Basketball is a game about fundamentals. Ask any analyst what makes LeBron James special and they'll inevitably explain that his passing ability is second to none. Setting teammates up to succeed is what makes players special in the NBA and it's what makes gamers unbeatable in NBA 2K22.
Dribbling skills, post moves, passing ability, and body control all fall under the category of playmaking. Players that invest in these abilities benefit the team, but they also can benefit themselves by getting open and breaking down defenders. In NBA 2K22, these are the ones who always seem to find the open shots, and these are the badges they use to get them.
Updated on May 5th, 2022 by Hodey Johns: Playmaking in NBA 2K22 is a lot like playmaking in the NBA; fans don't realize how important it is until they don't have it. A team without playmakers is easy to defend against no matter how high their shooting and finishing stats are. Every player becomes better with just a touch of playmaking. However, different positions and playstyles require different touches. While each badge can be valuable, there are levels of value to consider. Point guards and centers will improve their playmaking with different badges. To help readers decide which badges are for them, a subsection has been added in each entry identifying who will benefit most from the badge. Also, a description has been added at the beginning of each section detailing exactly what each badge does.
12 Break Starter
- Improves a player's ability to make effective outlet passes after grabbing a rebound.
At the end of an NBA game, take a look at how many points were gained through the fast break or in transition. It's usually a staggering number, up above the 20% range or higher. This is a huge chunk of the pie when it comes to scoring and passers would do well to recognize that.
An effective pass after a rebound to a lead runner might not sound entertaining, but it ensures that the player won't have to break their stride after receiving a pass. Without needing to slow down, equates to guaranteed assists and points on the board.
What Kind Of Player Should Get The Break Starter Badge
Rebounders should consider this badge a must. It's one of the few badges geared towards the bigs underneath the rim since the guards are usually going to be breaking after a defensive rebound, but it will work for anybody that crashes the boards for at least a few assists in each game.
11 Quick First Step
- Provides more explosive first steps out of triple threat and size ups.
There are players that reasonably don't like the dribble moves in the game. They drain energy and often fail to fool the defender. Worst of all, defenders who get crossed up on dribble moves manage to find plenty of time to regroup and get back into position by the time the move is executed.
That's where Quick First Step comes in. By providing an explosive first step, a defender that gets fooled won't get a second chance; once they get out of position, the man with the ball will have blasted right past them to put up a shot.
What Kind Of Player Should Get The Break Starter Badge
Slashers that work off of the dribble instead of the screen will milk the value out of each badge level. It's especially effective online against ofter players who often go in for a steal or fall for a dribble move that AI opponents won't bite at.
10 Unpluckable
- Reduces the chances of getting stripped by the defender.
This year, a ton of new animations have been added when it comes to stealing balls against slashers. So this Unpluckable badge, which was already recommended last year, now becomes a downright requirement. Unless the player is literally never going to dribble, the Unpluckable badge is a minimum for most builds.
Beyond just slashers, guards will dribble outside of the arc. Wings will be dribbling inside of the arc. And bigs who play in the post will be dribbling. There are very few badges that cover so many scenarios, the value of this badge is unreal.
What Kind Of Player Should Get The Unpluckable Badge
The best rookies in the game know how important it is to hold onto the ball. Anybody who dribbles the ball in traffic should pick up at least one point of Unpluckable. Slashers should consider this a mandatory badge.
9 Tight Handles
- Improves a player's ability to break down their defender.
Dribbling badges are sometimes hard to recommend because human opponents don't always fall for them. But there needs to be something said for a badge that regularly puts AI opponents on their butts consistently.
The Tight Handles badge can work breaking down human opponents as well when the opponent is locked into an animation. It takes a lot of talent to use well, but when players figure it out, they can regularly force their defender to leave them with an open shot.
What Kind Of Player Should Get The Tight Handles Badge
When paired with the best dribble moves, Tight Handles knocks back opponents. This is especially important for guards that like to shoot three-point balls and just need a little space to do it. It's better against AI than human opponents, so MyCareer players need to prioritize it, but it is effective in either case.
8 Stop & Go
- Improves a player's ability to start and stop with the ball.
For shooters, Stop & Go is as good or better than any badge in the shooting badges category. Think of the times when the perfect shot is there, but the player is going too fast and they do that backward fade animation that almost always misses because it qualifies as a difficult shot.
Now imagine that instead of falling limply backward, the player stops and gets off a perfect, clean shot. The best point guards in the NBA can stop on a dime and this badge is how gamers can duplicate their prowess in NBA 2K22.
What Kind Of Player Should Get The Stop & Go Badge
This is a badge meant for shooters that fire off of the dribble, either at three-point or mid-range. Stop & Go can also help redirect movement while dribbling, which can toss overeager opponents aside if they don't react to the misdirection quickly enough. Point guards will see a noticeable increase in their mobility with the ball.
7 Post Playmaker
- Boosts the shot percentage on passes made out of the post to a shooter.
This year, the post is absolutely dominating in all games and all modes. When a player who has invested in scoring from the post wants to shoot, the only way to stop them from making the shot is to bring in extra help.
But this backfires. The Post Playmaker badge greatly boosts the next shot of the player who receives the ball from the post player. The best power forwards in the game can be pure scorers and yet still contribute to the passing game with some guaranteed buckets from the teammates they pass to.
What Kind Of Player Should Get The Post Playmaker Badge
Straight up, this makes players who shoot from the post about the most lethal assist leaders possible. In a few practice games, it's not uncommon to get 30+ assists. It's useless for anybody who doesn't play in the post, but for those who do, it's incredibly great, especially when hitting open players after they use double coverage to stop the post shooter from scoring.
6 Needle Threader
- Increases the likelihood that tough passes will get by the defense.
Everybody has been there, getting into a tough spot and with no way to shoot the ball reasonably. But passing out of these situations means throwing through defensive bodies and hoping for the best. Needle Threader is the badge that makes these miracles happen.
Even the best shooting guards in the league need to pass instead of put one up from time to time. Occasionally, a slashing unguarded player is poised for an easy dunk, but one defender stands in between him and the ball. With this badge, that defender can't interrupt the big play.
What Kind Of Player Should Get The Needle Threader Badge
Slashing guards will need this. The passing lanes when charging into the fray are rarely beautiful and pristine enough to regularly use. Needle Threader assures these passes aren't picked. Though most players should get a point into this badge, just to keep their passes from getting intercepted.
5 Glue Hands
- Improves the ability to catch difficult passes and quickly put the ball on the floor.
Nothing messes up a good drive like having to slow down to receive a pass and re-settle. Glue Hands enables players to receive a pass and immediately get back to dribbling. This has huge implications for driving players and perimeter passers.
The description implies that this only goes for dribbling, but it speeds up the catch and shoot process too. Reducing the time of these shots makes it even harder for defenders to close in. Couple this with some shooting badges and glue hands makes three-point shooters unstoppable.
What Kind Of Player Should Get The Glue Hands Badge
Speeding up the time between getting the ball and shooting the ball is critical to beating the defense. Anybody who puts up shots, whether off the dribble or in a catch and shoot situation, will want this badge. The perfect custom jump shot is also important, but it's no good with a blocker that has time to get into position.
4 Floor General
- Teammates receive an offensive attribute bonus when player is in the game.
Every team needs at least one person with a maxed-out Floor General badge. These are free offensive points to all attributes for every player on the court. Suddenly, players are landing shots they would miss and even dunking balls when they ordinarily can't dunk.
Most badges require a particular thing to happen for them to work. But Floor General just helps everyone without any prerequisite. It doesn't work for the player with the badge, only their teammates, but as a passer, that's the entire idea.
What Kind Of Player Should Get The Floor General Badge
Online, coordinate with friends over which one or two players should get the badge (two will confer the bonus to everyone). If nobody has it, the team will be playing with regular disadvantages. In MyCareer, it helps teammates make their shots more often, netting improved assist totals so long as their shot animations are good enough.
3 Downhill
- Increases overall speed with the ball in transition.
Gamers need to stop acting like transition scores are rare events. Every possession, whether it's by jump ball, rebound, inbound pass, or turnover, starts as a transition. Point guards in the NBA have a good reason to take a few seconds to size up the defense, but gamers should not feel the need to wait around.
The Downhill badge is increases speed during transition, enabling players to get ahead of defenders that ordinarily match their speed. Slashers don't even have to pass the ball, they can blow by their defender with the ball as quickly as possible.
What Kind Of Player Should Get The Downhill Badge
Specifically, this should be used for speedy guards that get into transition instead of crashing the boards. Mix the Downhill badge with the best dribble moves and it makes it so even fast defenders can't stop the free points. It's even better when the team's rebounders have average or better passing accuracy.
2 Dimer
- Boosts the shot percentage for open teammates on jump shots after catching a pass.
This is the most iconic of the playmaking badges, giving a flat increase to shot percentage to any jump shot taken by any player who receives a pass from a passer with the Dimer badge. Anybody interested in an assist-generating badge, it doesn't get better than this.
It's not just purely about statistics. In online play, players live and die by passing to open men on the perimeter. Being able to give three-ball shooters their best shots is a key component to winning games, and most games only provide two or three of these opportunities.
What Kind Of Player Should Get The Dimer Badge
It's as simple as this: Those who want to focus on passing should get the Dimer badge. Whether beyond the arc or interior, this badge will greatly boost the odds of a jump shot going in. Teams that focus on the three will most benefit from Dimer, but everybody will hope that the person passing to them has at least one point in this badge.
1 Bullet Passer
- Improves a player's ability to quickly pass the ball.
Passing is more about timing than it is about finding the open man. The difference between a successful alley-oop and a bad turnover is a fraction of a second. Bullet Passer gets the ball to players who are open faster.
This frees up an offense to take more chances with short windows. Getting a step on a defender is a challenge, but if the passer can't take advantage of this single step, then beating a defender at all doesn't feel very rewarding. This badge ensures the moments don't go to waste.
What Kind Of Player Should Get The Bullet Passer Badge
Quick passing speaks for itself. being open for even half a second takes work, but all that work is wasted if the passer can't get the ball there in that timeframe. Point guards should make this a must-have, but it's useful for about anybody.
NBA 2K22 was released on September 9th, 2021, and is available on Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC.