Kobe Bryant, Damian Lillard and Zion Williamson are the cover athletes of NBA 2K21

After presenting the trailer for the new game to coincide with the launch of the PS5, the 2K production house has revealed the players who will end up on the covers of the next edition of NBA 2K21: it is the guard of the Portland Trail Blazers Damian Lillard, who will be the face of the ''basic'' edition of the game, of the rookie Zion Williamson, which will instead be on the cover of ''next gen'' and Kobe Bryant as regards the ''Mamba Forever Edition''.

However, there will be two versions dedicated to the ex Lakers, in order to best celebrate all his victories and his legay: in one, in which an iconic 2001 photo of Andrew Bernstein appears on the cover, Kobe wears the shirt number 8, while in the other he wears the number 24 in a photo that portrays him during his last game in 2016.

The peculiarity lies in the adaptation of the 2001 photo: as you can see, the cover has added the Nike ''Swoosh'' on the tank top and, moreover, the model worn by Kobe has been changed due to the partnership that binds Nike at NBA 2K; in fact the adidas Kobe 1 ''Metallic Silver'' have been replaced by the Nike Huarache 2K4 that Kobe had started to wear only in late 2003.

With the advent of the new PS5 and the new Xbox Series X, numerous improvements are expected for the graphics and gameplay by 2K, to which will be added more competitive online features and other game modes.

"NBA 2K21 is a monumental leap forward," said Greg Thomas, president of Visual Concepts. "We are combining all our experience and development expertise to create the best possible game and for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, we are building the game from scratch to take full advantage of the power and technology of the new generation."

"Each of our coverage athletes represents different eras of the game of basketball - Damian Lillard dominates the pitch today, Zion Williamson for the next generation and what else can be said about Kobe?" Added Alfie Brody, Vice President of Global Marketing at NBA 2K. ''Three athletes who represent the current, future and historical history of the game. Today's exciting announcement is only the first of many for NBA 2K21; it will be a great year for basketball fans and NBA 2K players''.