappointed to see that 2K leaves broken things every year. My biggest disappointment in NBA2K24 is the feeling that the game is once again unfinished. Another year where it's difficult, if not impossible, to effectively coach your team.

• In general, there's no connection between "coaching emphasis" during a timeout and the offensive and defensive settings menus in the pause menu. What's the relationship between the two?
  
• Can someone tell me why in "coaching emphasis" during a timeout, in the "focus player" menu, "none" appears several times? It seems like they removed things without being able to delete the name. It's crude, such a lack of polish.
  
• Can someone tell me why the options in "coaching emphasis" are different from the "team adjustments" menu in the pause menu? For example, both menus have "shrink floor," but many things are missing. It seems like the two menus are only partially linked. The same goes for "coaching emphasis" and "offensive settings."
  
• In offensive settings, I've tried to disable ACE, but it still says "controlled by ACE."
  
• In the "freelance" section of the "offensive settings" menu, it says "freelance: default," but it doesn't tell us which freelance is being used. That's frustrating too!

They said they updated 2KU for newcomers, but there's still nothing explaining all the coach settings. I'm starting to believe their programming is flawed... And I get the impression that the new "motion" feature prevents the AI from using the real team freelances (only for modern teams).

[MrFil23]

Well I can see why coaching is always such a mess, no one cares.... 2k you're right to not care either...

[jtex23]

I don't think it's that nobody cares. SimNation is still a thing; I personally care but have not been able to speak on the subject with such thorough evidence and linguistic clarity.



I do believe that nobody has the answer to your question. I remember, years ago, I used to see a 2k Dev or two with OS accounts posting responses in the forums; but I'm pretty sure Obama was President the last time I saw that



I'd be REALLY interested to see what kind of response you get submitting that exact post as a ticket to 2k. I think the whole community would benefit from knowing how that experience turned out-- there's no way they DONT KNOW about this, right?? I hope??

[MrFil23]

Last year, I had already reported this issue and many others on the forum, as well as on Discord and through 2K support. They responded to me saying it was great and thanked me for my efforts (I had reported at least 6-7 bugs with videos and images). I must admit an error on my part; sometimes I reported bugs that were too superficial but they were still 2K's shortcomings.

I had reported severe bugs such as the inconsistency of coach settings and the questionable functionality of ACE. I had also reported erratic player movements when moving them laterally from each end of the court. (I also pointed out the absurdity of having to choose between two-player and defensive assist in the controller settings menu, but well... that wasn't a bug, just a comment).

In short, even though the game offers some very welcome improvements, I encounter a lot of bugs, and I'm increasingly questioning the absence of conformity warranty. Bugs are normal, but the lack of patches intrigues me. Is it intentional? After all, online players have their pay-to-win; do offline players have to pay to hope that your game will be fixed...

[guesswhozbak17]

Quote: Originally Posted by MrFil23

Last year, I had already reported this issue and many others on the forum, as well as on Discord and through 2K support. They responded to me saying it was great and thanked me for my efforts (I had reported at least 6-7 bugs with videos and images). I must admit an error on my part; sometimes I reported bugs that were too superficial but they were still 2K's shortcomings. I had reported severe bugs such as the inconsistency of coach settings and the questionable functionality of ACE. I had also reported erratic player movements when moving them laterally from each end of the court. (I also pointed out the absurdity of having to choose between two-player and defensive assist in the controller settings menu, but well... that wasn't a bug, just a comment). In short, even though the game offers some very welcome improvements, I encounter a lot of bugs, and I'm increasingly questioning the absence of conformity warranty. Bugs are normal, but the lack of patches intrigues me. Is it intentional? After all, online players have their pay-to-win; do offline players have to pay to hope that your game will be fixed...

The original poster (MrFil23) makes great points. Coaching is the missing layer NBA 2K needs. The settings are confusing and don't connect well.
I agree that coaching emphasis during timeouts should match the menu settings. The "focus player" options having "none" several times is sloppy. The timeout menu and pause menu should match too.

The offenses don't seem tied to real coaches' styles either. Phil Jackson's teams should run the triangle offense, call minimal timeouts. Mike D'Antoni's should play fast for quick shots, prioritize individual shooting over everything. Mike Brown should focus strictly on defense and look to prioritize pushing pace.

Right now, plays are tied to players instead of coaches. Steve Kerr would use Steph Curry completely differently than Doc Rivers would. Adding distinct coach strategies separate from the players would make the game more realistic.
Even the WNBA mode could benefit from coach identity being separate from players.

Coaching is the missing piece. 2K has done an AMAZING job replicating individual players over the years. The next step is getting those players to work together like real teams. That comes from coaching.

Most 2K players probably haven't played organized ball. They know streetball. With time, they pick up some basic tactics. But the community is mostly streetball knowledge, not real basketball IQ.

You should check out the article I wrote a few weeks back on this is [[link](https://forums.operationsports.com/f...rrerid=72012)]. As 2K prepares NBA 2K25, coaching should be the focus they consider to take the franchise to the next level. That will bring back the "sim" feel.

[MrFil23]

Quote: Originally Posted by guesswhozbak17

You should check out the article I wrote a few weeks back on this is [[link](https://forums.operationsports.com/f...rrerid=72012)]. As 2K prepares NBA 2K25, coaching should be the focus they consider to take the franchise to the next level. That will bring back the "sim" feel.

Thank you for responding to my post, but I think we're two old-timers bothering 2K with our request to be able to control our team's strategy. Yet, this request is fundamental in a basketball game. Ten years ago, I'm convinced that this kind of post would have received more reactions from the community, but I have to bitterly acknowledge that it's no longer the case. Online modes with their mind-numbing, addictive, and frustrating gameplay have attracted a community with a superficial basketball IQ. This community is not to blame; it's their right to enjoy this kind of mode. But I can only observe that the fans from the early days, who switched from NBA Live to NBA 2K for the simulation, are clearly being sidelined. Our desires are much harder to satisfy than the desires of the new community. Anyway... even the controls of my controller seem messy and illogical to me. You did an ENORMOUS job in your post about coaches; we can feel your passion, but you're not their priority, you don't buy VC.