'NBA 2K20' Best OP Badges for Finishing, Playmaking, Shooting & Defense

NBA 2K20 has a wide assortment of Badges that offer your MyPlayer some truly valuable perks. While we already have a Badge list that details the effect of every Badge in the game, this guide narrows things down for the top five overall selections in each build category.

While your final Badge choices may vary based on the specific kind of player you wish to make, here are some broad suggestions to consider for Finishing, Playmaking, Shooting and Defense.

Best Finishing Badges

As you'll see below, these five Badges really compliment a Finishing-focused MyPlayer in terms of taking it to the rim, making layups and avoiding contact from all areas fairly close to the bucket. Not everyone will be able to go full Hall of Fame for each one of these depending on your build, but nothing here should be below Silver if you can help it.

• Contact Finisher: Improves the ability to convert contact layups and dunks in traffic. Slashers who play below the rim finish contact layups more successfully while dunkers are able to pull off more contact dunks.
• All Slashers need to deal with contact, and this is the best way to make the most of difficult layups and dunks in traffic.
• Acrobat: Boosts the ability to hit high degree of difficult layups. Spin, half-spin, hop step, euro-step, cradle, reverse and change shot layup attempts receive a significant boost.
• Especially if you're prioritizing layups, this is a must-have Hall of Fame Badge.
• Relentless Finisher: Reduces the fatigue effects from continually finishing at the rim with contact. Improves a player's ability to take a lot of contact by reducing the energy lost when attacking the rim for contact shots.
• Since you'll be taking tons of contact to make the most of the previously listed Badges, it makes sense to rank up Relentless Finisher too. It allows you to keep up your strength so that the effects of the other Badges stay relevant.
• Fancy Footwork: Improves a player's ability to beat defenders with an advanced layup or dunk gather. Players get past defenders more efficiently when performing euro, cradle, hop step, spin and half-spin gathers.
• In addition to turning those short-range plays into points, you'll need something that makes it easier to avoid the contact you're going to get. This Badge is one of the best ways to make that happen.
• Slithery Finisher: Improves a player's ability to avoid contact when attacking the rim. Increases a player's ability to slide through traffic and avoid contact during gathers and finishes at the rim.
• While Fancy Footwork functions from a little further out, Slithery Finisher is hugely helpful once you get right up to the rim.

Best Playmaking Badges

With Playmaking, the emphasis is on team support, dribbling and creating space. Here are five of the best Badges in NBA 2K20 that help take full advantage of that skillset. Especially if you intend to play lots of online games with human players, your teammates will be glad to have you around.

• Unpluckable: Reduces the chances of getting stripped by the defender. When performing dribble moves, defenders have a tougher time poking the ball free with their steal attempts.
• Playmakers perform best when dribbling, so you need to make sure the ball won't get swiped while you pull off those cool moves. This Badge makes that unfortunate reality less likely.
• Floor General: Teammates receive an offensive attribute bonus when player is in the game. Gives offensive attributes boosts to teammates when on the floor. Also, at the Hall of Fame level, can see teammates' potential shot percentages while on offense.
• This is a great Badge to have if you're playing online. True to its name, Floor General gives everyone around you a stat boost. Paired with the right team composition, this Badge can be seriously OP at key moments.
• Dimer: Boosts the shot percentage for open teammates on jump shots after catching a pass. When in the half-court, passes by Dimers to open shooters yield a shot percentage boost.
• This is also a very broken Badge right now, because the percentage buffs are totally out of whack. Whether you're catching a pass or dishing one to somebody else, this Badge leads to guaranteed points if spammed correctly.
• Quick First Step: Provides more explosive first steps out of triple threat and size-ups. When driving out of a triple threat or after a size-up, ball handlers have access to quicker, and more effective, launches.
• Triple threats and size ups are generally just for show, but this Badge makes them matter in a big way. When stepping off these moves, you're almost guaranteed free points. This Badge is very OP at the time of publish, but it should still be worthwhile after a nerf or two.
• Space Creator: Improves a player's ability to create space from a defender. When performing any stepback move or shot, there's a higher chance of successfully creating separation from the opponent.
• This is another pathway to high-percentage points. Space means scoring, and, especially if you can get more space on top of the other previously listed Badge buffs, you'll wind up doing big things for your team.

Best Shooting Badges

If you're a shooter, then the jump shot is key to your success. These five Badges make it easier to nail a successful jump shot and then buff your rewards for doing so. If you prefer to play far from the basket, these are five Badges well worth the investment.

• Flexible Release: Reduces the penalty suffered from mis-timed jump shot released. Shot timing penalties for jump shots are reduced, making it easier to knock down attempts even when releasing early or late.
• Shot timing in NBA 2K can sometimes be a bit tricky for new and experienced players alike. Flexible Release makes that process more forgiving by removing penalties for being slightly off at the top of a shot.
• Green Machine: Increases the bonus given for consecutive excellent releases. Gives an additional shot boost when consecutively achieving excellent releases on jump shots.
• Once you master shot timing, Green Machine will be your best friend. As if nailing those greens wasn't enough, now you get a shot boost for doing that several times in a row. Once you get in a timing groove, it will be very difficult to shut your MyPlayer down.
• Quick Draw: Speeds up the release of a jump shot. The higher the badge level, the faster a player will be able to release all jump shots.
• Almost all 2K20 players agree that Quick Draw is one of the best Badges to invest in for most builds. A quick jumper is super-important if you want to score, so pushing this one to Hall of Fame is essentially a must if you can spare it.
• Difficult Shots: Improves the ability to shoot difficult shots off the dribble. High difficulty jumpers such as hop steps, spins, stepbacks, and pull-ups receive a shot percentage boost.
• On top of all the other jumper boosts, Difficult Shots makes those troublesome shots easier to make. This ensures the bonuses from your other Badges keep stacking even in the worst gameplay situations.
• Deadeye: Reduces the impact of a defender who is closing out. Jump shots taken with a defender closing out receive less of a penalty from a shot contest. This includes both mid-range and 3PT shots.
• If you're making it rain from a distance, defenders are going to be all up in your business. This Badge ensures that some of those tactics aren't as potent as they could be. Not only are you making great shots, but others will have a hard time defending against them.

Best Defense/Rebounding Badges

As you might've guessed, these top-five Badges are all about stopping Playmakers and Shooters from dominating the court. Nerf those shooting buffs, block offense and rebound like crazy with these selections.

• Intimidator: Intimidates offensive players causing them to miss shots more often. Offensive players have less success shooting when contested by players with this badge. Also boosts the shot defense ratings when tightly guarding an opponent.
• With all the shooting buff Badges, this is a must for all defensive builds. It's the best way to counteract offense.
• Clamps: Boosts the ability to stay in front of the ball handler on the perimeter. Defenders have access to quicker cut off moves and are more successful when bumping or hip riding the ball handler.
• The best way to stall an offense is to stuff the perimeter. This Badge is the only way to do it, and it's another must-have for the defender archetype.
• Pick Dodger: Improves a player's ability to navigate through screens effectively on defense. Improves a player's ability to navigate through and around screens while on defense.
• Screens may get in your way, but this Badge helps you move around the threat. See through traffic and stop that peky shooter with vastly improved footwork.
• Tireless Defender: Reduces energy lost when exerting effort on defense. Allowing defender to play defense more aggressively without losing energy at the same rate as normal player.
• If you're going to be defending all game, you need the stamina to keep on going. This is the only Badge that offers it, which makes Tireless Defender a shoo-in for anyone in the position.
• Rebound Chaser: Improves a player's ability to chase down rebounds. Improves a player's ability to track down rebounds from farther distances than normal.
• Rebounding is key to defense, and this last Badge is necessary to improving that part of your game. It may not be totally necessary for all builds, but Rebound Chaser should be considered in most cases if you can afford it.

NBA 2K20 is available now on Xbox One, PS4, Switch and PC. For more MyPlayer creation help, check out our build guide.

What are your favorite Badges in NBA 2K20? Are there any OP Badges we missed? Tell us in the comments section!