Playing and Learning

by J.R. Wilco on Nov 12, 2010 11:47 PM CST in Enhance Your Experience

This week, for the first time in years, I've been playing an NBA video game. How I came by the game (and which one it is) is a story for another day. But while I've been pouring time into trying to get better, I realized that it wasn't just the controls I was attempting to master, it was the X's and O's too.

The last time I went video game crazy was way before I joined PtR. And while I'd been watching basketball since I was a youngster, and even played for my high school team, it wasn't until I started reading and commenting here regularly that I realized that I didn't really understand the game half as well as I thought I did. Now, going back and playing again is a new experience, and I'm thinking about entirely different things than I used to.

All I used to care about on offense was whether the point guard was fast enough to beat his man off the dribble and break down the defense for an easy layup, or passing out for an open three pointer. As long as I had two of those guys (a speedster and a bomber) then I could score all the points I needed. But the games are designed better now, and I'm challenging myself to compete in the same way that an actual NBA team would.

And, in the same way that I learned more about the game from blogging, the time I've spent playing a video game is also informing my ability to better comprehend what I see when I watch the Spurs. Which makes me wonder about those of you who play NBA video games. What have you learned from playing? What kinds of things do you see while watching a game, that you learned to watch for while playing? And what kinds of things do you notice while watching, that help you play better?

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I can’t speak to NBA games, the last one I played was original Xbox or PS2. The only strategy we used was getting the ball to Manu or Nash, and it was so easy to score two points that three pointers became the key.

Playing Madden however is a pretty good way to learn to hide/read hidden defenses. It’s definitely sophisticated enough to get you thinking about whether players or scouts could be possibly learning anything from a little kid’s game.

by greyberger on Nov 13, 2010 12:27 AM CST reply actions

agreed…..madden is way easier to play seriously but still enjoy

Good things come to those who keep fighting

by lonewolfcee on Nov 13, 2010 12:31 AM CST up reply actions

me personally…….i havent played a 5 on 5 basketball video game since nba live 99 or 2000. the games now are overly complicated. and to be realistic they kinda have to be. learning the nuances of running plays and, subsequently, all those quick plays make it hard for me to ‘enjoy’ the game. besides…….whoever you’re playin against is bound NOT to be playing realisticly……..and dont get me started on the cheatin computer. lol!

honestly i’ve learned the most about the little things watching two disciplined teams play (like spurs vs pistons back in 2004 and 2005)

Good things come to those who keep fighting

by lonewolfcee on Nov 13, 2010 12:30 AM CST reply actions

Height matters if you are talking about games in basketball (like 2k11). I am playing drunk (waysted!!!!) with Splitter at the center with him playing 48 minutes at the rotation (I beged my friend to adjust my spurs rotation) and yet i win. I am invincible right now even though i was …..well….tipsy. I still managed to get Manu as the most valuable player and will always get him as the MVP. My friends would choose the LAKERS or the ORLANDO to beat me. Its all thanks to Splitter (his rating only 64 though).

by sparking!!! on Nov 13, 2010 11:22 AM CST up reply actions

It depends on the game. NBA 2k11 ios a great example of a game that helps you understand a lot more about basketball and executing plays. But I have played NBA live for long years, and while I was trying to get the offense flowing with good ball movement and sharing the shots the reality as that the best way to score on those games was to pick up and atlhetic player who could dunk and go straight to the rim. Yes, NBA live sucks,

"Rock and Roll angels bring that HardRock Hallelujah"

by Chilai on Nov 13, 2010 1:58 PM CST reply actions

What Chilai said. And playing basketball video games helped further reinforce the fact that the pick-and-roll, one of the simplest plays in basketball, is nearly unstoppable.

"A life, Jimmy, you know what that is? It’s what happens while you wait for moments that will never come." - Lester Freamon, The Wire

by silverandblack_davis on Nov 14, 2010 5:55 AM CST up reply actions

Never played an NBA game since good old NBA Jam. And that’s not very accurate, I think. (Although it did teach me some the net can catch on fire when a player has a hot hand.)

In any case… Dragon Age rock, wooot.

I smell death... everywhere.

by LatinD on Nov 14, 2010 11:04 AM CST reply actions

*rocks

I smell death... everywhere.

by LatinD on Nov 14, 2010 11:04 AM CST up reply actions

Are there not rocks in Dragon Age for you to wooot about?

Or maybe a song or a type of music called Dragon Age Rock?

The point with intangibles is that no one can see them.

by J.R. Wilco on Nov 15, 2010 1:19 PM CST up reply actions

Which would be pretty cool. But no.

I smell death... everywhere.

by LatinD on Nov 15, 2010 11:13 PM CST up reply actions

Havent played video games for a while. Just to give you an idea, the PS1 was the most advanced system the last time I played. Frankly , Im glad I dont play today. With the incredible games and graphics these days, its all I would do ( And have less time to hang out in here)

[ "Duncan, the Spurs' 34-year-old captain, was aghast when Splitter told him he used to watch him as a kid."]

"I didn't enjoy that at all," Duncan said

by alamobro on Nov 16, 2010 2:37 AM CST reply actions