Image credit: Take-Two Interactive
Kobe Bryant is an exact replica of the best Michael Jordan NBA 2K22 build. The only difference is that Kobe developed and adapted to the 3-point era where he improved in this area more than Mike.
Although they are cut from the same cloth, you can make a couple of tweaks to make a unique Kobe Bryant build in 2k22.
This guide will help you create the best Kobe Bryant build in NBA 2K22 and pick all the right badges, skill breakdowns, attributes, and physical profiles that fit him perfectly.
Kobe Bryant Build Overview
Kobe Bryant’s skill set is unique as he improved on every aspect of the game with his small frame. He excels in shooting the mid-range, posting up against opponents, finishing at the rim, defending against the best players, and shooting 3-pointers.
For a 6’6 shooting guard, he is also above average in his playmaking and rebounding skills. There is no question about the greatness of Kobe Bryant as he improved each year with his Mamba Mentality approach until he got injured.
For this Kobe Bryant 2K22 build, you will be looking at a player who excels more in shooting and finishing while being decent in all other aspects of the game. It is worth mentioning that Kobe made the All-Defensive Team nine times in his career.
Skills Breakdown
For his skills breakdown, there is no other choice by focusing on his finishing and shooting. His post fade and his mid-range shot are both his best offensive weapons. This will sacrifice a few points in his defense but, you will have no choice.
The attribute decrease from either category will diminish badly when you add more points to defense. You can slightly tweak the finishing and shooting breakdown depending on what you think is best.
When you think about Kobe Bryant in the 2000s, his game leans more towards finishing at the rim. In the 2010s, his game is more about improving his shooting instead of finishing at the rim more. It could have been a way to preserve his body more but, we will never know.
If you want the #8 Kobe, you could go for a skill breakdown that has more finishing with a lower shooting allocation. For the #24 Kobe, you can go for the image above.
Physical Profile and Others
There were rumors about Kobe Bryant’s height after his wife told everyone that he stood at 6’4. However, he is listed as 6’6 in the NBA. With a pair of sneakers, it would seem just about right.
His frame is more towards being lean so you could go for more speed, acceleration, and vertical for his physicals. For his wingspan are about 6 feet and 11 inches. However, you can choose a different wingspan that gives you better shooting or finishing.
Lowering it will increase your shooting while turning it up more will increase your finishing and even your post fade attribute.
Kobe Bryant Badges
For Kobe Bryant’s badges, there will be quite a number coming from shooting and finishing. The number of potential upgrades is highly dependent on the skill breakdown and attribute allocation you have on your NBA 2k22 Kobe build.
You can find the fastest way to unlock badges to get them quicker. Since you have no way of upgrading badges through VCs, this will still take a lot of hours to get.
Shooting Badges
- Clutch Shooter– Improves the ability to knock down shots in clutch moments
- Volume Shooter– Boosts shot percentages as shot attempts accrue throughout the game
- Difficult Shots– Improves the ability to make difficult shots off the dribble in mid-range
- Deadeye– Reduces the impact of players closing out when shooting
- Blinders– Become unfazed from defenders coming from the side
- Green Machine – boost a players shooting ability after an excellent timed release
For Kobe Bryant’s shooting, Clutch Shooter, Volume Shooter, and Difficult Shots look like a no-brainer for this build. It resembles his game perfectly.
For Deadeye and Blinders, this will help you hit those mid-range shots more consistently. Green Machine is there because it just got buffed in NBA 2K22.
You will be able to activate Green Machine on one excellently timed release instead of two. This boost will highly improve your shooting even if you focused a lot on finishing.
Finishing Badges
- Slithery Finisher– Improves the player’s ability to avoid contact when attacking the rim
- Fearless Finisher– Improves the ability to make contact layups
- Acrobat– Improves the ability to make layups that have a high degree of difficulty
- Giant Slayer– Heightens the effectiveness of layups over taller defenders
- Limitless Takeoff– Favors dunks and layups from a farther take-off range
- Posterizer– Improves the likelihood of posterizing your opponents
For finishing badges, this is the replica of Michael Jordan’s badges too. Most of these badges are mandatory for the build.
With a 6’6 frame, it would be close to impossible to finish at the rim the way Kobe did without upgrading these badges. Kobe always finds a way to slither past the defense and make a difficult shot. Whether it is through a layup or a dunk in traffic, he makes it look so easy.
His dunk against the Brooklyn Nets team already activates 4 of these badges in one play. It is just a matter of finding a way to get all of these badges.
Playmaking Badges
- Quick First Step– Provides an explosive boost on your first step after sizing up or from a triple threat
- Tight Handles– Improves the player’s ability to break down defenders
- Space Creator– Improves a player’s ability to create space from a defender
- Bail Out– Improves your passes while in mid-air
For Kobe’s playmaking, his assist numbers are mostly from double-teams or breaking down the defense and finding the open man. It would be a lot better if you focus on badges that do exactly that.
Since your badges will be quite limited, you can go for Quick First Step and Space Creator as the main badges in this category. You will also need to prioritize upgrading these two to the max before adding the others.
Defense/Rebounding Badges
- Clamps– Increases ability to stay on the ball handler for perimeter defense
- Ball Stripper– Increases the ability to strip the ball when they attack the basket
- Pick Pocket– Increases the ability to steal the ball from a ball handler
- Intimidator– Intimidates offensive players causing them to miss more often
For the defense badges, it is a shame that you will not be able to add more to this. As mentioned before, Kobe made the All-Defensive First Team 9 times in his career. His defense is criminally underrated.
With the skill breakdown limiting your defensive badges, you have no choice but to focus on the ones that define Kobe as a defender. Prioritize getting Clamps and Intimidator for this Kobe Bryant build and see if you can fit the rest in.
Takeover
The most simple one would be to choose Slasher. It improves your overall ability to finish at the rim when activating it. It resembles how Kobe made all those shots inside the paint in traffic.
However, you can also choose Shot Creator. The Shot Creator boosts your effectiveness when shooting off the dribble and it also helps you shake your defenders through spin gathers and stepbacks.
Kobe’s amazing footwork gives you the ability to create more space and take the game over by splashing mid-range shots. When the game is on the line, it will help you sink that game-winner as soon as you activate the Shot Creator.
Final Thoughts
Since you are going for the best Kobe Bryant build, you are most likely familiar with Kobe’s game. Builds are highly subjective but, most of the badges mentioned should be undebatable.
You can choose to tweak some of it to your version of Kobe. It will just take a ton of grinding if you ever want to create another one. This build will only feel complete once you get a 99 overall rating with all the badges unlocked.
For the late and great Kobe Bryant, I am sure he would be proud that his Mamba Mentality heavily influenced the next generation of players. For Kobe!
FAQs
What is the most dominant build in 2K22? ›
- Sharpshooting Facilitator. We're not sure if anyone can ever clone Steph Curry… but you can try with this next build. ...
- Two-way Slasher. While the first two builds favour one key attribute over the rest. ...
- 2-Way Inside-Out Scorer. ...
- Paint Beast. ...
- Slashing Shot Creator.
NBA 2K22 | 2KDB Dark Matter Kobe Bryant (99) Complete Stats.
How do you activate Mamba mentality 2K22? ›After completing the NBA Summer League game, players will receive a bunch of intro quests, including Mamba Mentality. To complete the quest this time around, players will need to get three stars on seven different Normal Drills and three stars on seven different Hard Drills.
How do I make a rebirth build 2K22? ›To unlock the ability to use Rebirth save files, players must complete a new quest: Current Gen: Reach 90 OVR and play 10 3v3 games on Deck 15. Next Gen: Play 10 3v3 or 2v2 games in the City at 90 overall or above.
What build should I make in 2K23? ›- Driving Dunk.
- Perimeter Defense.
- Driving Layup.
- Acceleration.
- Speed.
- Ball Handle.
- Speed With Ball.
- Three-Point Shot.
It ended up being Cade Cunningham, but Jalen Green's talent is near the same level, especially when it comes to their NBA 2K22 rating. Cunningham leads the class with an 80 overall, while Green sports a 79 overall. Evan Mobley follows third with a 78, Jalen Suggs with a 77, and Scottie Barnes with a 76.
What makes Kobe Bryant the best player? ›Kobe is the fourth-leading scorer in NBA history. He is second in All-Star appearances (18), won five championships, was MVP once, and averaged 25 points per game. He also was named to the All-Defensive team 12 times, second-most in league history. There is much about every player's game that cannot be measured.
How can I be more like Kobe Bryant? ›- Kobe Is Always Learning. ...
- Develop An All-Round Offensive Game. ...
- Hard Work Is Everything. ...
- Be Cool Under Pressure. ...
- Commitment Towards Goals. ...
- Be Adaptable.
Named so because Bryant trains for 6 days a week, 6 hours a day and 6 months in a year. The 6 hours of training are divided into 2 hours of track work, 2 hours of basketball skills and 2 hours of weight lifting (which includes one hour of cardio).
Was Kobe ever a 99 in 2K? ›NBA 2K5 and 2K8 even had Bryant as 99s, a perfect rating and an appreciably rare one for players to receive.
What is Kobes 2K23 rating? ›
Kobe Bryant on NBA 2K23
On NBA 2K23, this All-Time Version of Kobe Bryant's 2K Rating is 98 and has an All-Around Threat Build. He has a total of 42 Badges in which 11 of them are Hall of Fame Level. Note that All-Time Players' ratings never change on NBA 2K23.
He is a hero in the way mythologist Joseph Campbell used the word. Bryant fits the archetype of someone fulfilling what Campbell, who guided George Lucas through the creation of Star Wars, called the “monomyth”. All heroes, according to Campbell, must overcome specific types of trials while trying to achieve a quest.
Does gym rat give you plus 4 2K23? ›The Gym Rat Badge in NBA 2K23 is unlocked by completing a Quest in The City. The Gym Rat Badge adds a permanent +4 boost to Physical Attributes: Acceleration, Speed, Stamina, Strength, Vertical.
Why didn t i get gym rat badge 2K23? ›Simply speak with the gym representative waiting outside the Gatorade Facility to begin the quest. Players will then see that in order to complete the Gym Rat quest, they must complete 25 sessions of 3-Star caliber or above.
Will rebirth be in 2K23? ›There are many reasons to want more than one MyPLAYER build and in NBA 2K23, completing the Rebirth quest is the best option to jump start the next version of your MyPLAYER! so you can dominate the game. Perks of using “Rebirth”: Up to 25 badge points already earned.
How do I refund VC in 2K22? ›You have to log in with the account that bought the coins. If the purchase is very recent, it may not appear on the list, but if you have order details you can fill out the refund form as well.
Can you get 2 rebirths 2K22? ›Once completed, you will be able to create new MyPlayer builds with Rebirth save files. This can be done more than once and offers the following benefits, per the official 2K blog post.
Do you get plus 4 at 99 2K23? ›NBA 2K23 Leaks & Intel on Twitter: "95-99 still gives you +4 to attributes on current gen but not on Next Gen #NBA2K22" / Twitter.
Is there a Shaq build in 2K23? ›NBA 2K23 Replica Builds: Shaquille O'Neal Build (Shaq Build)
Replica builds are one of the most fun new additions to the 2K series.
The undisputed best MyPLAYER Archetype in PGA Tour 2K23 is Powerhouse. There are some massive golf courses and some powerful golfers that you'll find yourself up against. Whether you're battling Tiger Woods or guest golfer Michael Jordan, having immense power is very helpful.
Who has every 99 overall in NBA 2K? ›
Only five players have ever received a 99 in the NBA 2K franchise: LeBron James, Chris Paul, Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett.
Who is a 79 overall in 2K? ›Malcolm Brogdon: 84 OVR (+1) Buddy Hield: 79 OVR (+2)
What's the lowest overall in 2K23? ›Orlando Magic. For quite a few years now the Orlando Magic have sat near or at the very bottom of the NBA 2K23 ratings list.
Who is better Kobe or LeBron? ›The Bottom Line: While LeBron is much more of a team player than Kobe was, and is more dominant and holds better stats, Kobe was a more versatile and complete player, a virtuoso with amazing skills and defense abilities.
Who is best Kobe or Jordan? ›Mostly everyone would agree that Michael Jordan is the superior player but do not really take the time to closely examine how alike these two players are. The major difference between the two is that they played in two completely different eras, but that doesn't make them incomparable.
Who is the best basketballer in the world? ›[This list was originally published in April 2014. LeBron James overtook Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the NBA's leading scorer in February 2023.]
Who has more points LeBron or Kobe? ›Points leaders since LeBron made his 2003 NBA debut: LeBron 20,309; Kobe 20,223; Melo 17,102; Dirk 17,048; Wade 15,887. This is not to say James is an inferior player or even scorer.
Who is better Magic or Kobe? ›Magic won three league MVP awards, Kobe won one. Magic was a three-time Finals MVP, Kobe won the award twice. Magic led the league in assists four times and twice in steals, while Kobe led the league twice in scoring. While Kobe eventually made others around him great, Magic always made them great.
Who was the better player Shaq or Kobe? ›"Kobe has more titles than Shaq. He won more titles without Shaq than Shaq won without Kobe. If Shaq had the same level of skill at Kobe's size, he would do absolutely nothing. If Kobe had Shaq's size, he might've won 20 championships!
Did Kobe do push ups? ›As ESPN.com's Rick Reilly relayed about Kobe's workout routine in a 2009 article, "Among a dozen other drills, Bryant does suicide push-ups. At the top of the push-up, he launches himself off the mat so hard that both his feet come off the ground and his hands slap his pecs.
Did Kobe workout everyday? ›
The name of the workout comes from Bryant because he worked out 6 days a week, 6 hours a day, and 6 months a year. This 6-hour routine is divided into 2 hours of basketball skills, weightlifting, and track work.
Should I play basketball every day? ›Improving in basketball takes consistent practice and hard work! It is common knowledge that if you practice something everyday that you will improve in it. For basketball, players can get good quick, but to master the skills a player must work at all the time.
Who has a 100 overall in 2K? ›Only one player has ever received a 100 rating in the game — Shaquille O'Neal.
Who has the highest OVR in 2K? ›The player with the Highest Overall 2K Rating on NBA 2K23 is LeBron James with 98, followed by Luka Doncic in second place with 97, and Nikola Jokic with 97 also in third. Below is the list of Top 100 NBA Players sorted from highest to lowest 2K Rating on NBA 2K23.
Which 2K has Kobe cover? ›Jordan has the second-most cover appearances with four (2K11, 2K12, 2K16 and 2K23). Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant rounds out the top three with the the third-most cover appearances (2K10, 2K17 and 2K21 Mamba Edition).
Is 2K23 worth it on ps4? ›NBA 2K23 has received mixed reviews, but this is not because the game is not worth your time. In terms of gameplay, the game is more or less the same as its predecessor. The MyCareer storyline has changed a little bit, but the user experience is the same. MyTeam is a little bit better, but 2K has not made many changes.
What was Kobes lowest scoring game? ›Kobe Bryant dropped his fewest points in a game 15 times, with 0 points.
What is Michael Jordan's rating in 2k22? ›Michael Jordan, the sacred cow
Michael Jordan's 99 rating is followed by Giannis Antetokounmpo's 97 with no player at 98. Other stars such as LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Nikola Jokic or Joel Embiid are all at 96. KD already expressed his discomfort for not having 99.
Replica builds in NBA 2K23 essentially allowed users on current-gen hardware to game the system and recreate a real NBA player's skillset with their MyPlayer character. As a result, some were able to fully replicate the stats of pros such as Atlanta Hawks Guard Trae Young and Clippers Forward Kawhi Leonard.
Is kobe bryant in 2K23 MyTEAM? ›NBA 2K23 MyTEAM “Tis The Season” Pack: Featuring Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and LeBron James.
Is Kobe Bryant an Alpha? ›
Kobe Bryant personified the modern sports alpha. On the court he was the alpha — for better and sometimes worse —in greatness and defeat, demanding to put the whole game on his shoulders when it mattered most and even when it didn't matter much at all.
How do you make a custom player in NBA 2K22? ›Draft your custom player.
If you haven't already created a player, you can do this by going to the features menu and selecting the create a player option. Select either the NBA or WNBA depending on what you want to make.
...
You need to max out the follow attributes:
- Close Shot.
- Driving Layup.
- Driving Dunk.
- Mid-range Shot.
- Free Throw.
- Post Fade.
- Pass Accuracy.
- Ball Handle.
Players can put themselves into NBA 2K22, part of the MyPlayer feature, with the Face Scan option and take their Character to the NBA. Players can put their own face into NBA 2K22, an option that is part of the MyPlayer feature, using the Face Scanner.
Does body shape matter in 2K22? ›Next, it's time to specify your body settings: height, weight, wingspan, and body shape—which will meaningfully impact your abilities.
What are the physical attributes in 2K23? ›Some NBA 2K23 MyCareer players, recognizing the general utility of the physical traits (speed, acceleration, strength, vertical, and stamina) and the low cost of free throw, prefer to start by maxing out those six attributes.
Is there a Kobe mode in 2K21? ›NBA 2K21 adds a Kobe Bryant Mamba Forever Edition as game goes on preorder. The hit franchise issues a special edition of its new game to honor the late Lakers legend.
How do you get gym rat in my career 2K21 Next Gen? ›With that established, the process for earning the Gym Rat badge through MyCareer is to play 40 regular-season games and then win the playoffs and Finals. While this may seem like quite an undertaking, NBA 2K21 players can simulate certain games to expedite things considerably.
Does 2K23 have face scan? ›If you want to really get into NBA 2K23, the option to scan your face is once again in the game. You need the MyNBA2K23 app downloaded onto a compatible iOS or Android device.
How do I improve my 2K22 my career? ›- 16 Test Builds First.
- 15 Mix In Defense.
- 14 Play To Player Strengths.
- 13 Know The Team.
- 12 Fine Tune The Settings.
- 11 Attend Every Practice.
- 10 Quit Before A Bad Play.
- 9 Don't Spend VC Until After The Main Campaign Is Finished.