NBA Live 09 is a simulation of the basketball sport. As usual the player controls the athletes himself and tries to perform typical basketball maneuvers with his gamepad. He can choose between playing a whole season, play-offs or the FIBA World Championship. In the Dynasty Mode the player takes the role of the executive of a basketball team which means he has to grapple with managerial tasks like transfers or training. The Live Academy Mode offers special challenges, e.g. scoring a certain amount of points in a limited time. The last special mode is Be-a-Pro were the player only takes control over one athlete.

The most important innovation of NBA Live 09 is the so-called "Dynamic DNA" which synchronizes the in-game statistics over the internet with the current data from the real league. Based on these statistics the game calculates the most promising tactical moves and chooses them automatically (if he wishes the player can disable this automatism and choose it manually). The player has also the option to replay a match exactly the way it happened in real live. Also new is the Pick & Roll controls for the offensive: if the player holds the assigned button the athlete with the ball blocks it while the player controls another player and walks into position.