Star Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum is the new cover athlete for NBA 2K25, gracing the newest iteration of the popular video game with WNBA star A'ja Wilson of the Los Vegas Aces. The first-ever cover to feature both an NBA and WNBA star, the summer of Tatum continues. The game itself will be out in September, but the hosts of the CLNS Media "Celtics Lab" podcast linked up with NBA 2K spokesperson Ronnie "2K" Singh to get up to speed on the latest version of the game.
How was it made? what is different in this version? And what was the process like that led to Tatum being selected (hint -- it wasn't due to him winning the title with Boston, as these decisions are made many months in advance). We get to the bottom of all the above and more.
We also get caught up on the trickle of news still coming out in the so-called dog days of August, from new tunes and tattoos to recreating old photos and more.
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How was it made? what is different in this version? And what was the process like that led to Tatum being selected (hint -- it wasn't due to him winning the title with Boston, as these decisions are made many months in advance). We get to the bottom of all the above and more.
We also get caught up on the trickle of news still coming out in the so-called dog days of August, from new tunes and tattoos to recreating old photos and more.
*************************************************
CLNS Media is Powered by:
Prize Picks - PrizePicks.com/CLNS
Download the app today and use code CLNS for a first deposit match up to $100!
Gametime - https://gametime.co
Take the guesswork out of buying NBA tickets with Gametime. Download the Gametime app, create an account, and use code CLNS for $20 off your first purchase. Download Gametime today. Last minute tickets. Lowest Price. Guaranteed. Terms apply.
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SportsTranscript
00:00All righty, welcome to the Celtics podcast brought to you by PrizePix, the exclusive
00:13fantasy basketball partner of the CLNS Media Network.
00:17And by game time tickets, last minute tickets, lowest price guaranteed.
00:22I'm Cameron Tep-Dubai.
00:23I'm your host.
00:24I'm joined by Alex Holberg, and Dr. Justin Quinn.
00:27In the second half of the program, through the magic of editing, you're going to be whisked
00:30away to Springfield, Massachusetts.
00:33I was at 2K Sports' Community Day, and I got an exclusive look at NBA 2K25, which I'll
00:40talk about a little bit here with Alex and Justin, but in the second half of the program,
00:44you'll listen to an interview I did on Thursday, or Friday, I forget, with Ronnie 2K, the face
00:51of 2K Sports.
00:53We talked about all sorts of things, specifically Jason Tatum being on the cover of NBA 2K25,
00:59but it's a whole bunch of stuff.
01:01I'll talk about my experience with that in a little bit, but in the second half of the
01:04program is my conversation with Ronnie 2K, specifically about Jason Tatum and NBA 2K25.
01:11Before then, we'll do the news, like we like to do, and there's not that much news.
01:16We'll kind of just chew the fat.
01:17I think Alex and Justin, this is the first time us three have podcasted together in maybe
01:23a month, so happy summer.
01:29Before I ask Alex and Justin how they are, I'm going to shout out Jess, Toby, and other
01:35Justin from work, who are now the biggest Celtics Lab fans I think I've ever met, so
01:41shout out to you folks.
01:42Good talking to you today.
01:44Alex, how are things in Brooklyn?
01:46Things are fine over here in Brooklyn.
01:48I was just in the woods all weekend, so I was actually not in Brooklyn, but it was lovely.
01:55Poconos are lovely this time of year.
01:58And yeah, did that.
02:00Some interesting things coming up, which I'll talk about maybe a little later, but all good
02:05over here.
02:06Sweet.
02:07Yeah, before our split where we talked to Ronnie 2K, we'll just plug things left and
02:12right.
02:13Justin, how are things in Mexico?
02:15Things in Mexico are getting better than they were a few days ago.
02:18At the start of the last podcast, I complained about some very vague things related to my
02:25job, and people who go to Celtics Wire fairly regularly have already noticed that it's different
02:30looking and migrating the site to this new, more integrated with the USA Today's graphic
02:38user interface, whatever you want to call it.
02:40That is what I've been up to.
02:42It's been lots of fun, as I'm sure you guys can imagine, but now that that is mostly taken
02:47care of, I can kind of feel off-season vibes again.
02:50I don't know if I want to, but I can.
02:53Justin's being polite.
02:54So basically, listener, if you imagine the tech interface, whatever you do at work, whether
02:58you use a lot of computers or a little bit of computers, imagine that interface changing
03:02entirely and being responsible for understanding it and then making sure bozos like me understand
03:09it.
03:10I think Justin has had a more interesting end to August than most basketball writers
03:17have.
03:18I don't know if you've noticed, there's not that much going on in basketball, but let's
03:22make a few mountains out of these molehills.
03:24First thing on our news agenda, Jason Tatum got a tattoo.
03:29I didn't even see the Kobe one, so I knew he got the all-star MVP trophy on his leg.
03:36I guess, Justin, tell me about this Black Mamba tattoo.
03:38I missed it entirely.
03:39Well, I don't know very much about it because I'm definitely not a Kobe Bryant tattoo aficionado
03:49or even a Kobe Bryant aficionado.
03:51This is 24 and it's made of a black mambas.
03:57That's what I know.
03:58All right.
03:59I like snakes.
04:00Listen, guys, you know I love Jason Tatum.
04:07You know that I'm such a huge fan of his improvements to his game, the way he carries
04:12himself on and off the court.
04:13Just couldn't be a bigger fan.
04:16I'm going to level just one slight criticism here at Jason Tatum, brother.
04:19Wait, wait, wait.
04:20Let me see.
04:21Let me just guess.
04:22Is it?
04:23It's kind of weird to have another man tattooed on you, not in any kind of a gay way.
04:29It's not even that.
04:31It's that I just don't particularly like the looks.
04:36The tattoos are.
04:37I got to look it up.
04:39You got it.
04:40You got to find a different artist.
04:41Big dog.
04:42I'm so sorry.
04:43But they just look so goofy.
04:46It just I don't know.
04:49Jason, come to Brooklyn.
04:50We can hook you up with some good tattoo artists here, man.
04:53Yeah.
04:54Jason has a lot of bad tattoo.
04:57This isn't I don't think this is real, isn't it?
05:00There's no way to say this is the ugliest thing I've ever seen.
05:06It's really not good.
05:08Hold on.
05:09Hold on.
05:10Hold on.
05:11We're OK.
05:12Well, in the interest of some guys in the Celtics being cheesy, that Jalen Brown song
05:17was not for me.
05:18Good for you, Jalen.
05:19I'm glad you said that.
05:23So here's what I'll say.
05:24I feel like, guys, you can correct me if I'm wrong.
05:27I think it's fair to say that I am the most musically experienced of the three of us on
05:31this podcast.
05:32Yeah.
05:33It's fair.
05:34And what I will say is that this tattoo is not real, you guys.
05:39I don't know.
05:40This Black Mamba tattoo is fake.
05:42All I've seen is a temporary.
05:43I mean.
05:44Great.
05:45No, I just someone got bamboozled on the Internet.
05:48This isn't real.
05:49Oh, OK.
05:50Well, that's good.
05:51No, it's not.
05:52Oh, wait.
05:53This is different.
05:54This is different.
05:55This is offseason.
05:56Riveting.
05:57Riveting podcasting, guys.
05:58What is happening?
05:59This is the man we are.
06:04OK, I see it.
06:07It's on TMZ.
06:10I kind of like it.
06:11It's stupid, but he's got it.
06:13He's got so many.
06:14If it was a maker, if it was his only tattoo, I feel differently.
06:21But like he's got Duke, he's got St. Louis, he's got God, he's got deuce.
06:25He's got all sorts of things.
06:29That is a good way to describe it, Cameron.
06:31Yeah, it's part of a pastiche of things that matter to Jason Tatum.
06:37It's a little bigger than I would ever put on my body, but I bet some people don't like
06:42my little tattoo.
06:43So to be actually Alex, your snail tattoo is low key and inspiration for the simplicity
06:49of my shark tattoo.
06:50Well, there you go.
06:52See, sometimes Jason does just free advice.
06:55Sometimes it's better to just keep it simple.
06:57OK, so now that we've done Tatu Advice Corner, let's do Music Advice Corner.
07:02Alex has a band called Divine Sweater.
07:05He has the bona fides to give this criticism.
07:07Jalen, you're on the hot seat.
07:10Again, we're proud of you for spreading your wings, but...
07:13So here's what I'll say.
07:15Guys, Jalen is not a rapper.
07:19He's not a professional rapper.
07:20He's just a guy who is an incredible basketball player and is also friends with A$AP Ferg.
07:26This is a song that very much sounds like a guy who is friends with Ferg and just got
07:34some free time in the studio to come in and hang out.
07:38And if you put it in the context of that, not bad for somebody to just come and hang
07:44out in the studio.
07:46Perfectly reasonable.
07:48It's not the song of the summer.
07:51It's not going to be, I think, something that I will personally be replaying.
07:56If other folks want to, that is fine.
07:59What I will say is that I think you're going to see at least one or two decent YouTube
08:03highlight reels of Jalen Brown dunking this song in the background.
08:08And that's all it needs to be.
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09:39Now back to the show.
09:41I do, um, there are three Easter eggs that I'm aware of related to this song.
09:45First, it's called Just Do It, and I don't need to explain that.
09:49It was released on 08.24, the last two times the Celtics won the championship.
09:54And the runtime is six minutes and 17 seconds.
09:57Shout out to the 617.
09:58So it's cute.
10:01It's very, it's very charming that it has these little Easter eggs like a Marvel movie.
10:06I'll tell you, there are at least two folks or groups of people that are less a fan of
10:14this song than I am.
10:16And that's Nike and Kevin Porter Jr.
10:18Yeah, okay.
10:19That's very fair.
10:20Nike just sent me some shoes for my birthday, so I'm not gonna say anything about that one.
10:27The other one, fair game.
10:29Good job.
10:30All right.
10:31What else we got on our rundown?
10:34Oh, Tatum going to St. Louis with the kid from the Florida Panthers.
10:42Yeah.
10:43Oh, yeah, there it is.
10:45That was cute.
10:46Really liked that.
10:48They recreated that famous photo of them on the bus from what must be like a really elite
10:54prep school if they produced it.
10:57Definitely.
10:58Yeah.
10:59100%.
11:01Tatum has been kind of all over the place and he's keep an eye out soon.
11:06He's going to pop up somewhere very exciting.
11:09But for now, he was in St. Louis for his, for a couple things.
11:13First of all, he had a charity golf tournament.
11:15He also dedicated a court at his old Boys and Girls Club with 2K foundations.
11:20That's something they've done for a couple years now, 2K did.
11:23And Tatum, so the 2K cameras, there wasn't that much press there, I don't think, said
11:27that it was a cover, a dream come true to be on the cover, says the weight of the world
11:32has been lifted off his shoulders after winning the 24 title.
11:35I don't think that's breaking news.
11:36I think we have heard him say that and kind of have inferred that.
11:40But I think all the other Celtics podcasts are spending time saying like, is Tatum going
11:46to enter the season with a chip on his shoulder?
11:48And time will tell, but it seems like probably a little bit.
11:52But I also think they had such a big chip on their shoulder last year that it's going
11:56to be a small chip in comparison.
12:00Any thoughts on any of that?
12:03It's cool he's on the cover.
12:04I was playing, so Justin always puts in my notes whenever cool things happen, like talk
12:09about cool things.
12:10And I always neglect to do that.
12:12Let me talk about this 2K thing real quick.
12:14Just because, so I got to play the game early, which was a real treat.
12:18I'm really thankful for that.
12:20And when you're the cover athlete, your team is the default team that you play with.
12:25Like if you go to Quick Play, it sets you as Mavs versus Celtics.
12:28That's one of the...
12:29Well, yeah.
12:30Doesn't it always do finals matchup?
12:32Previous finals matchup, I thought.
12:33I think they override that if, no, I think it's, well, I guess I don't remember.
12:40No, because when it was the book year, I think it defaulted to play as the Suns, not whoever
12:47was in the finals.
12:48That's interesting.
12:49But anyways, I guess book was in the finals.
12:53Yeah.
12:54I thought it just defaulted to finals matchup.
12:56I could be wrong.
12:57Maybe they're just really good at picking their cover athletes because they pick, as
13:01you'll hear in my interview with Ronnie in a little bit, they picked Tatum months ago.
13:04It wasn't like, actually Ronnie like pushed back really hard on the suggestion that they
13:08wait to see who's going to be in the finals.
13:10They definitely don't do that.
13:12So regardless, I played as the Celtics more than I played as any other team.
13:16And I just, I forgot how good they are.
13:19Like the pieces fit so well.
13:21It's so smooth.
13:22The game does seem like it has made major improvements.
13:25They said that the dribbling, the changes to the dribbling is the biggest change of
13:2815 years to gameplay.
13:30It does feel like an improved experience.
13:33Just playing as the Celtics was great.
13:35Playing as Caitlin Clark was so cool at just the passing the shooting.
13:41It's all there.
13:42Like they did such a good job with that.
13:44I will say that I played as Bronnie James and LeBron James together.
13:48I thought that was cool.
13:49Sorry, Celtics fans.
13:50It was neat.
13:52How do you, just a quick follow up on that, Bronnie, how does that work in 2k?
13:59Like he's the 15th man on the roster.
14:05I think I'm allowed to say this.
14:06I think he was like a 71 or something like he's 73.
14:10He's not, he's probably worse than that in real life being honest, but he can defend
14:14and I just kept throwing alley-oops to him to either LeBron or to AD.
14:18So it wasn't, I didn't really explore like the full, the full Bronnie James experience.
14:25No, I played, I played as the Celtics and I demolished the Mavericks.
14:31Then I played online for a little bit.
14:32Then I played as the Celtics against the Sixers and that was harder.
14:38I don't, I still kind of like don't know how I feel about the Sixers, but it was definitely
14:42harder than playing the computer on the Mavericks.
14:45And I played as the Fever and I just kept pulling up from the logo with Caitlyn Clark
14:49and I lost that game, but I was just, cause I only wanted to shoot from the logo.
14:53And then I played like a quarter and a half with the Lakers.
14:55So yeah, I just like popped around, they put all the gamers in one big room and they put
15:01all the journalists in like a smaller room and you had your own monitor.
15:04I actually had three different PlayStation's crash on me, but that might be more about
15:09me.
15:10Anyways, TLDR, I just like, I miss the Celtics so much.
15:17I like couldn't believe how emotional I was seeing Celtics basketball gameplay and how
15:22exciting it was to like think about it and engage with it and play around with it and
15:27like do coaching substitutions.
15:31Joe Mizzoula is not well animated in this game.
15:33That's the only thing Celtics fans recognize is like Nick Nurse looked great, Jason Kidd
15:38looked great.
15:40Joe Mizzoula, maybe he didn't like agree to get face scanned or something.
15:43I asked a bunch of people and they were like, let me get back to you.
15:47Do not expect a good Joe Mizzoula build in this game, but otherwise it's aces.
15:51I really liked it.
15:54As for Joe Mizzoula's rationale for potentially refusing a face scan, I can only imagine what
16:01that might be.
16:02What I will say is it is good bulletin board material.
16:06My whole thing this year, guys, I'm just I'm giving away the game now, but I'm just
16:10going to go all in on everything is bullet bulletin board material for Joe Mizzoula,
16:15like his coffee being slightly colder than it should have been his bulletin board material.
16:21And I truly believe that.
16:24To that end, I do think like that going back to the chip on their shoulder.
16:29It was so clear throughout the playoffs, they like were putting their heads down, they weren't
16:32engaging with media, they had this like singular mantra.
16:36And I think it was kind of necessary self-protection.
16:39Maybe it will be the case that they cook that up next season or it's organic, Alex, to your
16:48point, like they just get pissed off at the coffee they're drinking or something.
16:52Yeah, Dr. Quinn, we could do a whole episode about that.
16:57Why not?
16:58Don't give the game away there.
17:00Jason Kidd, for his part, said he did not try to give the Celtics bulletin board material
17:05saying that JB was better than JT.
17:08I don't know.
17:09Jason Kidd seems like we said this before during the finals, like, I don't know why
17:13we thought Jason Kidd was suddenly going to be a good coach.
17:16So I mean, he could have spilled that drink on accident, but that's other things.
17:21Sorry.
17:22Sorry.
17:23Listen, Jason Kidd.
17:24I mean, I don't know with regard to whether Jason Kidd is a good coach or not.
17:27He's repeatedly led teams with winning records.
17:30I think he's perfectly fine.
17:31He's far from the worst coach.
17:33This is par for the course with Jason Kidd, like doing weird mind games and shenanigans
17:40that don't work very well.
17:41That's just kind of standard Jason Kidd practice at this point.
17:45All right.
17:47We have everything.
17:50We still don't know who's going to buy the Celtics other than Fenway Group shut down
17:54rumors that they were interested pretty quickly.
17:56Jeff Bezos shut down rumors that he was interested pretty quickly.
18:00We will see.
18:03We don't have real information there, so we're not going to comment on it until it starts
18:08to materialize, and it will probably be above our pay grade.
18:11So we'll get Dan Primack from Axios to come talk to us again, hopefully, or someone equally
18:16in the know.
18:17Until then, shout out to Gershon Yabusali, who's still figuring out the financial minutia
18:22of joining the 76ers, but is scheduled to join the 76ers.
18:27I think he's...
18:28Alex and I disagree.
18:29I think he's going to have a huge role, because they don't have power forwards.
18:31Maybe.
18:33I mean, Alex is right that he's not a proven NBA player.
18:37I just don't think they have proven NBA players who can play power forward in Philly right
18:40now.
18:41Danilo Gallinari hopes to continue playing in the NBA, but as of this recording, that's
18:48not slated to happen.
18:51And that's it for the news.
18:52So in a moment, through the magic of editing, you will enjoy my conversation with Ronnie
18:58Touquet about Jason Tatum, working with Jason Tatum, working with Vince Carter, working
19:03with Asia Wilson, a few other things related to the game.
19:09But let's plug some stuff while we have a captive audience.
19:11Dr. Quinn, you have a revamped website.
19:13You want to plug it again?
19:15Well, it's the same.
19:18If you type in whatever you were typing in to get to something I had before, it will
19:21still get you there.
19:22There's nothing confusing or difficult about that.
19:25It's more tightly integrated into USA Today's full NBA coverage.
19:30So you will be able to find us not just on the Celtics wire itself, but you will occasionally
19:34be seeing our work on the main USA Today NBA site as well.
19:39So keep an eye out for that.
19:41And yeah, there's going to be a new Celtics Lab podcast that you are currently listening
19:45to.
19:46So it won't actually be new.
19:47So I guess I'm not really plugging it.
19:48You're plugging what's been plugged.
19:51Well, to that end, my plug was going to be, please continue to like and subscribe podcasts
19:56that you like, because it tells the algorithm to move the needle.
20:00And that's really, really helpful for us.
20:02So please consider leaving a review.
20:04That would meaningfully help us a lot.
20:07And speaking of which, Alex is on tour and has music coming out and you should check
20:12it out.
20:13But maybe you should presave it.
20:14Is that still a thing, Alex?
20:15That's correct.
20:16We have, well, the next song is going to be out by the time you hear this podcast, but
20:22there is still time to presave our forthcoming album, Time for Everything from Divine Sweater.
20:28Of course, if you like the music you heard at the top of this podcast, there's more of
20:31that.
20:32It's coming out very soon, less than a month, but you still have time to presave that album
20:37so that it loads up into your Spotify feed or your Apple Music feed or wherever you stream
20:43your music choices.
20:45And then if you like that album, if you like the song you heard at the top of this podcast,
20:48if you like the song that's coming out tomorrow, maybe you should buy a ticket and catch us
20:52on tour, particularly if you live near any one of our announced tour destinations.
20:59We're going to be hitting the road really kind of middle of September onward.
21:04And if you are a vinyl head, if you like listening to things that way, we also do have a limited
21:10release of those as well.
21:13All right, so that's your homework, folks.
21:17School's back in session for Mr. T, so I'm giving out homework.
21:19Check out Celtics Wire, check out Divine Sweater and check out the rates and reviews section
21:24of your favorite podcast app and check out our friends over at Game Time.
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22:40Game Time.
22:41So, Ronnie, good to see you again.
22:42Yeah, always.
22:43Community Day for NBA 2K25.
22:44Obviously, I'm a little more interested in Jason Tatum than other stuff, but let's peel
22:51it back.
22:52What are you most excited about about the game?
22:53I mean, there's so much.
22:54It really is the game that's offering something for everyone.
22:58You know, we just announced the return of Auction House for my team yesterday.
23:02We have a bunch of news with the city that we haven't announced yet.
23:08And obviously everybody's in the Builder today and, you know, the stuff with the W
23:13was really awesome when, you know, like the reveal that we had there with the park and
23:19the forest.
23:20So like, there's a lot to be excited about if you're a 2K fan.
23:23So I just played a few games.
23:25Obviously, I played with the Celtics.
23:27So two part question.
23:28You don't say.
23:29Well, you load up with the Celtics, so it made it easy for me.
23:31Yeah.
23:32One of the perks of being the cover athlete.
23:34A. What feature are you most excited about?
23:37The dribbling is different.
23:38The player shooting mechanics are a little different.
23:40What feature are you most excited about?
23:42And what team do you like playing with the most?
23:44I think the high risk, high reward thing with the shooting is like super cool because I
23:50think it's going to...
23:52We always struggle with like, how do we, you know, get our new people involved in the franchise
23:57that have never played before?
23:58And then like the hundred people that here that play it all the time and beyond, right?
24:02The competitive guys.
24:03How do you kind of balance it, make it fun, but also make it competitive and allow people
24:09to like be able to play both sides?
24:12I'd say that that is something that we've thought about a lot.
24:16And that feature is allowing us to address, you know, what is always a really tough problem
24:21to solve.
24:22And it's really plays out nicely.
24:24Like I've toyed with it.
24:26It's really great.
24:27So I think like whether you're a competitive 2K player or you're a casual 2K player, there's
24:33something here that, you know, you'll love either way and you can feel like you have
24:37a chance.
24:38Sure.
24:39And what team do you like to play with?
24:40Because you're...
24:41I change every year.
24:42Yeah.
24:43I change every year.
24:44Like I always try to find like a new team to play with.
24:45I mean, I feel like Wemby and the Spurs are going to be fun to play with because they
24:51signed Harrison and Chris Paul and like, I just feel like those have historically been
24:55good 2K players.
24:56So maybe the Spurs will be my team this year and hopefully they'll, you know, step up towards,
25:01you know, a playoff berth or close to it.
25:03Yeah.
25:04So there's, I don't know, a hundred content creators here.
25:06I'd say anecdotally, a lot of them have started with the Spurs.
25:09Yeah.
25:10I mean, I think everybody wants to see how the anomaly plays, right?
25:13Like a 7-4 guy.
25:15Yeah.
25:16By the way, if that becomes his nickname, I want pat on the wrist.
25:19Sure.
25:20Okay.
25:21So Jason's on the cover.
25:22We did this two years ago when it was Devin on the cover and then you had Kobe Bryant
25:27addition.
25:28Soup to nuts.
25:29Talk us through the process of picking a cover athlete, working with them.
25:33Like is this in February, is this two weeks ago?
25:37No problem.
25:38It was definitely not two weeks ago.
25:39There's people that every year, it's like the guy that wins the championship, the one
25:42that wins the MVP, the one that's like most recent seat by us, right?
25:46Sure.
25:47Everybody's like, he should be on the cover.
25:48A lot of two years ago, it was Jokic, right?
25:51That's not how it works.
25:52We make that decision way, way earlier than that because obviously there's shipping deadlines
25:57and product deadlines and Dev wants to build a story around the guy usually and et cetera,
26:03et cetera, right?
26:05We haven't had a champion on the cover since I believe 2K16, so it's been a while.
26:11So that's cool.
26:12But the way I think of the covers is three things.
26:15Trajectory, like the upside.
26:19Is he going to on the rise?
26:20I mean, he just won a championship.
26:22It was even before that, like we expected him to be in that conversation we expected
26:26again this upcoming season, right?
26:27Sure.
26:28Is there a storyline to build around?
26:29I think, you know, Jason's got a lot of, I mean, he is probably the most talked about
26:34guy for better and for worse, you know, this offseason.
26:38I know all about that.
26:40And so like, can we build a marketing campaign around him?
26:43And then are they authentic to the brand?
26:45Do they play the game?
26:46I mean, I posted this video of me and Jason's over the years that like every year we do
26:51something that's 2K related and it's like a really nice build to him being the cover
26:56athlete because he's been involved in the franchise.
26:58He knows the background.
26:59Him and I actually worked together in St. Louis two days ago, opening up the foundation
27:04score and he was talking to me about like playing it as a kid, but also like how much
27:10it's changed and how like he feels so involved in the ideation around what we did in 25 and
27:16being part of that process.
27:17And I think if you're not a fan, you're not going to care about that, right?
27:21So like, it's a real authentic story and what a year to, you know, give him that honor
27:26and him win his first championship and a second gold medal.
27:30Like all things are coming up, Jason, I guess.
27:33Yeah.
27:34No, the summer of Jason.
27:35I mean, he also signed the biggest contract in NFL history, it's not bad.
27:38Yeah, he had a bunch going on, but yeah, I'm sure he's going to have a chip on his shoulder
27:45and maybe it'll lead to an MVP, which is probably the last thing he needs.
27:50Featured Celtics players have a chip on their shoulder.
27:52Yeah.
27:53I want to come back to Jason, but quickly tell me about Asia and Vince, who are also
27:56the cover athletes.
27:57Yeah.
27:58I mean, Asia is our first 99 in W history.
28:02So that's awesome.
28:03Obviously, probably a long time coming.
28:05Her and I talked about the cover back in 2K19, even when she won her, after she won her first
28:11MVP.
28:12And we played in a celebrity game against each other and I saw up close how good she
28:16was.
28:17I actually fouled her really hard and I still feel bad about it.
28:20But it led to a great, beautiful friendship, I guess.
28:23And it was a long time coming.
28:24She is the best player in the league and definitely the face of both the franchise and the league.
28:31So long overdue.
28:33And then Vince, obviously, we're here in the Naismith Hall of Fame.
28:38You know, Vince is going to be the guy when he is anointed in a couple of months, right
28:45here in this hallowed building.
28:46And an idol of mine.
28:49Me and Tracy are really close.
28:51Tracy and him are cousins.
28:54And so getting to know Vince this summer and see how much 2K means to him and his family
29:00is really great.
29:01And it's actually one of my favorite covers, too.
29:03Yeah, it's really cool.
29:04The way that we kind of melded the gold into that signature dunk is very cool.
29:08A couple more?
29:10Yeah.
29:11So, speaking of covers, Jason is wearing the, right now, unreleased JT3s on the cover.
29:16That's right.
29:17Last time we talked, or one of the times we talked, you were especially proud at where
29:222K sits at the intersection of a bunch of different subcultures.
29:25So it's not just a game about basketball, it's a game about music, it's a game about
29:28fashion.
29:30Tell me how the sausage got made in putting the JT3s on the cover, but how are you seeing
29:37this game as it sits into the broad culture?
29:39These guys that have signature deals, it's really important to work with their brands
29:43and try to be relevant to when the game is going to be in the hands of the consumer.
29:47So we work with Jordan Brand, who are amazing partners, in trying to get the shoe before
29:55anybody saw it.
29:56And there's a lot of trust there, right?
29:58It hadn't leaked on Nicekicks or Kicks on Fire.
30:02It was very much protected and given to us to make sure that we incorporated it into
30:09what he was wearing on the cover.
30:12We want that sort of connection.
30:13If we're going to pride ourselves on being the most authentic brand that we can be, shoes
30:20are a big part of it.
30:21So the feature, the JTs on the cover, the new ones, before anybody had really seen them,
30:26was super cool.
30:27We've done that for years, but getting to work with Jordan on this one was cool.
30:30Tell me about the soundtrack, tell me about some of the new features.
30:36So we're announcing soundtrack and all the fashion brands.
30:40I obviously have a lot to do with, I believe it's on the 29th, so that's coming up next
30:45week.
30:46But we sort of reset a lot of the fashion brands, which is cool, and then the music's
30:49a lot of fun.
30:50And then every six weeks, obviously with seasons, we're going to have new additions and stuff.
30:55So yeah, we have to get that subculture, we have to get that periphery of what the brand
31:02is.
31:03So those partners are super important to what we do.
31:04Okay, cool.
31:05Let's do some rapid fire and then we'll cut it.
31:08Sure.
31:10Over, under 55 wins for the Celtics next year, because the East is a different beast, and
31:18they don't have anything to prove.
31:19The East got tougher.
31:20I think it depends on how serious they take the first couple months.
31:25What people don't remember is the Celtics, the year they lost against the Warriors, they
31:29were under 500 for most of January, I think.
31:34And then they turned it on.
31:35Are they going to have that sort of hangover?
31:38I think if what hadn't happened the last few months, I would have said under, but I think
31:42it's going to go over.
31:43I think even as good as the Sixers are, I think the Celtics still go over 55.
31:49All right.
31:50Speaking of the Sixers, who's your biggest threat to the Celtics in the East?
31:54In the East, it would be them.
31:56I think PG is the perfect addition for that team.
32:00I will say, I just played and I handled the Mavericks, thank you very much.
32:04The Sixers were tough.
32:05Yeah.
32:06Yeah, PG's tough.
32:07Speaking of the West, predict the conference finals in the West.
32:12Let's see, I think, I just don't want to be wrong.
32:23It's an impossible question, if we're being honest.
32:25Yeah.
32:26I mean, there's so many good teams, like you can make an argument for the top nine, really
32:31you could.
32:33But I'll say Denver and Minnesota.
32:38That's what I'll say.
32:39Oh, I have one more game question.
32:41Have you played with Bronny and LeBron together?
32:43No, I need to do that.
32:44I'm going to do that right after this.
32:45Yeah, I saw, well, I mean, I was going around to the Hunnit content creators and that was
32:49like one of the first things people were doing.
32:50So that's pretty, I mean, it's historic, but I was like, yeah, what a great idea.
32:56I'm going to do that immediately.
32:57Yeah, you have to.
32:58Who's your MVP next year?
33:02Wow.
33:03We're running this on the Celtics Lab podcast, if that means anything to you.
33:06Yeah, I feel like I'm going to be, I mean, I think it'll be a toss up between Embiid
33:12and Tatum.
33:13Sure.
33:14And who's your MVP?
33:16That was the question.
33:18Oh, I mean, who's your champion?
33:19Sorry, sorry, sorry.
33:20My champion is probably Denver.
33:26You're brimming with confidence, I can tell.
33:28Yeah, it's tough.
33:30I mean, it's never been as parody as it is now, so.
33:33I'll go with Denver, but I don't know.
33:35All right.
33:36Well, Ronnie, thanks again.
33:37Always a pleasure.
33:38Always a pleasure.
33:39My guy.
33:40Game comes out September 4th.
33:41September 4th, early access.
33:42If you pre-order, you get it two days early.
33:45Sure.
33:46So stick with us.
33:47We've got more news coming and we'll see you next week.
33:50I guess this is the end of the podcast.
33:52I don't know how we're going to edit it.
33:53All right, thanks again, man.
33:54Boom.
33:55We'll drop the mic.
33:59Bye.
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