Our Top 5 Basketball Video Games Of All-Time
The iconic NBA Street Vol. 2
Want to play real basketball but are stuck inside? Well, the UHlife.com editorial staff created a list of classic basketball games for you to keep your need for basketball satisfied until you can get back on the court.
#5 NBA 2K11
Almost any 2K game could be put on this list, as most of them are fairly similar, but my heart lies with 2K11. that is mostly because it has Michael Jordan on the cover, and it also let you replay some of MJ's most iconic moments like The Flu Game and The Shot.
The only glaring flaw in this game was the terrible soundtrack that featured a Ron Artest song.
#4 NBA Showtime: NBA on NBC
No disrespect to NBA Jam, which inspired this game, but the game play was simply better in this game than in NBA Jam. There aren't many differences between the two. You play two-on-two, you can jump insanely high, you can catch fire and the announcing is absurd. With this game featuring the 1999-2000 NBA rosters, it was an automatic victory if you played with the Lakers and put Shaq and Kobe together.
#3 ESPN NCAA basketball 2K5
This game dons Ultimate Hooper Josh Childress and his clean afro on the cover, so we're off to a great start. 2005 was the best year for sports games of all-time and it will never be topped; and this game was a big reason for that. The game play is beautifully crisp, and the commentating adds to that as we get Mike Patrick on play-by-play and Jay Bilas, the coolest man in college basketball, on color commentary. They also had a legacy mode which gave you stats and articles to fully enhance your fake experience.
Want to play basketball but are stuck inside due to illness weather or even injury? Well Luke from UH has a list of classic basketball games for you get into and keep your need for basketball satisfied until you can get back on the court.
#2 NBA Live 2005
The most played 'real-life' basketball game that engulfed my childhood. This game featured a full-on All-Star Weekend experience as you could participate in the slam dunk contest, 3-point competition, Rookie-Sophomore Game (which featured the 2003 draft class as the sophomore team:. LeBron, D-Wade, Melo and Bosh: unstoppable.) and the All-Star Game itself.
Add an in-depth franchise mode and a plethora of classic teams and players, and you have a fantastic basketball experience. It also helps that Kevin Garnett, my all-time favorite player, was the best player in the game with a 97 overall rating.
#1 NBA Street Volume 2
This is the definition of a classic. Volume 2 expanded the concept of a street basketball video game and elevated it to Everest heights. They added extra street ball legends like Biggie Littles and Whitewater to the mix while also expanding on the selection of classic NBA players you could play with.
They even had not one, but two Michael Jordan's (1985 and 1996 versions). The cherry on top was the all-time greatest soundtrack to a sports video game that featured They Reminisce Over You by Pete Rock and C.L. Smooth. That smooth jazz intro let you know that you were about to experience something awesome.
