To go along with its actual, professional basketball league, the NBA is creating a new division for players who excel at video-game basketball.
Based on Take Two Interactive’s NBA 2K series, the new esports league will mimic the structures and conventions of the NBA. Five-person teams will be supported and operated by NBA franchises. A first for U.S. professional sports, the NBA 2K eLeague will begin with a player combine, then a draft, with regular-season games and playoffs coming in 2018.
“There’s an untapped audience on both sides of the equation,” said Matt Holt, the NBA’s vice president of global partnerships.