The athlete that will be center stage on the cover of NBA 2K26 has finally been revealed. Last year's entry in the long-running basketball sports simulator franchise had an "all-star" edition of the game that featured the series' first dual-cover athletes: NBA champion Jayson Tatum and WNBA champion A'ja Wilson, both of whom also appeared on other versions of the cover independently. This year, for the standard edition cover, one of the best players in recent memory will be gracing the cover.
According to a press release, three-time NBA all-star and the 2024-2025 season MVP, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, will be this year's cover athlete. Gilgeous-Alexander is currently the Oklahoma City Thunder point guard and recently signed a record four-year contract extension with the team for $285 million.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Is NBA 2K26's Cover Athlete For Standard Edition
One Of The Modern Greats
NBA 2K26 Cover
Gilgeous-Alexander is the fourth player in NBA history (after legends Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Michael Jordan, and Shaquille O'Neal) to win MVP, Finals MVP, and a scoring title all in the same season. He also played on the Canadian national team and the World Cup All-Tournament Team. In NBA 2K25, Gilgeous-Alexander featured an overall 98 stat score after the January update, making him one of the best athletes in the game.
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NBA 2K26 still hasn't revealed gameplay or details on what changes the game could make over its predecessors, what game modes might be introduced or return, or even if some athletes might be absent, like some players missing from NBA 2K25 due to licensing issues. But even without footage, a lot of basketball fans will likely be happy to see such a successful athlete on the standard cover. It remains to be seen who the athletes will be for other editions or if Gilgeous-Alexander will appear on other covers, as well.
Our Take: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Deserves It As An MVP & Scoring Champ
An All-Star All-Around
Gilgeous-Alexander is arguably the most prominent rising star in the NBA, and with another four years locked to Oklahoma City Thunder, fans are probably ecstatic that he's on the cover and continuing his inspiring NBA journey. With his cover athlete status and his history-making performance in basketball, it seems likely that he will be the highest-stat player in NBA 2K26, or at least tied for that position with a couple of other notable stars.
NBA 2K has a history of having multiple cover athletes on different versions of the game. With Gilgeous-Alexander being on the standard version, it remains to be seen if there will be a WNBA representative like NBA 2K25 on another version of the cover, or another NBA athlete joining Gilgeous-Alexander as an additional cover representative for other editions of NBA 2K26. Even if Gilgeous-Alexander appears as the only cover athlete, fans probably wouldn't be upset about that either when NBA 2K26 releases in September.
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