# Pocket GM: Basketball Sim — Manage a Basketball Dynasty!

> Basketball franchise management simulator for building and leading a team to victory. (iPhone/iPad app by Jonathan Howell.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pocket-gm-basketball-sim/id6476059372 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [Jonathan Howell](https://appshunter.io/developer/1480685815)
- Category: Games, Sports, Simulation, Sports
- Price: $2.99
- Rating: 4.90/5 from 936 App Store ratings · 64 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 4+
- Requires: iOS 13.0 · 53 MB
- Languages: British English
- Released: 2024-10-21
- Data updated: 2026-08-28
- Monetization: free
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pocket-gm-basketball-sim/id6476059372/reviews.md

## What is Pocket GM?

Following the popular Pocket GM: Football series, it's now time to take charge of a Basketball Franchise and sign, trade and draft players to create a the ultimate dynasty in Pocket GM.
- Master the Draft: Scout and pick the stars of the future
- Trade to Success: Win now, or stock up on draft picks
- Pick Up Gems: Build out your team through free agency
- Behind The Scenes: Construct a top management and scout network
- Watch It Play Out: Watch games play-by-play and track the stats of key players
- Customise: Create your own rosters (or import from community) to maximise immersion

REPLAYABILITY:
Use default players, random rosters or import teams created by the fantastic community. Every game is different and presents a new challenge.

CONTROL:
Become the General Manager of a Pro Basketball Team and build your dynasty. Hire your coaches, scouts and physios, all with unique traits and schemes, then sign and release players, make trades and draft future stars. Coach your players from rough diamonds to the hall of fame.

WATCH:
Watch each basketball game play out in amazing play-by-play detail, as momentum shifts from team to team. See your franchise win the Championship and stars build their own legacy.

STRATEGY:
Go all in to win now, or tank for a chance at #1 draft pick through the lottery - it's up to you! Build your Basketball Dynasty!

SHARE:
Join the community on reddit and help develop the game to be even better. You determine what features come next.

## Key features

- Master the draft
- Execute trades
- Sign free agents
- Build management network
- Watch play-by-play games
- Customize rosters
- Hire coaches and scouts

## Chart rankings

- #154 in Top Paid · Simulation (US App Store)
- #26 in Top Paid · Sports (US App Store)

## What do users think of Pocket GM?

Overall sentiment: positive

**Pros**

- 🚀 Fantastic Sim
- 👍 Good to pass the time
- 👍 Fun, New, and Addictive
- 👍 Phenomenal Dynasty
- 👍 Smooth
- 👍 Must play game for basketball fans
- 👍 JON THE DON
- 👍 Never disappoints
- 👍 Amazing Pocket Games
- 👍 Great simulator
- 👍 Perfect Basketball GM Game
- 👍 Amazing sequel

**Cons**

- 🐛 Alright but oversights ruin it
- 🐛 Massive work in progress, disappointing in comparison to PGM football
- 🐛 PLEASE FIX 5TH YEAR ISSUE

**Commonly reported bugs**

- Players not getting awards or breaking records despite good stats
- Combine percentages being multiples of 10
- Player position change boosting team overall significantly

**Most requested features**

- Ability to adjust cap space
- Baseball game
- Soccer version
- Filter to only see own team matchups
- Hockey game
- NCAA Football game
- MLB game

## Recent user reviews (10 of 64)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pocket-gm-basketball-sim/id6476059372/reviews.md

### 5/5 — Tuff

*2026-02-10, version 1.6.2*

This game is fire best mobile nfl manger simulation game. But there’s plenty issues with salary caps i can’t make trades ever because teams suck with money, the the scouting system seem decent, but my main issue is trading, not being able to sim a full season, we need a new updated database and a way to get team logos would be fire too. But overall W.

### 5/5 — If possible (please consider)

*2026-01-22*

Love the game and the overall concept. I play both the basket and football versions and really enjoy them!

*Since the in-season tournament is already apart of real basketball, I would love to see it included as well on your next update. 

Additionally, I would appreciate an option to control player rotations. In close games, top players are subbed out for bench players which can impact the outcome of the game. Would love to be able to control that. 

Thank you for your time effort and dedication to developing these games. Completely amazing. Can’t wait to see what you come up with next!

### 2/5 — Awesome But Runs Into Cap Problems

*2026-01-15*

Super fun game with clever, immersive details. The biggest issue right now is reminiscent of older Madden franchises where top players are left unsigned in free agency about 10-15 seasons in due to player salaries increasing and maxing out every team’s cap. This also makes trades near impossible due to each team being past the second apron. If the caps can be designed to adjust relative to the in-game salaries this game would be just about 5 stars. Very fun while it lasts.

### 5/5 — Fantastic game

*2026-01-01, version 1.6.2*

These games are awesome. It would be even better if there was a baseball version as well.

### 5/5 — Overall, Great Game. Few Recommendations.

*2025-12-02*

Dear Pocket GM Basketball,

This game is fantastic and very fun to play, i am addicted!!! However, I believe there could be some improvements. For one, I think it would be great if you can put features in the game where you can; edit jersey colors, have secondary leagues (like the g-league but not really) so we can send players there to takeover and also win championships, maybe have variety of trophies for different awards, be able to hang up jerseys, all-star competitions, be able to assign mentors to players, have players demand trade, have players purposely play bad if they are not happy with team performance, etc.!!! 

Thanks! Hoping you guys the best. 😊

### 3/5 — Almost there

*2025-10-17*

I know this is just the first installment of pocket GM basketball compared to pocket GM football three and there’s so much more improvement needs to be done but this app is really really fun. It’s really addicting just like pocket GM. It’s just needing an improvement in a lot of areas like the salary cap where it doesn’t go up at all and every single time you draft a player by the end of therefore your contract they want the $35.2 million extension for four years and you can only pay so many players because everyone over 80 overall wants $20 million plus so it makes it harder to build a team. I’ve won nine championships, but I had to trade and keep rebuilding the team after a couple of years because the role players were getting too expensive and I had to make decisions on the star players to see if I actually had to cut them or trade them add another thing is the injuries come up in bunches like very high probability of injury for almost all of the players where they’re getting hurt and even after a couple seasons with them being hurt and averaging like five points a game they’re asking for 20+ million dollars, so the app definitely has some stuff to work on. I still love it the same way I love pocket GM. I just wanted to get there quicker and I know that the developers are making sure it Happens.

### 3/5 — You’ll need to cheat

*2025-10-16, version 1.6.2*

To get the maximum amount of joy out of this I encourage you to make good use of the edit tabs. Feel no shame because the game itself doesn’t seem to really progress properly, or at least I hope this isn’t intended.

### 5/5 — Player Minutes regulations

*2025-10-08, version 1.6.2*

The game is amazing but we will live to manage game minutes to help in young players development please

### 5/5 — Great Game

*2025-09-27, version 1.6.2*

Overall a great game. Very enjoyable and fun, unlike other cash grab games. A couple suggestions: Coaches HOF seems too easy, and PF, C should be able to grab more rebounds.

### 5/5 — Can’t miss

*2025-09-15, version 1.6.2*

I’ve played every game since PGM1 Including the college games and they never miss. Even if a game isn’t perfect to start they update constantly and make a better management sim than any game I’ve played on any device.

## Frequently asked questions about Pocket GM

### What is Pocket GM: Basketball Sim?

Pocket GM: Basketball Sim is a mobile game where you act as the General Manager of a professional basketball team. You are responsible for all aspects of team management, including signing players, making trades, drafting new talent, and hiring staff.

### What are the key features of this basketball management game?

Key features include mastering the draft by scouting and picking future stars, executing trades to improve your roster, signing players through free agency, building a strong management and scout network, watching games play-by-play with detailed stats, and customizing rosters. You can also hire coaches, scouts, and physios with unique traits.

### Is Pocket GM: Basketball Sim free to play?

Yes, the application is free to download and play. The provided data indicates no in-app purchases or advertisements, suggesting a completely free experience.

### What platforms is Pocket GM: Basketball Sim available on?

While not explicitly stated in the provided data, this is a mobile application, implying it is available on iOS and Android devices. Users can typically find it on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.

### How can I build a successful basketball dynasty in the game?

To build a successful dynasty, you'll need to strategically master the draft to find promising players, make smart trades to acquire talent or future picks, and pick up valuable players through free agency. Developing your players from rough diamonds to hall of fame status through coaching and managing their careers is also crucial.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 1.6.2 — 2025-07-17

Updated for 2025/26 Season:
- New Salary Caps
- New Contract Demands
- Improvements to AI Draft Logic
- Improvements to Draft Display
- Bug Fixes.

### 1.5.0 — 2025-03-13

Player development reimagined and visualised.
- New 'Develop' tab on the player screen, containing Rating Progression chart, injury history and scouted view of potential rating. Added toggles to turn on/off, based on difficulty.
- New 'character' traits on contract screen (work ethic and personality)
- Player development influencers expanded (Team Mentors, Personality, Snaps, Coaches, Injuries)
- Added further rating/development randomness with step changes in performance. Material step changes in minicamp will trigger an email to inbox

### 1.1.2 — 2024-12-02

Updated based on your feedback!

Game Balancing for Increased Realism + Some Other Stuff...
- Game balancing reducing overall points per game, and increasing realism of shooting efficiency.
- Improved player editing depth, with dual positions, height/weight and wingspan now editable.
- Fixed team needs/strengths being incorrectly reversed.

### 1.1.1 — 2024-10-28

Bug fix to address incorrect salary demands from free agents.

### 1.0.0 — 2024-10-21

No release notes.

## Apps similar to Pocket GM

| App | Rating | Price | Category |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Ultimate Pro Basketball GM](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ultimate-pro-basketball-gm/id1552760865) | 4.6 (4,563) | Free | Games |
| [Big Win Basketball Games](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/big-win-basketball-games/id491594445) | 3.7 (2,342) | Free | Games |
| [Astonishing Basketball Manager](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/astonishing-basketball-manager/id1589313811) | 4.7 (4,600) | Free | Games |
| [Rival Stars Basketball](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/rival-stars-basketball/id909480609) | 4.6 (1,740) | Free | Games |
| [Basketball Superstar](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/basketball-superstar/id1457898450) | 4.6 (31,894) | Free | Games |
| [Basketball Superstar 2](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/basketball-superstar-2/id6444349148) | 4.6 (15,460) | Free | Games |

## More apps by Jonathan Howell

- [Pocket GM 2: Football Sim](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pocket-gm-2-football-sim/id1530940107)
- [Pocket GM 3: Football Sim](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pocket-gm-3-football-sim/id1645791169)

All apps by Jonathan Howell: https://appshunter.io/developer/1480685815

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-08-28.*