Week 4 Preview

Week 4 Preview: CLTX Takes on No. 1 Pick JBM and Wizards DG

By Taylor Snow

BOSTON – Celtics Crossover Gaming will get its first look at this year’s No. 1 overall pick Wednesday night, as it takes on JBM and a red-hot Wizards District Gaming team. The first-year point guard, alongside standout teammates Dayfri and ReeseDaGod, has helped WDG reel off four consecutive series victories following a season-opening loss to the currently undefeated Raptors Uprising.

CLTX, meanwhile, is only five nights removed from its own season-opening series against Knicks Gaming, after starting off the season with back-to-back bye weeks. The boys in green split the first two contests of Friday night’s opener Knicks Gaming before falling 60-56 in the third and final game, which had to be restarted partway through the first quarter due to Internet connection issues.

oFAB, who was the 2019 2K League MVP runner-up, picked up right where he left off last fall, as he logged three consecutive 20-point games, including a 29-point outing in Game 2. Across the series, he averaged 25.0 points and 6.0 assists per game, while going up against this year’s No. 2 overall pick, Duck.

oFAB’s assignment won’t get any easier this week, as he goes from facing the No. 2 pick to the taking on the No. 1 pick in JBM. Washington’s rookie point guard has lived up to the hype so far, as he has posted 23.4 PPG and 7.1 APG across 12 total contests, which included a 27-point, 14-assist performance during Game 1 of Friday night’s sweep over Hornets Venom.

As if one offensive force wasn’t enough, WDG also returns the league’s highest-scoring non-point guard in ReeseDaGod. The small forward put up 20.7 PPG last season, which was good for third place overall behind Mama Im Dat Man (23.1 PPG) of Blazers Gaming and oFAB (22.3 PPG).

While oFAB carried a good chunk of the offensive load Friday night, a couple of his teammates stepped up as well. Bulleyy matched his career-high in scoring with 15 points during Game 2, which proved to be critical in helping CLTX pick up its lone win of the night. Newcomer Easy also showed promise, as his scoring steadily increased from four points in Game 1, to six points in Game 2, and then all the way up to 17 points in Game 3, during which he knocked down 5-of-8 from 3-point range.

While CLTX looks to keep pace with Wizards DG on the offensive end, it will also have to be aggressive on the boards. WDG finished second in the league in total rebounds last season with 315, thanks to the interior presences of both Dayfri and Gilly. Although Gilly is no longer on the team, Dayfri has dominated the glass so far this season by logging 12.9 RPG.

This is where NO xAUTOGRAPHx and MEL EAST come in. The frontcourt duo was responsible for corralling 51-of-56 total rebounds during CLTX’s season-opening series, which included 21 rebounds between the two during the final game. AUTO in particular, could make a big impact against Dayfri, having finished in the top 10 in both rebounds and blocked shots last season.

HOW TO WATCH: Wednesday night’s matchup will be broadcast on both the NBA 2K League’s Twitch (@NBA2kLeague) and YouTube (NBA2kLeague) channels at 9 p.m.