The 2019 NBA All-Star Weekend activities are underway in Charlotte, North Carolina which also bring NBA-related video game events and personalities. On Friday, the NBA 2K Playgrounds 2 All-Star Throwdown took place involving four NBA players in the competition. In addition, NBA video game personalities Ronnie 2K and Jay Williams were participants in the All-Star Celebrity Game.
NBA 2K Playgrounds 2 All-Star Karl-Anthony Towns
The NBA 2K Playgrounds 2 All-Star Throwdown took place on Friday afternoon from The Underground in Charlotte. Competing in this eLeague competition were four current NBA stars including cover athlete Karl-Anthony Towns. The Minnesota Timberwolves star was ready to ball on the virtual courts too.
Towns took on Los Angeles Lakers star Kyle Kuzma in the first round of the Playgrounds competition. In the other matchup, it was Atlanta Hawks rookie Trae Young and Memphis Grizzlies rookie Jaren Jackson Jr. battling on the sticks. The event was live streaming online via Twitch TV.
We’re goin live from #NBAAllStar Weekend in Charlotte! Tune in for our first match up @KarlTowns vs. @kylekuzma
Watch ➡️ https://t.co/PCHUgtaq5D pic.twitter.com/9Vp2PTiWfu
— NBA 2K Playgrounds (@2KPlaygrounds) February 15, 2019
Towns defeated Kuzma and Jackson Jr. took out Young to set up a finals matchup between KAT and the Grizzlies rookie. In the end, the NBA 2K Playgrounds 2 cover athlete couldn’t be stopped. Karl-Anthony Towns won the competition and a $10,000 check. Viewers who missed the Twitch live stream can watch the televised event on TBS beginning at 11 p.m. Eastern Time on Friday night.
The @ELEAGUETV NBA 2K PG2 All-Star Throwdown was 🔥
Watch the full show at 11:30 ET on TBS 📺 pic.twitter.com/18ORLWfKf7
— NBA 2K Playgrounds (@2KPlaygrounds) February 15, 2019
The 2K Playgrounds cover star and competition winner was also on hand at halftime of the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game on Friday evening. He spoke about his second selection for the NBA All-Star Game as he’ll be part of Team LeBron on Sunday. Towns is averaging 23.1 points, 12 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 1.8 blocks per game for the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Ronnie 2K, Jay Williams play in NBA All-Star Celebrity Game
Two of the personalities involved in rival NBA video games tried to show their real-life basketball skills on Friday night. Ronnie “2K” Singh of NBA 2K and commentator/analyst Jay Williams of NBA Live 19 were part of the 2019 NBA All-Star Celebrity Game in Charlotte.
Ahead of the game, 2K posted a shot of Ronnie in the 2K19 video game with his official rating. They also polled fans to ask if his 80 overall rating would rise or fall after his participation in the event. The fans weren’t too kind to the NBA 2K personality known for giving out sweet 2K19 content on his Twitch channel.
Here's your official 2K19 rating before the Celeb Game @Ronnie2K 👀 Y'all think his rating is gunna go up or down based on his performance?
— NBA 2K19 (@NBA2K) February 15, 2019
Ronnie 2K got a decent bit of playing time but didn’t exactly fill up the stat sheets. Still, he managed to tweet out to his massive Twitter following to ask for some votes for the game’s MVP Award. A number of fans were refusing to give in to that request after Ronnie’s missed layups in the game.
NBA All-Star Celebrity Game, 2K19 feature four-point shots
Of the two players, it was the former basketball star Jay Williams who had the more impressive stats. Williams had a number of highlight plays including a sweet behind-the-back assist to his teammate for the score.
He also hit a number of Ruffles four-point shots in the game worth a charitable contribution of $4,000 each thanks to a special promotion. The four-point shots made their way into the NBA 2K19 Neighborhood on Friday. Check out the blue four-point Ridge lines in the image below. Also, check out basketball Hall of Famer Ray Allen’s highlight reel as he hit a number of those shots.
The @RUFFLES 4pt RIDGE line is going live in The Neighborhood today 🙌 Plus, don't miss our guy @Ronnie2K pull up from the same 4pt line IRL during tonight's #NBAAllStar Celebrity Game!
🕓 4pm ET
🕒 3pm CT
🕓 4pm PT
🕔 5pm MT pic.twitter.com/NBX99VM7hH— NBA 2K19 (@NBA2K) February 15, 2019
It looked like a runaway game for the Home All-Stars. However, the Away team made a run with under 30 seconds to go thanks to a 4-point shot from reigning MVP Quavo and a big steal with a layup from Hassan Minhaj.
When all was said and done from Charlotte, the Home team celebrities held on for an 82-80 win. Despite Ronnie’s requests, Famous Los took home the 2019 MVP Award. Los finished with 22 points on 10-for-16 shooting along with three assists, and two rebounds.
Get more of the latest news and information about the NBA 2K games here.