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Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. CEO Strauss Zelnick poses for a portrait at the 2K Sports Bar inside the company's exhibit booth during the Electronic Entertainment Expo or E3 in Los Angeles June 8, 2011. Reuters/Danny Moloshok

With the release date of “NBA 2K16” just over a month away, publisher 2K Sports has teased yet another new mode for players - the 2K Pro-Am mode, which offers a more personalised experience by handing the reins in terms of team creation to gamers.

The latest installment in the NBA 2k series’ newest mode, 2K Pro-Am, allows people to use their MyCareer characters online and join other players to form custom teams that compete in five-on-five games. A player’s own custom team will be pitted against other custom teams in a battle for rankings that display in daily, monthly and overall leaderboards. Games on the Pro-Am mode follow full NBA rules.

Pro-Am mode also brings team customisation to a whole new level by equipping gamers with a variety of tools to customise a wide range of elements, from the jerseys, to the courts and arenas, as IGN showcased in this promo video:

This level of customisation is a new feature for the series, as previous versions only allowed the customisation of characters and shoes. Apart from this fresh element, players are also allowed to share their logos online.

Improving on previous mechanics, the publisher has furthermore opted to allow players to instantly join games instead of waiting at a lobby, while 2K Pro-Am has basketball courts that could handle 40 players, or eight teams, all in all. This is said to be the replacement of 2K15’s Jordan’s Rec Center, which features the same huge basketball court. However, the main difference lies in the speed at which players join games.

For now, players will have to wait until the release of “NBA 2K16” to see how the online network functions. Other installments in the 2K series have experienced troubles involving network connectivity issues. Previously, Kotaku reported that several players suffered major progress loss because of 2K’s server. This may be related to developer Visual Concepts' frequent reported connectivity troubles with its titles.

Hopefully, Visual Concepts will have the kinks fixed and ready on its server before the Sept. 29 release of “NBA 2K16”. As with any online mode in an NBA 2K game, the big question for 2K Pro-Am is whether or not it will work at launch.

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