These days the NBA and basketball are seen as one of the West's most popular sports, but that wouldn't be the case today if it wasn't for Larry Bird of the Boston Celtics and Magic Johnson of the Los Angeles Lakers. During the 80s these two helped captivate audiences and turn the NBA into a must-watch sporting event. Without these two legends, historical anecdotes are speculating that the league as a whole could have disappeared.
Thankfully that didn't happen and NBA 2K continues to make games that feature neat modes like the era selection in NBA 2K23's MyNBA Franchise Mode. The Bird/Johnson era for the 80s starts in 1983, just one year before Michael Jordan would be drafted to the Chicago Bulls with the 3rd overall pick. These types of resources also provide basketball fans of any age with information regarding lesser-known legends and star players who have simply been forgotten in time.
8 Milwaukee Bucks
It's hard to argue that the modern Milwaukee Bucks led by perennial All-NBA and All-Defensive team power forward Giannis Antetokounmpo isn't responsible for one of the best eras in organization history. Outside of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar playing there early in his career, fans often forget about the players who sported the forest greens.
Sidney Moncrief was a 6'4" two-way guard who made his mark on the league with his stellar defensive play. His 90 overall speaks for itself, then add in that the roster also includes an 85 overall Marques Johnson at small forward and the late Bob Lanier at center and the Bucks have a stout roster worth exploring in NBA 2K23.
7 San Antonio Spurs
The greatest era of San Antonio Spurs basketball was the 2000s Greg Popovich era which saw the team win an NBA Championship five times between 1999 and 2014. That doesn't mean the team didn't have other eras in which it was home to some great players. In the early 80s, they had a Chicago Bulls legend come over and populate the post for them, that man being 85 overall Artis Gilmore.
Every good post player needs a scorer who can stretch the court and alleviate pressure and Gilmore had that in 12x All-Star and 7x All-NBA shooting guard George Gervin. A guy sporting a 91 overall in NBA 2K23 has to be cold in some regard, and that assumption is fitting with Gervin considering his most notable nicknames were Iceman and Iceberg Slim.
6 Denver Nuggets
It's fascinating that a sport like the NBA which has a fandom so focused on scoring as a metric for greatness would have a blind spot with one of the league's greatest talents in Alex English. This man played 11 seasons for the Denver Nuggets, holds a majority of their longevity records, and is rarely ever discussed.
A team comprised of an 88 overall English, 87 overall Keke Vandeweghe, and an 86 overall Dan Issel, is a much more dangerous and entertaining roster than one would assume. For instance, if people were asked to name the all-time leading scorer in Nuggets history they'd likely shout Carmelo Anthony or maybe even Nikola Jokic, but it's English by a comfortable margin.
5 Utah Jazz
Salt Lake City isn't exactly known as a powerhouse basketball city, but before the days of John Stockton and Karl Malone, the Utah Jazz managed to roster a competitive team. At its core was Hall of Fame small forward Adrian Dantley. It may be a name lost to time, but this 6x All-Star, 2x NBA Scoring Champ, and 1976 Rookie of the Year put together a solid career.
He wasn't alone as he had Darrell Griffith and the late Mark Eaton by his side, but the team went as 90 overall Dantley did. During his seven seasons in Utah, he averaged 29.6 points per game, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists. It was the prime of his career and stretched from 1979-1986. Thankfully in NBA 2K23, players would likely be able to resign him for longer than seven seasons and let him build an even greater legacy as a member of the Jazz.
4 Detroit Pistons
The Detroit Pistons known for their bad-boy nature and physical play didn't come into their own until the late 80s/early 90s, but that didn't mean a young Isaiah Thomas and Bill Laimbeer didn't cause chaos. Having a 92 overall point guard with an 88 overall defensive presence in the paint is a great place to start a contending team.
The early years might be tough as many of the other rosters in the East are tough, but over time as some of those superstars get older the Pistons can emerge as a perennial Eastern Conference Finals contender, as they did in real life. Hopefully, players who chose them will be able to get long-awaited revenge for what Michael Jordan put them through in real life.
3 Philadelphia 76ers
When NBA fans hear the last name Malone, most probably think of the power forward from the Utah Jazz, but he wasn't the only great player sporting that last name. Moses Malone was a problem in the 80s for anyone looking to beat the Philadelphia 76ers.
Things were made worse when the 95 overall big man was paired with a hyper-athletic guard named Julius Irving, who garnered the iconic nickname Dr. J and manages to have a 90 overall on this 1982 version of the team. The 76ers of the 80s may not have the awards and accolades of their contemporaries, but many of the greatest teams the NBA has ever seen would have struggled to overcome Magic's Lakers or Bird's Celtics in their prime.
2 Los Angeles Lakers
It feels like every couple of decades the Los Angeles Lakers ended up having a roster that competes for multiple championships. Back in the 80s, it was much of the same as they had multiple NBA legends and Hall of Famers all sporting the purple and gold.
Those looking to use them will find a solid collection of players with the real standouts being a 95 overall Magic Johnson at point guard, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar controlling the paint with his 96 overall. The two feel like an absolute nightmare to deal with in the pick-and-roll, and players who draft around those two pieces could go on a dynasty-like run.
1 Boston Celtics
Back in the 80s, it felt like the NBA was a two-team league with the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics dominating most of the decade going against one another. NBA 2K23 is a great resource for younger or less-informed basketball fans to learn about how good Larry Bird, Robert Parish, and Kevin McHale were. This roster is led by Bird with a 97 overall and is boosted by Parish and McHale sporting 90 and 89 overalls respectively.
Before the days of Michael Jordan or Kobe Bryant there was one guy who played with the same killer instinct and competitive nature and his name was Larry Bird. Numerous stories talk about just how legendary both his trash talk and elite play that backed it up were during his prime.
NBA 2K23 is available on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, iOS, and PC.