EA announced today that San Antonio Spurs point guard Tony Parker will be the cover athlete and spokesman for NBA LIVE 09.  In his seven NBA seasons, the 26 year old is a two-time NBA All-Star, has three NBA championships and was named the 2007 NBA Finals MVP.  Parker will be the first European born global cover athlete of NBA LIVE. Off the court, Parker is an avid gamer and won an NBA LIVE 08 tournament against fellow NBA stars at the EA SPORTS All-Star Challenge last February in New Orleans.

“I have a long history with EA SPORTS.  I’ve been on the cover in France for five years straight and I’ve been playing NBA LIVE for as long as I’ve played basketball,” said Parker. “It’s a real honor for me as a European player to now be represented on the worldwide cover.”

Parker is joined by some of the NBA’s biggest international stars on packaging around the world, including the Los Angeles Lakers’ Pau Gasol (Spain), Toronto Raptors’ Andrea Bargnani (Italy) and Chicago Bulls’ Luol Deng (UK).

Player  Territory       Team
Tony Parker     Worldwide*      San Antonio Spurs
Andrea Bargnani Italy   Toronto Raptors
Pau Gasol       Spain   LA Lakers
Luol Deng       UK      Chicago Bulls
*with the exception of the countries named below

NBA LIVE 09 is back with new features like Pick and Roll Control, Defensive Lockdown Control, Signature Playcalling and Quickstrike Ankle-Breakers that will make the NBA LIVE experience fun from beginning to end. For those in need of some extra coaching, NBA LIVE 09 takes you to training camp with the NBA Academy that gives you a chance to hone your skills.

Now featuring 24 authentic FIBA teams with realistic team play styles and rosters, NBA LIVE 09 features a FIBA World Championship Mode using FIBA tournament structure, rules and court dimensions.  Take your game online with 5 vs.5 team play, where 10 people can play together on 10 different consoles around the world.

NBA LIVE 09 will be available for the Xbox 360 on October 7 in North America, and on October 14 worldwide.