Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is a list of my favourite teammates from all of my MyCAREER games.

I may have returned to my roots as a franchise gamer in 2025, but I’ll always hold great affection for MyCAREER after getting into it way back in 2012. To that end, the mode is still part of my basketball gaming thanks to NBA 2K14. Even though it isn’t a priority for me right now, there’s no doubt that MyCAREER has delivered some of my favourite virtual hardwood experiences over the past decade or so. My avatars have played for a handful of teams in various games, though given the choice I’ve frequently opted for Chicago. The Bulls are my favourite team, after all!

What about my favourite teammates in MyCAREER? Strangely enough, while I’ve enjoyed playing for the Bulls in MyCAREER as much as taking control of them in franchise modes – and there have been players that I like on those squads – my all-time favourite teammates have generally been on other teams; at least to begin with. It’s not altogether surprising given that none of the Bulls squads during the late 2010s rank up there among my favourites, but even putting that aside, my MyCAREER games have placed me in some fun scenarios with teammates I’ve really enjoyed virtually hooping with. These five teammates went a long way in keeping me hooked on MyCAREER.

1. Justice Young (NBA 2K17)

Let’s tip things off with one of the best characters in any MyCAREER story: Justice Young! Played by Michael B. Jordan, Justice essentially became the Scottie Pippen to my MJ as my NBA 2K17 MyCAREER with the Denver Nuggets became a story of triumph for Orange Juice. From a narrative perspective, I found his character to be immediately likeable, making it easy to stand up for him when the time came. In doing so, our careers became forever linked. And so, when I decided to sign with the Chicago Bulls after leading the Nuggets to a championship as a rookie, Justice Young was right there beside me holding up our brand new uniforms at a press conference.

What really made NBA 2K17 MyCAREER and the bond with Justice Young so special was the in-game Orange Juice mechanic. Whatever you may think of the Orange Juice moniker – which apparently came from Michael B. Jordan himself – the dual player controls were an innovative idea that made NBA 2K17 MyCAREER uniquely enjoyable. I loved being able to direct him where to go and instructing him to shoot, as well as switching control to him when Orange Juice was in the zone and putting the squeeze on opponents. MyCAREER and its connected modes peaked in NBA 2K17, and on the NBA side of things, Justice Young was a major reason why.

2. Danilo Gallinari (NBA 2K13 & NBA 2K17)

In real life, Danilo Gallinari has had a long and interesting career. He actually began playing professionally in his native Italy in 2004, before being taken sixth overall by the New York Knicks in 2008. A back injury derailed his rookie season, and knee injuries cost him the entirety of the 2014 and 2023 seasons. In between, he’s had some solid years in the NBA, and in 2025 he won his first professional championship while playing in the BSN in Puerto Rico. Gallo was still a rising star when the Knicks sent him to Denver in the Carmelo Anthony trade, a move that allowed him to flourish. It also meant we became virtual teammates when I got into NBA 2K13 MyCAREER.

Because it was my first time really getting hooked on MyCAREER and it turned out to be such a fun experience – one that changed my basketball gaming habits – I have a ton of nostalgia for NBA 2K13, and in turn the 2013 Nuggets. Gallinari does stand out as one of my favourite teammates though, as finding him on the perimeter for three-pointer after three-pointer played a major role in making me fall in love with being a point guard and tallying assists. Interestingly, despite his improvement by 2017, he wasn’t quite as effective while playing for the Nuggets in my NBA 2K17 MyCAREER. All the same, he’s part of some really fond memories of NBA 2K13.

3. Kenneth Faried (NBA 2K13 & NBA 2K17)

Like Danilo Gallinari, Kenneth Faried helped make my first proper foray into career mode play extremely enjoyable, ensuring that he’d go down as one of my favourite teammates. Unlike Gallo, Faried was also still fun to play with in NBA 2K17! It didn’t hurt that I was fan of the real Faried’s defense, rebounding, and dunking acumen, all of which he displayed on the virtual hardwood during my NBA 2K13 MyCAREER. Just as finding Gallinari on the perimeter netted me many an assist, Faried was adept at finishing on the pick and roll. Indeed, it was a much safer way of racking up dimes, owing to the fact that it’s virtually impossible to block any dunks in NBA 2K13!

Once again, Faried remained just as fun to play with when I had another stint with the Nuggets in NBA 2K17. Sure, I was mostly focused on becoming the next great duo with Justice Young, but it was still ultimately a team effort, and Faried contributed strong defense, solid rebounding, and plenty more thunderous slams. With the ability to perform alley-oops by double-tapping Triangle/Y, throwing lobs to him was even more fun as well! It’s a real shame that an obsession with three-point shooting forced him out of the league before the age of 30, though I’d argue his skillset isn’t quite as obsolete as people say. Still, I enjoyed teaming up with him twice in MyCAREER.

4. Thaddeus Young (NBA 2K14)

For a long time, I was put off by the story-driven approach that debuted in NBA 2K14 MyCAREER. Covering it for Wayback Wednesday encouraged me to give it a second chance, and the rest is history! Although some of the mandatory story beats could be a tad annoying, I was used to the idea from newer iterations of MyCAREER, and I did appreciate the tale they were trying to tell. Because I was drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers, Thaddeus Young and Jason Richardson played the roles of my veteran mentors. J-Rich was the hazer of the two, forcing me to wear a clown nose, while Young took me under his wing. They only spoke in subtitles of course, but I enjoyed their roles.

Both also proved to be capable of getting buckets, which naturally satisfied my love of racking up assists. Richardson had some throwback throwdowns during the two seasons that we played together, while Young can do a bit of everything, including knocking down threes at a surprising clip; though, the Teammate Grade logic doesn’t like it when I pass to him on the perimeter! Seven seasons in, Young is still on the team. The cutscenes with him ended after my rookie year, but I enjoy that I still have one of my mentors even as I’ve matured into a veteran. It also inspired me to take a young player under my wing when the opportunity presented itself come Year 3…

5. Terry Hanson (NBA 2K14)

You knew I had to save the best for last! Admittedly, Terry Hanson and I didn’t get off to the best start. I was sorry to see the team not re-sign Jason Richardson after we won a second straight championship, essentially ending his career. On top of that, it seemed like Hanson struggled to catch easy passes, leading to a handful of frustrating turnovers. He soon found his footing though, and it became a lot of fun to throw him alley-oops, dish to him for three-pointers, or just give him the ball and let him go to work. Your teammates in NBA 2K14 MyCAREER have some great AI, and it’s been a blast to watch Top Floor Terry spin by defenders and then finish strong at the rim.

A solid rookie season and an unfortunate knee injury for Carmelo Anthony’s gave me the idea to try to make Terry Hanson into a star. From that point on, making sure that he got his numbers became as important as filling the stat sheet myself, resulting in an All-Star appearance and a 30 ppg average. Unfortunately he missed most of the 2017 Playoffs after suffering an injury in the first round opener, and almost all of the 2018 season with a knee injury of his own. He’s also been relegated to the bench, limiting our court time together. I’m hoping that’ll change, but nevertheless, making him part of my story has established Hanson as one of my favourite MyCAREER teammates.

MyCAREER gamers, who are some of your favourite teammates over the years? Let me know in the comments, and as always, feel free to take the discussion to the NLSC Forum! That’s all for this week, so thanks for checking in, have a great weekend, and please join me again next Friday for another Five.

The post The Friday Five: 5 Favourite MyCAREER Teammates appeared first on NLSC.