Hornets Venom GT, Lakers Gaming Meeting for the First Time Ever

By Sam Perley

• Hornets Venom GT (15-7) at Lakers Gaming (3-19)
• Saturday, July 31, 2021 at 9 PM EDT
• NBA 2K League Twitch and YouTube Channels
• Last time out: First meeting ever in NBA 2K League play

Highlighted by Double-OT Thriller, Charlotte Opens Back-to-Back with Wild Sweep

Squaring off against a struggling Hawks Talon GC squad, Hornets Venom GT overcame surrendering a game-tying four-point play with three seconds left in regulation to eventually walk away with an 87-82 double-overtime Game 1 win on Friday night. The squad then navigated a post-first-quarter reset in Game 2 to win by a more comfortable 80-63 margin.

.@PeteBeBallin seals a double-OT win with the *chef's kiss* 😘👌🏽#LetsGo2KL pic.twitter.com/9jWlGHSs7l

— Hornets Venom GT (@HornetsVenomGT) July 31, 2021

Charlotte guard CJ “rigby” Burnett averaged 30.0 points on 56.8% shooting (11-of-22 from three), 4.5 assists and 3.5 steals in the series, and fellow backcourter Justin “Sherm” Sherman had 12.0 points, 13.0 assists and 2.0 steals. While it wasn’t the prettiest of overall performances, Hornets Venom GT stayed resilient and picked up a pair of crucial victories to snap its two-game slide.

Lakers Gaming Still Searching for Answers in 3^rd NBA 2K League Season

It’s been another season of struggle in Hollywood for Lakers Gaming with the team currently mired in last place with a league-worst 3-19 record. Those three wins have also come by just seven combined points – a sweep of Bucks Gaming on June 12 and a victory over Warriors Gaming one week later, which was then followed by an on-going 10-game losing streak.

Adding sharpshooter and Season 3 Champion Maurice “ReeseDaGod” Delaney (team-high 23.1 points on 51.3% shooting) in the 2021 Draft has worked out nicely, but outside of Arshia “Krazy” Kamini’s play (see below), not much has gone well again for Lakers Gaming this year.

.@ReeseDaGod had hot hands for @LakersGaming he averaged 31 pts and 7.5 ast! pic.twitter.com/5RgN18g1Yw

— NBA 2K League (@NBA2KLeague) July 31, 2021

Opposing Player to Watch: Arshia “Krazy” Kamini

One of the lone bright spots on the Lakers Gaming roster, reigning first overall pick and do-everything Krazy is averaging 14.5 points on 67.6% shooting, 11.0 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.2 blocks in 22 appearances this regular season. His recent statlines suggests that he’s back on the small forward build after spending some time at center, further proof that the Season 4 newcomer is quickly becoming one of the most versatile players in the 2K League.