Badges in NBA 2K23 allow players to take their game to the next level by increasing their player statistics.
The top NBA 2K23 players seek out the right badges to use in NBA 2K23, searching for the tiniest bit of leverage on their opponents for when matches are extremely close.
This article outlines the best badges to use in NBA 2K23 for each category. You can use this article to help improve your MyCAREER player or when you are selecting the best point guard for your MyTEAM.
Best Finishing Badges
Fearless Finisher
Fearless Finisher improves a player’s ability to take contact and still score. It also lowers the amount of energy it takes to score a contact layup.
Different Badge Levels:
- Bronze Badge: 65 Close Shot or 67 Driving Layup
- Silver Badge: 75 Close Shot or 77 Driving Layup
- Gold Badges: 84 Close Shot or 87 Driving Layup
- Hall of Fame Badge: 93 Close Shot or 97 Driving Layup
If you like to execute plays that allow your team to head to the paint for layups, the Fearless Finisher badge will allow you to score easy baskets, even when you are faced with stronger or taller defenders.
Posterizer
Posterizer improves your chances of hitting a dunk over your defender.
Different Badge Levels:
- Bronze Badge: 72 Driving Dunk
- Silver Badge: 85 Driving Dunk
- Gold Badge: 93 Driving Dunk
- Hall of Fame Badge: 99 Driving Dunk
As you work your way through NBA 2K23, you will notice that defenders are extremely strong in this game. Posterizer allows you to bully defenders and score more dunks.
Bully
The Bully badge increases a player’s ability to draw contact and head to the rim on layups.
Different Badge Levels:
- Bronze Badge: 74 Strength
- Silver Badge: 82 Strength
- Gold Badge: 89 Strength
- Hall of Fame Badge: 95 Strength
The Bully badge is excellent to pair with Fearless Finisher and helps your Center or Power Forward bully your opponents under the paint.
Slithery
The Slithery badge increases your chances of sliding through traffic, avoiding contact during finishes at the rim, and stops the ball from getting stolen.
Different Badge Levels:
- Bronze Badge: 69 Driving Layup or 70 Driving Dunk
- Silver Badge: 79 Driving Layup or 84 Driving Dunk
- Gold Badge: 89 Driving Layup or 92 Driving Dunk
- Hall of Fame Badge: 99 Driving Layup or 98 Driving Dunk
As mentioned, the defense in NBA 2K23 is extremely strong. The Slithery Badge will help you get in the paint and score plenty of layups. This badge is ideal if you prefer shooting from the inside.
Rise Up
The Rise Up badge improves your chances of posterizing or dunking when you are standing in the paint.
Different Badge Levels:
- Bronze Badge: None
- Silver Badge: 80 Stranding Dunk
- Gold Badge: 90 Stranding Dunk
- Hall of Fame Badge: 98 Stranding Dunk
Dunks are the safest way to score points, so when you get the ball in the paint and try to finish, the more times you can dunk, the better. The Rise Up badge will allow you to score easy baskets with more frequent dunks.
Limitless Takeoff
When you head to the basket, the Limitless Takeoff badge will allow your player to begin the process of a dunk from further away from the basket.
Different Badge Levels:
- Bronze Badge: 65 Driving Dunk
- Silver Badge: 79 Driving Dunk
- Gold Badge: 86 Driving Dunk
- Hall of Fame Badge: 96 Driving Dunk
The Limitless Takeoff badge is fantastic for anyone who executes plays that get your big players free in and around the paint.
Best Shooting Badges
Agent 3
The Agent 3 Badge increases your chances of completing a spin or pull-up shot from three-point range.
Different Badge Levels:
- Bronze Badge: 68 Three-Point Shot
- Silver Badge: 83 Three-Point Shot
- Gold Badge: 89 Three-Point Shot
- Hall of Fame Badge: 96 Three-Point Shot
If you enjoy implementing spins and step-backs to outwit defenders, the Agent 3 badge will allow you to hit more three-pointers when the space opens up.
Amped
The Amped badge lowers fatigue’s impact on a player’s ability to hit shots.
- Bronze Badge: 59 Mid-Range Shot or 70 Three-Point Shot
- Silver Badge: 70 Mid-Range Shot or 75 Three-Point Shot
- Gold Badge: 78 Mid-Range Shot or 82 Three-Point Shot
- Hall of Fame Badge: 85 Mid-Range Shot or 90 Three-Point Shot
If you like to play fast, using your turbo boost to get up and down the court and hit shots at any chance you get, Amped will keep your shooting accuracy high during fatigue.
Blinders
The Blinders badge lowers the penalty for taking jump shots while a defender closes you down.
- Bronze Badge: 65 Mid-Range Shot or 70 Three-Point Shot
- Silver Badge: 77 Mid-Range Shot or 80 Three-Point Shot
- Gold Badge: 84 Mid-Range Shot or 89 Three-Point Shot
- Hall of Fame Badge: 94 Mid-Range Shot or 97 Three-Point Shot
Unless you are a wizard and always end up wide open, you will find yourself facing a defender closing you down. The Blinders badge allows you to hit shots even if there is a defender in your peripheral vision.
Best Playmaking Badges
Ankle Breaker
When you execute a step-back or other moves, the Ankle Breaker Badge ensures the opponent trips or falls more often, leaving you wide open.
- Bronze Badge: None
- Silver Badge: 65 Ball Handle
- Gold Badge: 71 Ball Handle
- Hall of Fame Badge: 81 Ball Handle
There is no better feeling in a game of basketball than tricking a defender into falling over their own feet as they try to guard you. The Ankle Breaker Badge makes that feeling reality and allows you to humiliate your opponent and shoot from wide open.
Dimer
The Dimer Badge can get used for any passes made from half-court to open shooters. If successful, the shooter gains a small shot percentage boost.
- Bronze Badge: None
- Silver Badge: 69 Pass Accuracy
- Gold Badge: 80 Pass Accuracy
- Hall of Fame Badge: 85 Pass Accuracy
If you like to make killer passes from deep, the Dimer Badge is excellent as it rewards long passes by increasing the receiver’s shooting ratings.
Bail Out
If your chosen player has the Bail Out Badge, then passing out of their layup or jump shot will result in fewer bad passes. It also improves your chances of successfully passing out when double-teamed.
- Bronze Badge: 65 Pass Accuracy
- Silver Badge: 78 Pass Accuracy
- Gold Badge: 85 Pass Accuracy
- Hall of Fame Badge: 94 Pass Accuracy
If you find yourself getting to the basket but heavily guarded or double-teamed, the Bail Out Badge is excellent for changing tactics and setting up a team-mate on the outside for a clear shot.
Handles for Days
With the Handles for Days Badge, a player requires less energy to execute consecutive dribble moves, letting them merge commons faster and for longer.
- Bronze Badge: 70 Ball Handle
- Silver Badge: 85 Ball Handle
- Gold Badge: 94 Ball Handle
- Hall of Fame Badge: 99 Ball Handle
If you are a fan of executing dribbling moves, you might notice your players taking a massive energy hit to execute your showboating skills. The Handles for Days Badge allows you to prevent this side effect and allows you to dribble around the court until your heart’s content.
Clamp Breaker
The Clamp Breaker Badge provides your player with the ability to protect the ball, fight off contact, and drive past opponents.
- Bronze Badge: 64 Ball Handle
- Silver Badge: 77 Ball Handle
- Gold Badge: 87 Ball Handle
- Hall of Fame Badge: 96 Ball Handle
Ball security is essential for any aspiring NBA 2K23 superstar, and the Clamp Breaker Badge lets you squeeze past even the strongest defenses, keeping hold of the ball in tight situations.
Unpluckable
With the Unpluckable badge, defenders find it much harder to poke the ball free when they attempt to make a steal.
- Bronze Badge: 65 Post Control or 65 Ball Handle
- Silver Badge: 75 Post Control or 75 Ball Handle
- Gold Badge: 84 Post Control or 84 Ball Handle
- Hall of Fame Badge: 95 Post Control or 95 Ball Handle
The Unpluckable Badge works very well with the Clamp Breaker Badge and helps take your players’ ball security to the next level.
Best Defense Badges
Challenger
The Challenger Badge increases your effectiveness in well-timed consists with perimeter shooters.
- Bronze Badge: 69 Perimeter Defense
- Silver Badge: 79 Perimeter Defense
- Gold Badge: 86 Perimeter Defense
- Hall of Fame Badge: 95 Perimeter Defense
If you find yourself spending time defending shots from the perimeter, the Challenger Badge will be extremely effective.
Anchor
The Anchor Badge increases your player’s chances of protecting the rim and blocking shots at a high level.
- Bronze Badge: None
- Silver Badge: 87 Block
- Gold Badge: 93 Block
- Hall of Fame Badge: 99 Block
The Ancher Badge is excellent for large Centers that want to control the area below your basket.
Clamps
The Clamps Badge allows you to access faster cut-off moves, which are highly successful when hip riding or bumping the ball handler.
- Bronze Badge: 70 Perimeter Defense
- Silver Badge: 86 Perimeter Defense
- Gold Badge: 92 Perimeter Defense
- Hall of Fame Badge: 97 Perimeter Defense
NBA 2K23 defense is already extremely strong, but the Clamps Badge allows you to stop fast players that trip and run past you for simple dunks or layups.
Rebound Chaser
The Rebound Chaser Badge increases your player’s chances of tracking down rebounds from further away than normal.
- Bronze Badge: None
- Silver Badge: 85 Offensive Rebound Shot or 85 Defensive Rebound
- Gold Badge: 93 Offensive Rebound Shot or 93 Defensive Rebound
- Hall of Fame Badge: 99 Offensive Rebound Shot or 99 Defensive Rebound
If you enjoy playing as a large Power Forward or Center, the Rebound Chaser Badge is a fantastic addition. It lets you chase down rebounds quickly, turning over possession and getting your team back onto offense.
Chase Down Artist
The Chase Down Artist badge increases a player’s spread and jumping ability when they are chasing an offensive player and about to attempt a block.
- Bronze Badge: None
- Silver Badge: 59 Block
- Gold Badge: 75 Block
- Hall of Fame Badge: 88 Block
The Chase Down Artist Badge is a great one to use with the Rebound Chaser and is sure to increase how many shots you can block.
Interceptor
The Interceptor Badge increases how frequently you can tip or intercept passes.
- Bronze Badge: 58 Steal
- Silver Badge: 78 Steal
- Gold Badge: 90 Steal
- Hall of Fame Badge: 99 Steal
Sometimes the easiest way to stop an attack is before it even gets started. Whether you alter the trajectory of a pass or steal the ball completely, the Interceptor Badge is a brilliant option for breaking up the opposition’s offense.
As you work your way through your MyCAREER, you have the power to test out various badges to see which ones suit your playstyle the most.
The most important thing is to ensure you have a reasonable amount of Badge Points to tinker with as you progress through the game.
What to Do Next?
When you have plenty of badges to choose from, it opens you up to trying any of the top playbooks in the game and executing plays with ease.
If you want to try these badges out, check our guide on the fastest way to unlock badges to get them quickly.
