Kobe Bryant retired from the Lakers two years ago, but his days of competitive basketball may not be over. BIG3 founder Ice Cube plans to make a strong push to get Bryant involved in his three-on-three league of former NBA players, relays Nina Mandell of USA Today.
“To me he’s the biggest name out there for us to get and he’s going to have to get a restraining order on me to leave him alone about this,” Ice Cube said.
BIG3 co-founder Jeff Kwatinetz started the rumor mill earlier this week by indicating in a conference call that Bryant had interest in joining the league, but a spokesperson for Bryant later issued a denial. Bryant, who turned 40 today, suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon and underwent knee surgery late in his career.
There’s more NBA-related news to pass along:
- In a G League trade, the expansion Capital City Go-Go acquired the rights to Chasson Randle from Westchester, according to a tweet from the Knicks. Randle agreed to a training camp deal last month with the Wizards, who are the parent team of the Go-Go. Randle, 25, had brief stints with the Sixers and Knicks during the 2016/17 season. In return, Westchester received the rights to center Stephen Zimmerman, who was selected in Wednesday’s expansion draft.
- In a separate deal announced by the Knicks (Twitter link), Westchester acquired the G League rights to Duje Dukan from Capital City, Wisconsin received the rights to Travis Trice and the Go-Go got the rights to Josh Davis.
- The NBA’s return to Seattle will be televised by ESPN, relays Jordan Ramirez of NBA.com. The Kings and the Warriors will square off October 5 in the first NBA game at Key Arena since the SuperSonics left for Oklahoma City a decade ago.
- The Ball family didn’t make a good impression during its four months in Lithuania, according to Steve Gardner of USA Today. LaVar Ball pulled his sons LiAngelo and LaMelo off their BC Prinai-Skycop team with two games remaining in the season and left a lot of animosity behind. In a press release issued today by the team, coach Virginijus Seskus claims the Ball brothers were “nowhere near the level of the LKL (Lithuanian league)” and “they had no inner drive to become better.” BC Prinai-Skycop also claims that LaVar Ball took back his financial support from the team, along with shooting machines that were presented as gifts.
- In the latest installment of her five-part series on mental health issues in the NBA, Jackie MacMullan of ESPN talks to referees about the stress they face. Joey Crawford, one of the game’s legendary officials, discusses his experience with counseling after being suspended following a 2007 confrontation with Tim Duncan.
Lmao Lavar savage af for taking back the shooting machines
It’s kind of disrespectful to Kobe to compete with dudes like Glen Davis and Nate Robinson out there. He’s not going to play in the Big 3.
LaVar didn’t pay the printer who made the shirts he sold. The Better Business Bureau gave his shoe business an F. Now he has players from his JBL league claiming they never got paid. And he’s saying LeBron Jr. will have to prove he’s good enough to play in his league, and it’s a step up on the NCAA. He claims the Lakers are still Lonzo’s team, and he won’t play off the ball. Man’s a class act.
Only way the Lakers will win is if Lonzo runs the offense, if they let LeQuit bring the ball up the floor and pound the air out of the ball at the top of the key for one of his bull doze drive and kick outs the Lakers will be lucky to make it out of the 1st round.
I think this Lithuanian team are very bitter losers, I mean is normal when the relationship doesn’t end up well, what they expect Lavar to keep paying for them. Also about the level of the kids, I don’t know I saw the highlights of a game were LiAngelo got 71 points, if he wasn’t good enough, I don’t know…. Just another bitter break-up, never seen a happy one of those, anyway who cares about a Lithuanian team.
Lavar may well be a loudmouth POS but he learned that stories about ”Dog bites man” does not sell or get attention. Stories about ”Man bites dog” does sell and get you attention. So he says crazy, nasty , silly stuff like another idiot who comes to mind and they get away with it thru sheer audacity but sooner or later the sheet will hit the fan and their stuff is going to get replaced. Lavar will keep insulting Lebrons son and Lavar and his son will be in Orlando going to Disneyland there instead of Anaheim. Bye Lavar, keep talking trash and Lebron will ship your gluteous maximus right down the 10 Freeway to Orlando Land..Bye, Bye Zo…Bye, Bye happiness, Hello emptiness Lavar is gonna cry high… Lavar is gonna cry high….
LaVar already is crying. Lonzo might be rich. Dadis in serious debt!
Lavar, ignorant as he is, is smart enough to know that everything about the Ball phenomenon revolves around the Lakers and the family hub being Los Angeles. He will do and say enough outlandish things when necessary so that no GM in their right mind would trade for Lonzo (and the mess that comes with him: Lavar), no matter how bad the Lakers wanna ship him somewhere else – if it came to that.
Lavar ball is a scum bag, but man is Jeff Goodman starting to become a bitter and annoying.
If you added up all the “talent” in the Big-3 it still doesn’t come close to Kobe. Amare and Davis were good, but not even close to the level of Kobe.
If Kobe played in the Big3, he wpuld sneer so much his face would hurt.