By Kelsi Jones
Afro Intern
Baltimore, Maryland — The Big3 basketball series made its way to Baltimore June 29 at the CFG Bank Arena. The 3-on-3 basketball league was created by renowned rapper, songwriter, actor and film producer Ice Cube, and has evolved substantially over the past seven years, boasting a talent-laden roster filled with NBA and international players from all over the world.
During the Big3 regular season, which runs June 18 to Aug. 7 followed by a postseason with semi final and championship rounds, the league stops in 10 cities as a way to bring professional basketball to places that lack NBA teams. Ice Cube compares this traveling format as a “rolling all-star game” as the roster is packed with players that are fans’ all time favorites. However, in recent developments, the organization has announced the sale of three franchises in Los Angeles, Miami and Houston, transitioning to more established team bases.
“We need to plant our roots in cities so we can be more than a rolling all-star game coming through,” Ice Cube said in a statement on Instagram after news broke about the sale of the first franchise in Los Angeles earlier this year. “It’s really about growing the sport and the league.”
The fledgling league is stirring excitement among fans, sports analysts and investors as it innovates the sport into something unique in professional basketball.
The Big3 league is not like your conventional day-to-day basketball, as it has its own set of rules. The league starts off with each team participating in eight regular season games. In these games the rules are a bit different than your routine International Basketball Federation (FIBA) rules. In any game, each team has to obtain at least 50 points to win but there has to be a two-point difference between the two teams. The league also requires that halftime only starts when one of the two teams has reached 25 points. There is also no overtime in Big3 basketball and each team receives two timeouts per half.
One of the more remarkable differences in Big3 basketball is the 3-point line being the same distance from the rim as in the NBA but, it is considered 4 points instead of 3. And, the game is played from half-court for the entire time.
These differences are appreciated by basketball fans all over the country and is one of the reasons why the Big3 is gaining its popularity. Many have said it is actually refreshing to see a new format and change in pace of basketball.
“It’s a little more focused because it’s half-court and also a bit more entertaining too,” said Vershawn Thompson during the recent stop in Baltimore. “It’s more celebrities here, family-friendly, prices are probably cheaper, [it’s] during the day, and it’s just chill. It’s different. You see the NBA all the time. We know that this is a tournament and it’s a little more pressure.”
Many of the players have also expressed their appreciation for another opportunity to play the sport they love. For fans, seeing favorite players leave the NBA is hard but they don’t often think about how it affects the players themselves.
Mike Taylor, former NBA and overseas professional basketball player, said Ice Cube and the Big3 league has made his transition home more smooth for him.
“I think it’s a unique thing and great thing for sports in general, especially for those transitions that a lot of players have after they come from playing in the NBA or overseas to having to become a regular civilian. That’s a very hard transition and there’s a lot of mental health that goes along with that,” he said. “So, for me personally, Ice Cube and Big3 has been like a savior for me. Just reintegrating myself back into society, being able to have this league support me in that. I have my kids being able to see me play since they were not able to go overseas. My career ended during the pandemic so, this is love… beyond a blessing.”
Ice Cube said that was part of why he wanted to start Big3, to provide a platform where players can still do the thing that they love–playing basketball.
“It’s one of the special parts, one of the magical parts of the league in the fact that we put these guys where they belong. These are professional ballers, and when the NBA does not have room for them they sometimes feel that they’ve missed their calling or their time to show how good they are,” he said. “So having an outlet, having a platform where they can really show that they did this for a reason, they spent all this time in the gym for a reason, they take care of their bodies for a reason [is important.] They’re winners. They want to compete at the highest level with everyone watching, so to put them back in that arena does a lot for the mental health of the players.”
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