2K Sports today announced that the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Kevin Durant, Los Angeles Clippers’ Blake Griffin and the Chicago Bulls’ Derrick Rose have been crowned the cover athletes for NBA® 2K13, the next installment of the top-selling and top-rated NBA video game simulation franchise.

The cover features the same rich red colour scheme as NBA 2K12 and will be available in Australia on October 5, 2012.

The Cover

Click the image below to view the cover in full size:

Quotes From Blake, Rose & KD

Durant, who won his third straight scoring title and led the Thunder franchise to their first NBA Finals appearance since 1996 had this to say about his newly crowned cover

”Being crowned as one of the NBA 2K13 cover athletes is a huge honor and something I always dreamt about,

It’s definitely humbling to grace the cover after the likes of Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, and Larry Bird.

There’s so much young talent around the NBA, so it’s very exciting to be chosen for NBA 2K’s ‘New Dynasty’ alongside Kevin and Derrick,”

added Griffin, who helped lead the Clippers to their first postseason since 2006.

“The NBA 2K series has always been my first choice when I want to get a game in.

It’s a dream come true to be one of the cover athletes for NBA 2K13,”

commented Rose, the 2010-11 NBA Most Valuable Player, who led the Bulls to a league-best 50-16 record this season.

“I’ve worked closely with 2K Sports since NBA 2K10, and I’m honored to follow in the footsteps of Michael Jordan as the latest Chicago Bull to be featured on the cover.”

In their young but impressive careers, Rose, Durant and Griffin have each taken the NBA by storm.

All three are past winners of the NBA Rookie of the Year award, and have also amassed eight All-Star berths, three scoring titles, and one Most Valuable Player award between them.

“There are many young superstars in today’s NBA, but we’ve selected three incredible athletes for the cover of NBA 2K13 that represent the NBA well,”

concluded Jason Argent, vice president of marketing for 2K Sports.

“It’s clear to us that Blake, Derrick and Kevin are the most deserving guys to inherit the NBA 2K cover from Jordan, Magic and Bird.”

Release Info & Links

Developed by Visual Concepts, a 2K Sports studio, NBA 2K13 is rated G for Australia and New Zealand and will be available on October 5, 2012 internationally.

The Wii U version of the title will be available during the holiday season. Fans are encouraged to pre-order now at participating retailers in order to receive the downloadable NBA All-Star content package presented by Sprite on day one at no extra cost.

For more information on 2K Sports, visit www.2KSports.com.

For more information on NBA 2K13, visit http://www.facebook.com/NBA2K.