You are reading this several days in the future. It is entirely possible that the Raptors lost badly in Sacramento on Tuesday and then lost badly again to Utah last night. If that is what happened, try not to be sad. Remember, the dinos are still above .500. Remember this, too: Vince Carter wants a trade, and, for him, that's a much more powerful motivator than, say, wanting to win. So the season is looking up, even if, today, it is looking down.

In any case, it is the right time of year for basketball video games. In basketball video games VC never goes all sulky and never blows out his knee. Coaches never implode (see B. Carter) explode (see K. O'Neill) or mail it in (see L. Wilkens. Also, see L. Wilkens, NYC edition). You, as GM, never have to ask anybody's permission for anything. In basketball video games, once you have climbed the annual learning curve, the Raptors reliably win the Atlantic season in and season out. Basketball video games are better than real basketball.

This begs a question: which basketball video game? In one corner sits NBA Live 2005, which costs $50. In the other, ESPN NBA 2K5, which retails for just $30. Easy decision, right?

Yep. That is a lame answer, true, but here is the root of it: Both Live and ESPN are very good basketball games. Both of them look amazing and sound fantastic. Both of them feel good under the thumbs. Both of them will entertain you all season long, even after the inevitable knee injury/sulky period/trade/annual pre-playoff collapse has set in. Both of them will keep you feeling good about hoops during that long stretch between Christmas and the NCAA tournament. As a plaything, as a source of entertainment, as thumb candy, each is very good at meeting the other's challenge. One of them costs $20 less than the other. No, that does not make it tough to choose.

Of the two, ESPN has the more instant appeal. In your first game, you will find your rhythm on offence. You will realize that a run-and-gun approach is terrific fun. You will allow yourself to believe that many big alleys-oop are just around the corner. You will be disappointed, but only a little. Wisely, the game's developers elected to keep that particular prize a rare gem. But you will dunk huge, and you will rack up the points, and you may even have a crack at win your first time out. This is not to say ESPN is easy (indeed, once you ratchet up the difficulty level a notch or two, you will lose like the Raptors in March), but merely that it is well-balanced. Novices will find a friendly, entertaining challenge that grows with them. Hardcore ballers will too.

Live is tougher on defence. That is, in Live, it is tougher to play defence. You will attempt many defensive rebounds and fail. You will stick to your man like glue, but he will find a way to run around you to the hoop. For a change, you will attempt many offensive rebounds, and fail at those too. The good news is that, while the learning curve is steep, it is also short, and before long you will be stealing balls with sublime confidence. You will begin to feel the rhythm. You will swear that your opponents are suffering from a crisis of confidence. Then you will ratchet up the difficulty and savour a fresh challence.

If you have bottomless pockets, Live is the better choice by a nose. Its announcers are funnier and its facilities managers put shinier varnish on the hardwood.