How to Play Defense on 2K26 = 2KLabs Jumpshot Contest Test video

With 74s being quote unquote uncontestable, the team at NBA 2K Lab wanted to find a way to stop the 74 stretch adidemic. And what was supposed to be a couple simple tests turned into the definitive guide for how to play defense in NBA 2K26. So, in this video, we're not only going to cover how to effectively contest 74s, but we're also covering everything from wingspans, block, and perimeter defense ratings, and their relation to contest percentages, along with a bunch of useful gems that will give you a better idea of how defense works in NBA 2K26. So, before we get into the video, be sure to subscribe for the most in-depth testing NBA 2K26 has to offer, and let's get right into it. First things first, let's quickly talk about how contests work this year. In order to register a solid contest, you likely need to jump at the offensive player. And when jumping at a player, your block rating will greatly increase the effectiveness of your contest percentage. We ran a test in this scenario at four different block ratings. And here's what we found. When jumping at a shooter while in good defensive position, we saw a somewhat linear and consistent contest percentage across all block ratings. A 25 block provided a decent contest with almost 56%. At a 50 block, we saw an average contest of 67%. A 75 block saw a 79% contest and then a 99 block saw an average contest of nearly 97%. Granted, these contests are more like heavy contest. So, we ran the same test but from slightly further out and the results weren't as linear with a 99 block being much better than a 75, showing that an elite block rating can be significantly better when jumping from longer distances. Where perimeter defense comes into play is with hands-up defense. And keep in mind that your block rating will not improve your hands up contest. And while hands-up defense isn't very effective this year, a higher perimeter defense can improve hands-up contest while in good defensive position. As you can see by the chart, if you want somewhat impactful perimeter defense, aim for at least a 75 to 80 rating at the minimum. If you want to be a good defender, you should aim for at least 90 perimeter defense. And elite lockdowns should be aiming for 95 to 99 for the elite contest. When we ran the same test, but from slightly further out, higher perimeter defense ratings became even more impactful when compared to the lower ratings. But don't forget that a higher perimeter rating only provides a marginal boost when it comes to jump contest. So, it's best to have both block and perimeter defense for the most effective all-around contest. Although, I would put a little more stock into block since you're forced to jump contest this year. Aside from perimeter defense and block rating, let's go over an example of how contests work fundamentally. In this post on Reddit, this user was upset the contest didn't register more than 23%. And rightfully so, as even Beluba agreed that it should have been higher later on in the post. Beluba also replied saying that body position is a major component of getting an effective contest. And if you draw a line from the hoop to the shooter, you need to be as close to that line as possible to maximize your contest. Not to mention, with two less adrenalines, your attributes will also take a major hit. But going back to the straight line theory, the three bars under the offensive player shows that the defender was not directly in front, which is likely the reason for the lower thanex expected contest. Had the red bar been directly in the middle, he would have likely saw a better contest. So, we ran a test from each defensive coverage zone to see how the contest played out. Unsurprisingly, the front and center zone had the best contest results with an average contest of about 51%. Which is about 3 to 5% better than the zones next to it. We also tested just outside the edge zones and there was basically no contest. So, again, body positioning is a huge factor when determining contest percentage. The mode you play also plays an important role in how contests work with lower difficulty modes like park and wreck generating lower contest percentages similar to allstar and superstar while other modes like proving grounds and proam will generate higher contests similar to that of hall of fame. The tests done in this video were mostly on hall of fame. So it's likely that the contest will be higher than you might expect. But these results on the screen came from the same testing scenario but on different difficulties. And you can clearly see the drastic differences on rookie through pro. Contests are much weaker, meaning players can shoot a lot more freely. Competitive difficulties like Superstar and Hall of Fame punish poor shot selection far more. Next, we looked at the effects of a max versus a minimum wingspan with a hands-up contest. Going with a max wingspan can provide a modest improvement over minimum wingspan. And from our test results while in good defensive positioning, the max wingspan registered a 6% better contest than a player with a minimum wingspan in the same scenario with the same exact attributes. So, if you want to maximize your contest percentages, try to get the highest wingspan possible. Although it's not exactly a dealbreaker if you lower it by a couple ticks. But let's get to the hot topic right now in NBA 2K26, the 74 stretch admic and which height is going to provide the best contest. Now, for this test, we had different heights trying to contest a 74 with reasonable badge and attribute thresholds for each height. And before we get into the results, it's important to note that while the challenger badge will improve contest effectiveness, it will not improve the contest percentage. So, just keep that in mind. But looking at the chart, the 611 was ahead of all the other heights besides the 74. A 74 contesting another 74 provides a good contest, but since the 74 is so slow, it's not likely to be in good defensive position often, which means the 611 takes the cake with an average close contest of nearly 32%. That's more than double a 610, which is at 15% and almost triple the contest percentage of a 69 at 11.1%. When contesting from slightly further away, the 611 was yet again the most effective height. Although the percentages were low, the 611 still had nearly double the contest of a 69 in the same scenario. And if you haven't checked out the 611 build guide I dropped on our channel, definitely give it a look as I made a 611 build with 99 block and I've been getting some serious contests. But not only are contests determined by your height, block, and perimeter rating, but it also comes from the grades of the offensive players jump shot as well with higher release heights and immunity grades offering significantly lower contest percentages. When testing these different jump shot grades, jump shots with an A immunity and release height offered far better contest percentages when compared to the B's, C's, D's, and Fs. And after looking at these results, I would make sure you have a highly graded jump shot in those areas, with release height being the number one priority. And if you want to find the best jump shots for any height, premium members of NBA2Klab.com get access to hundreds of jump shots that we test and update almost daily with data on green window sizes, shot speeds, total make percentages, along with a bunch of other tools to help improve your game and green more shots. But when it comes to defense this year in NBA 2K26, there's a lot to keep in mind when trying to be an effective defender. And I'll try to break down some of the key points right now. And one of the most important things I haven't said in this video is that it's extremely important to have solid physicals like speed and agility to ensure good defensive positioning. With good positioning and a high block rating, you should be able to effectively contest most shots. That is, if you aren't at a major height disadvantage because height also plays a huge role in contest effectiveness, and it should definitely be considered when making defensive builds and determining in-game matchups. Now, that is all we have for the definitive guide on contest and how to play defense in NBA 2K26. I really hope this video helped you and if it did, a simple like down below would be greatly appreciated. I want to thank you all for watching. It's been Spill and I'm out later.