Ice Cube Breaks Down BIG3 Ground Rules in Animated Video
With the first week of the BIG3 basketball tournament tipping off Sunday in Brooklyn, New York, co-founder Ice Cube laid down the ground rules for the event in an animated video posted to Twitter.
A few of the biggest differences between BIG3 and the typical game of basketball are that the shot clock is only 14 seconds and the first team to 60 points wins:
The league is made up of eight teams. The regular season lasts eight weeks before the playoffs begin Aug. 20 in Seattle's KeyArena. Las Vegas will host the finals Aug. 26.
Former NBA stars Allen Iverson, Jermaine O'Neal, Ricky Davis, Kenyon Martin, Mike Bibby and Stephen Jackson are among the notable names taking part.
While BIG3 organizers are thinking outside the box in terms of the league's rules, Cube was quick to point out the stakes will still be high for those on the court.
"I think it's going to be a treat for the fans and it's not an All-Star Game," he said, per the Associated Press' Brian Mahoney. "Guys want to win. They want to be champions. They want to be the first champions, so I'm not worried about that at all."
Ice Cube added that hand checking, which BIG3 will allow, is supposed to encourage players to play tighter defense, unlike the NBA All-Star Game, where players are often allowed free paths to the basket.
