2KSports' NBA2K13 hits stores in a few days, and the company has been leaking the ratings (set on a 0-100 scale) over the past few weeks. The information, collected by the site pastapadre.com, shows a number of interesting trends, especially when it comes to the "legend" players from years past included. Here's the top 20 (and those tied for 20th): 

Michael Jordan 99

LeBron James 98

Dwight Howard 96

Allen Iverson 95

Kevin Durant 94

Chris Paul 94

Kobe Bryant 93

Dwyane Wade 93

Carmelo Anthony 92

Derrick Rose 92

Rajon Rondo 90

Deron Williams 90

Kevin Love 89

Andrew Bynum 87

Tim Duncan 87

Josh Smith 87

Steve Nash 87

Andre Iguodala 87

Pau Gasol 87

Roy Hibbert 86

Tony Parker 86

LaMarcus Aldridge 86

Manu Ginobli 86

Blake Griffin 86

Monta Ellis 86

via Continued Tracking of All Revealed NBA 2K13 Player Ratings | pastapadre.com.

Thoughts on the rankings: 

  • The implication is clear at the top. James is a single point behind the GOAT, Jordan, and that makes sense. You can talk about the difference in contextual matters, or by simply pulling out the "six rings" argument, but in video-game terms, James is as close as it gets to being unstoppable. The sheer physicality element plays a huge role here. Being physically dominant matters more than skill in the video game world. (A friend dropped 40 on me with Hasheem Thabeet in 2K12. I'm terrible at the game, but that should never, ever happen if the settings are built on skill.)
  • Dwight Howard being a spot over Allen Iverson reinforces this, and it makes you wonder: Is Dwight Howard, provided he's healthy, right now, better than AI ever was? That's a hard pill to swallow, given Iverson's scoring ability in his prime and Howard's limitations on that end. It also provides a pretty awesome side argument. If you were taking current players' best year, what year would it be and what ranking would it be? Would you rather have James from 2012 or 2009? It's a tough one. 
  • Kevin Durant is a 94. He turns 24 on Saturday. Terrifying. 
  • The physical dominance argument falls apart when Carmelo Anthony is ahead of Andrew Bynum. It would be interesting to see Anthony's field-goal rating in the game and how it corresponds to his real life ranking, proportionally. 
  • No love for Kevin Love or Blake Griffin. Lot of love for the Big Fundamental, Tim Duncan.