The Charlotte Hornets’ NBA 2K League affiliate, Hornets Venom GT, start their season on Tuesday, April 5, against Knicks Gaming. This season opener is a part of the fifth annual start-of-season tournament, The Tip-Off.
After a successful season in 2021, Hornets Venom is looking for more of the same in 2022. After finishing the regular season 19-9, placing second in the Eastern Conference in 2021, winning an in-season tournament, and receiving a first-round bye, Venom failed to win a playoff series, as they fell to NetsGC in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
The 2022 squad is looking to right the ship, stay on the winning ways, and make another playoff run. This iteration of Venom GT is going to look significantly different than last season’s squad. With PeteBeBallin and Sherm both retiring from the NBA 2K League, there were a few massive holes to fill during the offseason.
Three rookies are going to be joining veterans rigby and Crown this season for Venom GT. Icyy, DJ, and KingHaad all qualified for the 2K League through various entry tournaments and will represent Venom on the virtual hardwood in 2022.
With rigby being an All-Star and Crown being named to an All-NBA 2K League Team last season, this team is going to look different but feel eerily similar to last season’s crew. With their two best players returning, Venom should look to be right in the mix for a high playoff seed once again.
With a notable amount of 2K League players retiring leading into this season, the Hornets have two of the best players in the league. With rivals JBM and Choc both retiring, Wizards District Gaming and NetsGC, two of the best teams in the league, should be down going into 2022. This gives Venom the perfect chance to snag the top seed in the regular season and maybe win a few tournaments along the way.