Lock Down

What Lock Down does

Lock Down is the all-around defensive Zone Ability carried by the game’s most versatile stoppers — Cooper Flagg, Bam Adebayo, Kawhi Leonard and elite two-way athlete Amen Thompson. When the carrier enters the Zone, Lock Down raises every defensive rating at once — Steals, Blocks, Shove and Guard — so they can pick the ball clean, contest at the rim, body up a driver, and stay glued to their man all in the same possession.

Where a specialist ability like The Shadow or Paint Patrol sharpens one part of defense, Lock Down lifts the whole kit. That makes the carrier a problem no matter how the offense attacks — drive on them and the Guard and Shove ratings hold up, pull up and the contest is tighter, attack the rim and the Blocks boost is waiting.

How to use it

Activate Lock Down when the other team has the ball and a clear go-to scorer. Put the carrier on that scorer and play up the floor — the across-the-board boost rewards aggressive, point-of-attack defense rather than sitting back. Jump passing lanes, body cutters, and challenge shots at the rim; every category is elevated, so there is no part of the matchup you have to concede. It pairs well with a steal-hunting teammate up top who can gamble knowing the carrier is anchoring everything behind them.

The In the Zone meter

Lock Down comes online through the carrier’s own In the Zone meter — each player charges theirs with their own play: tricks, dunks, dimes and buckets, with bigger highlight plays filling it faster (the Aura rating is that player’s personal charge rate). When the meter is full, activate the Zone with L3+R3 for roughly 30 seconds of boosted speed, power and stamina plus the signature ability. Position the carrier before you pop it — activating while they’re out of position or gassed wastes part of the window.

Both the effect text and the carrier list here are verified verbatim from the in-game player-select cards.