The Ice Cube Big 3 Basketball League was formed in 2017 and has provided fans with some fun games over time. Apparently, the league has broken the mold of other NBA competitors adopting 3v3 formats, as opposed to a standard basketball game that uses 5v5, hence the name.
Beyond that, the league has been very successful in bringing back the NBA veterans that fans love. Names like Allen Iverson, Joe Johnson and Ron Artest have bolstered the league’s name value and been the biggest superstars to ever play in the league. However, there are plenty of other players NBA fans may not know who played in the Big 3.
10 mario chalmer
Mario Chalmers was never an All-Star, nor was he an excellent player. However, he still had a mostly solid NBA career, as the forgotten point guard during the Miami Heat’s Big Three era. In 2018, his NBA career seemingly ended and he joined the Big 3 league.
He was recruited by 3 Headed Monsters in 2019, where he played for two years until joining 3’s Company in 2021. Chalmers’ Big 3 streak was briefly interrupted by a 10-day stint with the Miami Heat last season, when they signed it. due to having five players out with COVID-19.
9 eddy curry
Eddy Curry had a solid NBA career, playing in the league for over a decade. He is primarily known for his career as a member of the New York Knicks, where he played from 2005 to 2011, where he had one of the most overpaid contracts in history.
Despite not playing in the NBA since 2012, he has been active abroad. In 2019, he decided to enter the Big 3, where he played for the Killer 3s roster for his tenure in the league as a solid big man.
8 kwame brown
Kwame Brown is considered one of the biggest draft busts in NBA history. While he disagrees with that sentiment, he still had a mostly difficult career in the league, as he played from 2001 to 2013. During that time, he put up mostly mediocre numbers.
However, Brown was actually a solid player in the Big 3 league. He was part of the first season of the Three Headed Monsters, where he led the team to the finals. Sadly, they lost to Trilogy and Brown was robbed of a ring.
7 Jason Williams
Jason ‘White Chocolate’ Williams was a fan favorite during his time in the NBA from 1998 to 2011. He was a solid scorer while playing for teams like the Sacramento Kings, Memphis Grizzlies, and Miami Heat. He the last one with whom he won a ring in 2006.
Many fans don’t know that Williams played in the Big 3, and it’s because his team in the league was brief. The fan favorite played only one game in the inaugural season, as he severely injured his knee, ending his basketball career forever.
6 royce white
Royce White’s stage in the NBA was strange. He was drafted high in 2012 by the Houston Rockets, but depression and anxiety issues, combined with an intense fear of flying, led him to play only three games for the league.
However, White has been playing in the Big 3 since 2019 and has been a solid contributor to the league. The big man has found time to stay active and play for the league in between his stints as an MMA fighter and politician.
5 Mahmoud Abdul Rauf
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Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf was like Steph Curry before Steph Curry. Granted, he wasn’t that good, but he was still a crazy 3-point shooter at a time when that didn’t really happen. Sadly, many fans overlooked his talent due to him kneeling for the national anthem, something that was virtually unheard of in the ’90s.
Despite being in his 50s, Abdul-Rauf still plays basketball professionally in the Big 3. He is one of the best shooters in the league, especially shooting 3s. Some skills don’t fade with age, it seems.
4 Chris Anderson
Chris Andersen was a fan favorite during his time in the NBA from 2001 to 2017. The ‘Birdman’ was known for his unique looks and great ability as a big man. While he was never an All-Star, he remained a solid option off the bench for nearly two decades.
Andersen played in the Big 3 and joined the league in 2018 to play for the Power. There he won a ring, giving him two championships in his career. He was also part of the 2013 NBA champion Miami Heat.
3 stephan jackson
Stephen Jackson was a fun player to watch in his time in the NBA. While he was never an All-Star, he was a solid scorer during his nearly two decades in the league and even won a championship with the San Antonio Spurs in 2003.
In 2017, Jackson joined the Big 3 as a player, where he played alongside his friend Chauncey Billups, and had legend Charles Oakley coach the team. After playing, he became the head coach of Trilogy in 2021, where he led them to champions.
two greg oden
Greg Oden has a somewhat complicated legacy in the NBA. A former first overall pick of the Portland Trail Blazers, he’s mostly known as a draft bust. Not because of his skill or game, but because of his injury problems that caused him to miss a lot of time.
In 2019, Oden decided to return to professional basketball after retiring in 2016. In the Big 3, the big man played well and had a successful season with the Aliens team.
1 nick young
Nick Young was a fan favorite during his time in the NBA from 2007 to 2018. ‘Swaggy P’ was a solid scorer and known for many of his antics off the court. In 2021, the former NBA champion decided to play for the Big 3.
Young played for Enemies and was named team captain. Sadly, he hasn’t had a great season in the Big 3 so far, as his first season was disappointing and his follow-up campaign hasn’t been much better.