The latest round of NBA 2K ratings have leaked online, giving Toronto Raptors fans another reason to lash out at the collective mainstream basketball media for underrating their team. The Raptors were treated as a middle-of-the-pack team once again.
As a team, Toronto was given an 81 overall rating. That’s the same mark as the Lakers, widely regarded as one of the least deep rotations in the sport, and the Wizards, who aren’t viewed as a playoff team. Toronto won 48 games, but that’s not enough to be ranked among the league’s elite.
The Raptors don’t have one player ranked higher than Pascal Siakam at 86 overall. While that puts him in select company, that doesn’t seem like the highest rating for someone fresh off an All-NBA season in which he carried the offensive load for a No. 5 seed.
The Raptors’ status as perpetual underdogs has once again made them a 2K team that will almost assuredly have their ratings positively pumped up by the time the middle of the season comes around. These 3 ratings stand out as the most confusing and egregious of the entire 2K23 batch.
3 most underrated Toronto Raptors players in NBA 2K23
3. OG Anunoby (81)
Terry Rozier, Jusuf Nurkic, Jalen Green, and Josh Giddey all rank above Anunoby despite lacking the productivity he brings to the table on both sides of the ball. Anunoby’s tight-lipped style and less-flamboyant game for an underrated team is the perfect storm for 2K to once again not give him his deserved digits.
Anunoby may have struggled with injuries over the last few years, but averaging 17.4 points per game with the versatility needed to defend all five positions on the floor effectively is not something you see every day. To treat it like it’s commonplace is a misstep from 2K.
Toronto Raptors: OG Anunoby was undervalued.
2K has often had difficulty valuing defense and effectively reflecting it in its ratings. While some of the finer points of defense might be harder to nail down, Anunoby is a near All-Defensive talent with the shooting ability of someone that could challenge for 20 points per game in a secondary offensive role.
Anunoby is the type of player who would have seen his overall bumped up a notch or two if he either played in a large American market or was more attention-grabbing in his style. As it is now, he is once again going to head into the season as a seldom-celebrated dynamo outside of Canada.
2. Fred VanVleet (83)
Apparently, becoming an All-Star and establishing yourself as one of the best shooters in the league is only good enough to get you on par with Wendell Carter Jr. and slightly above Tobias Harris. Did the 2K rating wizards not see what an impact VanVleet had on the roster?
VanVleet not only averaged over 20 points per game and just under seven assists per contest, but he did so while also showing extreme competency as an on-ball perimeter defender. The improvement from what VanVleet was during his backup days to now has been staggering.
Toronto Raptors: Fred VanVleet needs to be ranked better in NBA 2K23.
VanVleet and Draymond Green are the lowest-rated players that were All-Stars last season. Green is one step away from being completely broken as a shooter, while VanVleet had his best season yet. Even one or two overall ticks higher would have been an acceptable mark.
Anyone who is still unaware of the impact that VanVleet can have on a team is doing so out of an unwillingness to see what he can do. Hopefully, the Raptors know full well what he is capable of when it comes time to agree on a new contract.
1. Gary Trent Jr. (78)
Chris Boucher, who we are fans of, is ranked 77 overall. If you watch any semi0regular intake of basketball and come to the conclusion that Trent and Boucher are essentially in the same tier, it’s time to pursue another hobby. This is not just shocking; it’s disrespectful to Trent.
The list of players ranked ahead of Trent, who averaged 18.3 points per game with good efficiency as a starter on a playoff team, is laughable. Monte Morris, TJ Warren (who hasn’t played in two years), and Mo Bamba are all 79 overall. Dorian Finney-Smith, Jarred Vanderbilt, and what’s left of Ricky Rubio are apparently equal players.
Toronto Raptors: Gary Trent Jr. was ranked way too low.
Rookie sensations like Paolo Banchero and Jabari Smith will eventually become stars, but putting Trent in that tier when that pair was dunking on future insurance salesmen a few months ago is not showing the proper reverence for what Trent was able to accomplish.
Trent came to Toronto as one of the worst defenders in the league, yet he became a pesky turnover generator without losing one iota of skill and quality on the offensive end. It looks like Trent will have to pull off another streak of 30 or more points on the bounce to get some respect.