Two Incredibly Bizarre Basketball Video Game Features

The NBA 2K video game series revolutionized virtual basketball as we know it.

However, as the games have advanced, they’ve included some odd storylines, particularly in the “MyCareer” mode.

In this mode, you create a player and try to bring him through the ranks of the NBA. When this mode first debuted, you largely stuck to action on the court. The only swaying from that was in post-game interviews, where you could occasionally say things that threw your teammates under the bus. It was delightful.

That’s changed with later games. NBA 2K23 came out last week and we’ve already seen plenty of gameplay videos from it.

Now, there are some cool features to the game. Perhaps the most intriguing is MyNBA Eras. This feature offers the ability to start a league from a certain year, such as 1983 or 2002. Each era mirrors the broadcast feel and salary cap/league rules that actually happened during that time span.

It’s a fun way to mix things up. For example, you could make sure Kobe and Shaq never split up and the Lakers dynasty continued (maybe forever?). Or you could have the Houston Rockets take Michael Jordan and perhaps he opens up a brisket restaurant.

The possibilities are ENDLESS, truly.

Then you also have a feature like these really weird rap battles within the MyCareer mode. The first lines of this particular battle include “doo-doo” and “scooping poo.”

Look at this monstrosity:

Sometimes, I like the idea of sports video games including off-the-field shenanigans, but never at the expense of the gameplay itself.

And to get this terrible rap (which your opponent calls “impressive”) in lieu of quality on-the-court action? Well…it ain’t for me.

Yet, this wacky, offbeat bar spittin’ isn’t the strangest thing a basketball game has given us. No, no, that honor still belongs to a glitch from EA Sports’ NBA Elite 11.

After some struggles with its NBA Live series, EA Sports looked to rebrand. It gave us a demo of NBA Elite 11, and chaos ensued.

The game was fine, but there was an odd glitch that kicked in where a player could get stuck in a T-pose, the default setting for a player model in the development phase.

That means, in this case, that Andrew Bynum stops at halfcourt and stands with his arms extended straight out. He can’t move around or pass or shoot or do anything. He stays like this for the REST OF THE GAME.

It’s still the wildest thing I’ve seen happen in any basketball game. And it seems like EA Sports could never quite figure out how to solve it because this video game got canceled before it was ever released.

Check out the glitch here or below (and heads up there is some cursing in it as the player loses all semblance of sanity).