NBA 2K26 launches amid backlash over Anthony Edwards likeness

NBA 2K26 launched this week, but the basketball simulation arrived amid fresh controversy after an image of Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards from the game circulated on social media, prompting widespread criticism of the title's player likenesses just days before the game's Sept. 5 release across consoles and PC. Fans on X, formerly Twitter, and meme accounts compared the new Edwards model to prior editions and lampooned the change, renewing debate over 2K's ability to capture star players' faces.

The image, shared by an NBA meme account on Aug. 30, showed a markedly different digital rendering of Edwards compared with earlier NBA 2K covers. Replies included quips such as "2K26 ANT looking like Usher" and comments suggesting the model resembled other players, with one post saying, "Looks more like Ray Allen with long hair." Some users defended the franchise, noting that Edwards has reportedly declined game face scans in the past. "How many times people gotta say that ant refuses to go in for a face scan for you people to get it," read one response on X.

This latest uproar follows earlier criticism of the game's promotional materials, which drew attention for featuring...