There was a point during the 2024 NBA Playoffs when many were ready to crown Luka Doncic as a legitimate competitor to Nikola Jokic for the title of best player in the world. That momentum has faded so much that many now do not even believe the Slovenian superstar is top three anymore.
One group under that belief would be the team working behind NBA 2K. In anticipation of the new yearly release, the video game company has been unveiling player ratings to build suspense. Doncic still had a prominent position among the game's best, but his trajectory has moved in the wrong direction.
Luka Dončić is the 4th highest rated player in #NBA2K26 at 95 OVR! 🪄@luka7doncic | #NBA2KTop100 pic.twitter.com/wud0bsd8Li
— NBA 2K (@NBA2K) August 21, 2025
The Los Angeles Lakers superstar will start the NBA 2K26 cycle with a 95 overall, placing him fourth among all players. This would be a strong achievement for anyone that was not Doncic.
His rating actually moved down for the second year in a row. Doncic started as a 97 overall at the beginning of 2K25, and was a 96 overall for 2K26. What is even worse for the MVP-caliber superstar is that a player from his own draft class has taken the position that Luka was supposed to be in.
Luka Doncic must return to the player podium in 2025-26
Remember how Doncic was supposed to be challenging Jokic for the status as the best basketball player on the planet? That honor now belongs to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Jokic still came in ranked first overall with a 98 player rating. Gilgeous-Alexander was right on his heels with a 98 of his own. Just barely trailing those two tremendous talents was Giannis Antetokounmpo with a 97 overall rating.
While it is easy to find fault with a lot of the ratings in the NBA 2K system, the assessment of the top three is pretty spot-on. Jokic, Gilgeous-Alexander, and Antetokounmpo would be the consensus three best players in the world for most basketball watchers.
That is where Doncic needs to be get back to in the 2025-26 NBA season. The superstar point guard needs to be at that level to not only fuel the revenge tour that everyone wants to see, but for the Lakers to have a legitimate fighting chance of being a contender in the upcoming campaign.
Doncic was lapped by Gilgeous-Alexander in 2024-25, who managed to add an NBA MVP, championship, and NBA Finals MVP to his trophy cabinet. That kind of success will always be reflected in the way a player is regarded.
It is Doncic's turn to make a splash and reassert himself among his peers. The NBA needs to be reminded of just how great the five-time All-NBA member is when he is at his best.