i9-9900k is a 8c16t CPU with Hyperthreading. Judging by these WoW benchmarks: https://i.imgur.com/OX39qy4.jpg I’ve found on YouTube, the i9 performs better with Hyperthreading turned off making it only 8c8t CPU.
i7-9700k is a 8c8t - doesn’t have Hyperthreading. So from what I understand the i7 is the i9 but without Hyperthreading and cheaper, so they both should perform the same, right? Or are there some other differences I’m overlooking.
The rest of the machine spec. has a bearing on recommendations, here so that may be worth knowing. Both would be more than OK for WoW, but I would ask, “Does the machine you want to get allow you an easy upgrade path from a 9700K to a 9900K…?”.
If your current budget only allows you to get a 9700K, then that’s OK… but if you can stretch a bit, you may want to consider spending the difference on ‘another 8GB RAM’ or more/better storage.
WoW performance as a online MMO depends on factors like network and other actors you see in the game. Both of those CPUs will be close to the top of the list, if you buy 9900KS or K and put a solid water cooling and OC > 5GHz then it could be the best. Putting a good Ryzen or other i7 may give few FPS less but only if that would be the limiting factor (and in may cases it may be).
Uldir had packs of small mobs that when pulled would start simultaneously casting with an visual effect - that would cause a noticeable performance drop on some systems. Such benchmark chart is very generic as it doesn’t tell what exactly was benchmarked. Similarly the game performs differently when you are doing circles around Dalaran, you pulled lots of mobs in old Karazan raid and you watch all of them attack, or when you see a lot of semi-transparency effects on your screen and the GPU memory bandwidth/pixel rate is being the limit. You add 40+ players near you and your game performance won’t be limited by your system.
For WoW buying one of the most expensive CPUs doesn’t really make sense as this game is just to random (and not needed that much), but if you want best gaming/overall system then i9 9900K/KF/KS or Ryzen 3950X and alike could a good pick. Match it with PCIe 4.0 SSD, rumored AMD PCIe 4 “Nvidia killed GPU” or RTX 2080 Ti (Super), add 1440p ultrawide fast or 1440p standard ultra fast display, lots of fast RAM and you have a 2020 gaming PC of the year 
https://rk.edu.pl/en/benchmarking-and-analyzing-world-warcraft-performance/
I’m aiming for 1440p @144Hz. I don’t play any game that support RTX, so I’m thinking about MSI RX 5700 XT.
5700XT is a good card just note that RTX cards are also good in normal gaming performance. 2080 Super and 2080 Ti will be stronger and more expensive. Rumored bigger Navi can launch in 2020 as well. It’s the usual buy now or wait for next-get time. For 5700xt models check gamers Nexus and hardware unboxed reviews on YT. Some models are bad
I’m playing 75Hz 3440x1440 with vega 64 and TR1920X although it’s not dedicated for gaming. WoW or Witcher 3 work nicely, Fallout 4 not do much, but that’s the game fault 
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