The BIG3 was able to generate its own set of headlines when it made its season debut on Sunday in the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY.
The opening weekend for the BIG3 had its up and downs, as former NBA players tried to rekindle some of the magic that had made some of them stars back in the day. Just the first event of a nine-week round robin, the showing in Barclay’s Center gave us a good taste of what to expect in this new 3-on-3 format.
While the talent level is far from that of the NBA’s, the BIG3 was able to at least generate some tight competition. That was especially the case in the first game, as 3-Headed Monster beat Ghost Ballers 62-60.
Former two-time all-star Rashard Lewis put up a game-high 27 points as he duelled Ricky Davis, who finished with 23. Lewis would have the last laugh though, drilling a game-winning free-throw to give his squad the first win of the day.
In that opening matchup, fans also got a taste of what’s to come when watching older, retired players as they made their returns to competitive basketball.
Jason “White Chocolate” Williams was the first player to get hurt, suffering a non-contact leg injury that took him out of the game.
Williams wouldn’t be the last, with Corey Maggette, Kenyon Martin, and Rashad McCants also being forced out early due to injury.
While players limped off the hardwood, fans became even more eager to see The BIG3’s biggest attraction, Allen Iverson. The 2001 NBA MVP was greeted with the loudest applause of all as he made his return to the hardwood.
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Iverson didn’t resemble anything close to what he was back in his prime, which isn’t a shocker considering he is 42 years old. More sad still, he was actually locked down by Brian Scalabrine, starting the day 0-for-5 from the field.
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Iverson would eventually a make field goal, choosing to take an old-school mid-range jumper, instead of staying out at the three-point line, or even taking a couple extra steps back to hit the BIG3’s four-pointer.
As Iverson finished his day at the BIG3, so did most fans. The Barclay’s Center started to empty itself out, as spectators left knowing they had witnessed the return of Iverson, and also another game-winner from DeShawn Stevenson in the second game of the day.
In between the special moments that the BIG3’s opening tourney created, were some pretty frequent boos.
While there were also reports that the crowd booed one of their own former players in Paul Pierce, it’s obvious that they weren’t very pleased with what’s to come.
In an arena that hosts the Brooklyn Nets, a team that’s missed the playoffs the last two years, fans weren’t all too kind when their newest member, D’Angelo Russell was introduced on the jumbotron.
The first event of the BIG3’s round robin took around six hours to complete; helping explain why it wasn’t broadcasted live, and will instead be aired Monday night.
With one tourney in the books, the BIG3 will continue it’s tour with another four games scheduled for July 2 in Charlotte, N.C. Whether or not it’ll produce a better show than the one fans got to experience Sunday is yet to be seen, but from this point on fans shouldn’t expect to see much of Iverson moving forward.
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