NBA 2K18 Badges Guide - 5 Great Badges For All Archetypes & How To Get Them

NBA 2K18 ’s badge system is more important than ever thanks to the brutal VC grind, so we’ve got some tips on how to get the five best badges. Whether you’re a defender or sharpshooter, here are some quick ways to buff your MyPlayer.

1) Difficult Shots: Difficult Shots is currently one of NBA 2K18’s most OP badges. Just as its name implies, it increases your percentage of difficult, off-dribble shots. In general, you’ll need to get as many as 200 pull-and-hop shots but there’s another way to get the bronze in as little as one practice.

Assuming the badge is available to you, select the Reading The Screen Drill at the training facility. The drill will mark where you’re supposed to stand, but ignore that and take a bunch of mid-range off-dribble shots from just behind the freethrow line. If your player is able to make eight of 10 shots you should get about 3,000 XP. Using the juice man to get an extra drill, it’s possible to reach the required 12,000 XP in a single in-game day.

2) Tireless Scorer: This badge improves effectiveness while using turbo. It can be earned in-game by making about 200 shots while your energy bar is red. However, we’ve found the simplest method, especially for new players, is to rinse and repeat the Gatorade Reaction Drill in the back of the Gatorade Training Facility.

It’s a two-step drill. The first part involves pointing the left or right thumbstick in the direction that lights up on the stand in front of you. Once that’s done, take a look at the large board and hit the face button that appears on the screen. If you know your controller well, it’s easy to max out your XP yield.

3) Glue Hands /Pick Pocket: These are complimentary badges that can be earned using the same method. Glue Hands helps you steal the ball more effectively while Pick Pocket improves effectiveness when chasing down stolen balls.

It’s best to grind for these badges in a standard game. Watch opponent animations closely and wait for ball handlers to trip and step back. When that happens, use turbo to charge and start swiping. Grab the ball and score to get the XP. Some players grind these by charging randomly, but we’ve tried to offer some extra direction.

4) Dropstepper: This one is severely overpowered too, and it’s essential if you’re going through MyCareer with a big man. As its name implies, it improves the effectiveness of dropstep shots.

The best way to get it is to grind the Dropstepper scrimmage drills at the training facility. You’ll typically have a skilled player blocking you from the basket. Simply pull the analog stick toward the basket and hit the shoot button. With enough practice you should be able to get around 1,000 badge XP per drill.

5) Posterizer: This is another badge focused on bigger players, and it increases the percentage of how often your player is able to dunk over defenders. The best way to get it is to do the one-on-one full court drill at the training facility as much as possible.

To score easy buckets just use your turbo, do a single crossover with the right stick to make it past the defender and push the ball to the rack. You might even be able to score XP for other strong badges like Acrobat, Ankle Breaker and Relentless Finisher too.

NBA 2K18 is available now on PS4, PS3, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Switch and PC.

Those are the easiest badge grinds to get your NBA 2K18 MyPlayer started, but are there any we missed? Tell us in the comments section!