How Video Games Can Help You Get Better at the Game of Basketball

Basketball video games might not help you get better at the game of basketball on a real court (unless you’re a professional or have access to a private arena), but they can help you build pattern recognition, strategic thinking and court awareness. Making split-second decisions and seeing how teammates react to one another can give you a better understanding of how teams are structured and how to read the defensive scheme of other NBA teams.

NBA 2K1 was the first of its kind to make use of polygons, heralding the 3D switch for sports games in the years that followed. It also included one of the earliest examples of “smart shots,” which color-coded a shot before it was taken to let you know whether the ball was likely to go in or not.

This iteration of EA’s college basketball franchise may not be the best ever, but it relaunched the series after an embarrassing flop that saw a slew of bugs and glitches ranging from Luol Deng hitting every shot in a given location to Dennis Rodman sporting a Jesus Christ Pose. But it was still a good game with improved gameplay, a deeper scouting system and 107 NCAA teams including MJ’s Tar Heels.

Take control of Kobe Bryant as he makes his way through the NBA in this Sony Playstation classic. The game follows a realistic view of the NBA with players attending press conferences, signing endorsements and interacting with rivals as well as colleagues and coaches. The gameplay itself is fun and passable, but the story mode is what sets it apart from other basketball games.