What’s with the Suns vs Clippers semifinals for the NBA 2K Players Tournament? First we have Devin Booker vs Montrezl Harrell and now we switch focus to the Deandre Ayton vs Patrick Beverley matchup. Could we also witness a Suns vs Clippers final? Or would it be more fun to see two teammates go one on one in the last game of the inaugural NBA 2K Players Tournament? It’s all speculation until we get this semi out of the way. Which one of the lower seeds will walk away with a win this Saturday? Let’s find out.
No.10 seed Deandre Ayton rolled with the Los Angeles Clippers in his quarterfinals game against Trae Young, who played with the other LA team. Young was a heavy favorite in the quarters, but despite a relatively close game Ayton squeaked out the 73-66 win. His underdog status may not have been deserved though. While listening in to the playful smack talk between Ayton in Young, we found out that Ayton has been a hardcore NBA 2K player since at least 2017, when both quarterfinals players played together in the McDonald’s All-American Classic. It seems that Vegas odds were right from the beginning, as even though the big Sun came into the tournament as a No.10 seed the sportsbook had him priced with the third best odds (+600) to win the whole event.
Ayton played with the Houston Rockets in the first round prior to the quarterfinals where he chose the Clips. We hear he may choose the Milwaukee Bucks for the semis – but don’t quote us on that. Either way, betting on an Ayton win is pretty darn reasonable wager.
No.14 seed Patrick Beverley started the tournament with +2800 odds to win it all, but his long shot status has not shown. The Clippers guard played with the Philadelphia 76ers in his quarterfinals game against the Cavaliers Andre Drummond, who played as the Bucks. This makes it the first time a Bucks team selection has cost a player a game in the tournament. Beverly only won by 7-points in a somewhat low scoring 69-62 win, but he maintained his cool and threw in some solid verbal jabs for fun. In the end the score didn’t quite reflect this control of the game. For the semis, there is a strong likelihood that Beverley will play as himself and the Clippers. While he has a modest overall rating of 78 as of Week 25, he’ll earn bragging rights for months by beating Ayton with his own avatar. But with his semifinals opponent packing a solid NBA 2K pedigree that will be a tall task.
Writer’s Prediction
Ayton’s NBA 2K experience reigns supreme, as he takes down Beverley by a score of 101-82.
