NBA 2K Players Tournament recap: Devin Booker crowned champion

The NBA 2K20 Players Tournament wraps up Saturday evening with the semifinals and final starting at 5 PM ET on ESPN. The Final Four is a field comprised of two teams: Devin Booker and Deandre Ayton of the Phoenix Suns and Montrezl Harrell and Patrick Beverley of the Los Angeles Clippers. Let’s take a look at the matchups. We’ll be making some picks before the contest begins and then we’ll have live updates throughout the night.

NBA 2K Players Tournament Finals Live Updates

Devin Booker (5) vs. Deandre Ayton (10)

Game 2 recap

10:55 — Booker is officially the champ. He claimed a 74-62 win over Ayton and led for most of the way. Milwaukee made some runs, but whenever it got close or pulled ahead, Denver had a back of tricks ready in response.

10:35 — Booker is running away with the game. He’s up 53-40 mid-way through the third quarter and appears to be en route to a title.

10:30 — Booker is back on top and is heading into the break with a six-point lead. Denver has scored 41 points while Milwaukee has put 35 points on the board.

10:20 — Milwaukee leads 25-22 mid-way through the second quarter. Ayton is learning how to play with the Bucks by using the entirety of his timeouts.

10:12 — Booker and the Nuggets lead 19-14 at the conclusion of the first quarter.

10:09 — A Nikola Jokic three forced a timeout with just over a minute left in the first quarter. Denver leads 14-10.

10:05 — Ayton is looking to force a Game 3 with the Milwaukee Bucks while Devin Booker uses the Denver Nuggets in Game 2.

Game 1 recap

9:58 — The Rockets continued to spray the Lakers from deep down the stretch and filled it up in transition. Booker knocked off Ayton while he was using one of the best teams in the game. Houston claimed a 72-62 victory, which means Booker only needs one more win to take home a championship.

9:45 — Booker is dominating from range. He’s made nine three-pointers to Ayton’s three through three quarters. The Rockets hold a 52-47 lead heading into the final frame.

9:41 — Booker has exhausted his pause time twice now, but Ayton generous granted him more mid-way though the third quarter.

9:25 — Ayton sank a buzzer beater from deep to end the second quarter, but his team trails. The Rockets hold a 33-29 lead at the break.

9:04 — Booker went with the Rockets and Ayton went with the Lakers for Game 1 of the finals. This is a pretty cool matchup considering Book and Ayton have probably played each other a bunch of times in 2K.

Booker has these four teams remaining in his pool: Lakers, Rockets, Nuggets and Celtics.

Ayton has the Lakers, Bucks, Jazz and Pelicans left.

Game 2 — Ayton defeats Beverley 2-0

8:56 — It’s going to be an all Suns final with Ayton knocking off Beverley 74-67. The Suns center used his team in this win and scored 19 points with himself in the victory. Now, he’ll face teammate Devin Booker in the finals.

8:43 — It’s 56-44 in favor of Ayton with three quarters in the books. So again, it appears Ayton will face Booker in the final pending a run by Beverley and some wild re-scheduling of the programming at ESPN. Ayton just drained a 3-pointer and Beverley is getting aggravated. Ayton has 15 points, four rebounds and three assists with himself in this game, by the way.

8:31 — Ayton is up at halftime and is closing in on advancing. Since this is pre-taped and there’s a schedule for the tournament, I’m assuming Ayton pulls off the win. Sorry to be that guy and spoil that. If it’s Booker vs. Ayton in the final, we’ve got teammates going at it, both tops in 2K.

8:23 — It’s the beginning of the second quarter and Ayton has a comfortable 24-19 over Beverley. The Nuggets were a surprising choice given the elimination game for Beverley.

8:14 — This may be the end of Beverley’s run in this tourney. Right now, he’s behind early against Ayton and the Suns. It’s only 13-5, but I don’t know if Beverley can deal with the Suns center.

8:10 — Ayton and Beverley are getting underway in Game 2. Ayton is going with his team, the Phoenix Suns, while Beverley is going with the Denver Nuggets.

Game 1 recap

7:57 — Ayton held off a late-game surge from Beverly to win 75-69. Ayton still hasn’t used the Los Angeles Lakers or Milwaukee Bucks, so the deck is stacked against Beverly ahead of Game 2.

7:50 — Durant is setting the nets ablaze and has helped the Nets build a five-point lead. Boston trails Brooklyn 66-61.

7:46 — Ayton reclaimed the lead ahead of the first timeout in the first quarter. Brookyn is up 58-57.

7:44 — Beverley rallied to take the lead. His Celtics are up 54-51 heading into the final frame.

7:38 — Ayton and the Nets are up 48-45 with a minute left in the third quarter. He rebounded down the stretch just as Brooklyn started to pull away.

What are the chances Beverley could actually smell a W ahead of his first game with Ayton?

Highlight — Ayton got Kevin Durant going with this nasty reverse slam.

7:26 — Neither side budged ahead of the halfway mark. Ayton edged out Beverley by sinking a midrange jumper with .6 seconds left on the clock to secure a 33-31 lead. Either side could come out on top.

Beverley hyped up his defensive effort early in the second quarter.

7:13 — Ayton and Beverley are knotted up at 18 through one quarter, They’re trying to get a feel for each other’s games while exchanging buckets back and forth.

7:05 — The second semifinal is underway with Ayton and Beverley. Pat Bev is playing as the Celtics, while Ayton is using the Brooklyn Nets. Remember, this is before the injuries, so Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant are both healthy and in there.

Game 2 — Booker advances

Final update — Booker will advance to the final of the NBA 2K Players Tournament! He awaits the winner of Beverley vs. Ayton after getting a 65-62 win over Harrell in the semifinal. He takes the series 2-0.

6:54 — Booker got a huge steal at the end on Giannis and now it’s looking like he’s going to squeeze out this series win. The Raptors lead by two points and that’s timeout Bucks. Toronto needs a stop up 63-60 to win it. Booker would advance to the final.

6:51 — Back and forth, back and forth. This game has been tight pretty much wire-to-wire. Booker has a narrow lead again and this one could come down to a final possession.

6:40 — Booker has a 3-point lead as the third quarter is close to being complete. It’s 49-46 in favor of the Raps.

6:35 — The second half is underway and Harrell and Booker keep trading buckets. The score is 34-33 for Harrell but it’s up and down.

6:25 — We’ve got a tight one with under 2:00 left in the second quarter. It’s knotted at 27 and Harrell just praised the Bucks for their defense. He may not be saying that this Summer if the Clippers face the Bucks in the Finals. Either way, it looks like Harrell isn’t going down without a fight.

6:15 — We’re underway in the second quarter and Booker has a narrow lead over Harrell at 18-15. You’d think Booker would be having a tough time with the Bucks, but he’s looked poised. Harrell pulled out Giannis and Milwaukee in an elimination game and is struggling to solve Booker’s strategy.

6:03 — Game 2 of the best of 3 semifinal is about to get underway with Booker choosing the Raptors and Harrell going with the Bucks.

Game 1 recap

5:53 — Booker came out on top with a 68-54 victory. Luckily for Harrell, the semifinals are a best of three series. Booker needs one more win to move on to the finals. Harrell has to make things more competitive if he wants to keep his championship dreams alive.

5:41 — Booker has built up a 15-point lead heading into the fourth quarter. The Clippers have a 55-40 lead. Things aren’t looking good for Harrell and the Rockets.

5:40 — Harrell voiced frustrations about lag while Booker pulled ahead toward the end of the third quarter. Booker has continued to splash from beyond the arc and leads 53-40 with 22 seconds left in the quarter.

Highlight — George hammers the ball through with authority.

5:35 — Houston took a timeout after Los Angeles went up 47-34 with a George slam.

5:26 p.m. — Booker started to light it up from three in the second quarter. Landry Shamet was a key player for the Clippers and knocked down a couple shots from deep to help Los Angeles secure a 39-29 lead at the break.

Highlight — Booker jaws at Harrell for not respecting the Klaw’s lethal defense.

5:14 p.m. — The game is close through one quarter. Booker is up 17-12 heading into the second quarter and has made it a point to attack with Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. He threw a few jokes Harrell’s way about not knowing how to play against his own team along the way. It’s shaping up to be a competitive game

5:05 p.m.— Booker is rolling with the Los Angeles Clippers in his first semifinal game while Harrell has the Houston Rockets.