The cost of being one of the very popular video games on the planet is that the spotlight that achievement creates isn't always kind. The MT 2K21 franchise is huge, with tens of thousands of millions of players worldwide, and the game is held to a high standard. There are several variations of this game which are critiqued, and one of the most common places for criticism is that the precision of player renders.
Haliburton is a beginner, so there is a chance you might not be wholly knowledgeable about his face. Here is a side-by-side of Haliburton that shows him in NBA 2K21 on PS5 and a real-life picture on the right.
Chief among them is skin care complexion. This is a frequent issue for 2K--particularly this year. Newly rendered players happen to be coming out much darker. That is true here with Haliburton because he is at least three shades darker in 2K than that he is in real life. His eyes also appear to be somewhat too broad. Certainly, there's room for improvement for this render and 2K has been upgrading the likenesses for players because the game has been released on the two generations of consoles.
Ramsey wasn't scanned or even rendered by one of the musicians working with 2K. His render was created using the in-game instrument, which is a decent attempt taking into consideration the creation package has some notable limitations, but it is not exactly what fans have come to expect in regards to visual authenticity--notably on next-gen consoles.
Haliburton was not scanned, but he was apparently created by an artist, but maybe they did not have good reference pictures--which it seems the Kings are referring to--or the render came out too dark. While 2K is not exactly a small company deserving of empathy for consequences, it's important to realize they were unable to scan most of the beginner class, and also the players in the NBA Bubble at that time they traditionally handle that area of their match.
All but eliminated their access to players, and I have been told 2K is taking alternative routes to get players scanned during the offseason. Including taking the scanning rig on the path to a number of locations to get quality scans that they could use in the game Buy NBA 2K Coins. Hopefully, the more incorrect renders will be improved and the various bugs doing damage to MyNBA and Play Today Online is going to be resolved as well.