NBA Live 19: Best Backcourt Shooter Build and Traits

The One offers you the chance to create your own fully customizable player and play with him or her in a variety of different game modes. It’s the feature of the game, and considering you lock in the type of player you wish to be at the beginning of your career, it’s of the utmost importance that you choose wisely. To create your player, simply select the ‘character select’ option on the right side of the main screen, as shown below.

You'll then be provided with a list of different play styles to choose from; for this article we'll be focussing on the backcourt shooter play style. Backcourt shooters all start with the same basic skills. His or her 3-point shot and shot off the dribble will both receive a 74/95 rating, while contested shot, dribbling and mid-range shot will all start at 74/88.

They also have a couple of traits - boosts you can receive when making a certain play - specific to this playing style. The first of these is the 'pick and shoot', an offensive trait which gives a slight boost to your shooting when using a pick to attempt an open shot. The second is 'split decision', which means that passes out of a jump shot have a slightly better chance of being accurate.

Once you've chosen your play style, you'll be presented with a choice of two or three different icons. The icon system has been incorporated for the first time to NBA Live 19, and enables you to choose from two or three star players (icons) in each play style who your player will attempt to emulate. What this means is that as you progress through the game, your player will accumulate attributes of this icon; basically, it has a major impact on what your player will be able to do. So just which icon is best for the backcourt shooter playing style, and what build should you create for your player?

After you choose your gender (we’ll use male height and weight for simplicity) and backcourt shooter as your play style, two icon options are presented: the Chef - who emulates Steph Curry - and the Sniper - who emulates Ray Allen.

Best Backcourt Shooter Icon

The Chef

The Chef’s specialized icon skill is passing, which can max out at 85, and he or she will have the potential to earn boosts for their inside shot, free throw, layup, rebounding, on-ball defense, speed, and stamina. You’ll also earn boosts to your finishing and passing abilities whenever you make a 3-point shot. The end product of this icon will be a lethal shooter who can outrun and outlast most opponents, finish strongly inside, and defend the ball strongly.

The Sniper

The Sniper’s specialized icon skill is the inside shot. His potential skill boosts are free throw, dunk, rebounding, on-ball defense, steal, vertical, stamina and strength. You’ll also have improved accuracy in your jump shot the longer you stay open. If you manage to earn all the possible upgrades with The Sniper, you’ll end up with a shooter with elite hops, sound defense, and plenty of speed.

So which is best? Personally, I prefer the Sniper. If you’re going to choose backcourt shooter as a playing style, you want your player to be a scorer first and foremost, and this can be better achieved through the Sniper. Your outside shooting will be a strength from the outset, but the ability to further develop your vertical and dunking skills gives you the opportunity to perform some serious highlight plays, while also putting up some big numbers.

Best Backcourt Shooter Build

For the Sniper, my preferred build is 185cm and 82kg. Not a particularly tall player, but at this size you’ll be fast and have a good vertical, with the two skills coming in at 87 and 74 respectively. You’ll lose out a little on strength as a result of the smaller stature, but for this kind of player it’s more important to be able to move around the floor and get off the ground - you likely won’t be dealing with an excessive amount of physical contact anyway.

To summarize: for a backcourt shooter, the best icon choice and build for your player is a 185cm, 82kg Sniper. This player will be able to cover the floor with serious pace, and will also be able to get up for big dunks and rebounds which belie his relatively small stature. Your speed will allow you to get open as often as possible, and with the Sniper’s jump shot getting more accurate for every moment you’re unmanned, this is invaluable.