BIG3 Rumors | Hoops Rumors

And-Ones: Bird, Swift, Draft, Acy, Morant

March 11th, 2019 at 8:16pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Former Celtics guard Jabari Bird is awaiting sentencing after entering a plea of sufficient facts to the accusation of assaulting his ex-girlfriend, according to an Associated Press report. The plea is not an admission of guilt but acknowledges a likely conviction at trial.

Bird was released on bail after the hearing and will be sentenced May 28. He faced several charges in the alleged attack on the woman in September, including strangulation or suffocation, kidnapping, and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon. Bird’s contract was traded to the Hawks in February, who quickly waived him.

We have more developments from around the basketball world:

Power forward Stromile Swift has entered his name in the BIG3 draft pool, the league’s PR department tweets. The No. 2 overall pick in the 2000 draft last appeared in the NBA during the 2008/09 season with the Suns and Nets.
NBA executives will scour the country at conference tournaments this week, looking at every possible prospect who might put his name in the draft. It’s a unique opportunity for some players to improve their stock on a big stage, ESPN draft expert Jonathan Givony notes. Las Vegas will be a particular hotbed of activity, with the Pac-12, WCC, WAC and Mountain West holding tournaments there. Givony takes a deep dive in the prospects that the scouts will be perusing this week.
Veteran forward Quincy Acy has left the Texas Legends, the G League affiliate of the Mavericks, JD Shaw of Hoops Rumors tweets. Acy, 28, played 10 games with the Suns this season.
Murray State point guard Ja Morant has leapfrogged Duke’s R.J. Barrett as the second-best prospect in the draft behind Zion Williamson, according to Mike Schmitz of ESPN. Morant put on a dazzling display while carrying the Racers through the OVC tournament and into the NCAA Tournament. Givony maintains it’s premature to make that assessment before the draft lottery.

And-Ones: White, Adams, Hawes, Withey

February 28th, 2019 at 7:11pm CST by JD Shaw

Former first-round pick Royce White still plans to play in Ice Cube’s BIG3 basketball league this summer despite making a jump to mixed martial arts, the 27-year-old told Hoops Rumors.

White, who last played in the NBA with Sacramento in 2014, entered his name to the BIG3 player pool in early February. White first made his intentions of starting a career in MMA known during an interview with ESPN’s Greg Rosenstein.

“I’m one of the best athletes in the world,” White told ESPN. “Among the NBA community, part of my appeal as a draft prospect was my unique size, athleticism, vision and that I probably have one of the 10 biggest set of hands in the NBA. I think all of those things will translate beautifully to the UFC.”

White released a book this week titled “MMA x NBA: A Critique of Modern Sport in America”. He was drafted 16th by the Rockets in 2012 after a standout season at Iowa State, later moving on to hold stints with the Kings and teams overseas before temporarily stepping away from the court last August.

White, a 6-foot-8, 260-pound forward, joins Shannon Brown, Kendrick Perkins, Lamar Odom and other former NBA players who are set to play in the BIG3 this summer.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

Free agent Jordan Adams has been acquired by the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, G League affiliate of the Rockets, agent Shasta Scott told Hoops Rumors. Adams appeared in 32 games with the Grizzlies from 2014-16, averaging 3.2 points per game in limited time. He was drafted with the No. 22 pick by Memphis in 2014.
Former NBA player Spencer Hawes has signed a contract in the NBA G League and is available to be claimed off waivers, Adam Johnson of 2 Ways & 10 Days tweets. Hawes, a 10-year NBA veteran, has made stops with the Kings, Sixers, Cavaliers, Clippers, Hornets and Bucks during his professional career.
Jeff Withey has agreed to a deal with Greek team Lavrio B.C. for the rest of the season, the team announced (hat tip to Sportando). Withey started the season in Turkey with Tofas Bursa, but left the team following their elimination in the EuroCup. He last played in the NBA with the Mavericks during the 2017-18 season.

And-Ones: Jersey Ads, Bibby, C. Bell, Delfino

February 27th, 2019 at 2:30pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA’s jersey patch experiment has been a success for the league, generating more than $150MM in new revenue, per a report from Terry Lefton and John Lombardo of SportsBusiness Journal (hat tip to RealGM). According to Lefton and Lombardo, uniform sponsorship deals to date have ranged in value from about $5-20MM per year, but executives expect that number to increase in value when it’s time to renew agreements.

“Like most teams, we’re heading towards renewal thinking these are worth substantially more, because the impression numbers have been so good,” Bucks president Peter Feigin said.

While the NBA will look to extend the program, there’s no demand to increase the size of the patches beyond their current dimensions (2.5-by-2.5 inches), league and team officials tell Lefton and Lombardo.

Currently, 29 of the league’s 30 teams have sponsored patches on their jerseys, with the Thunder representing the lone holdout so far. The full list of sponsors by team can be found right here.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

NBA coaching hopeful – and longtime guard – Mike Bibby is under investigation after being accused of sexual abuse and harassment by a teacher at Shadow Mountain High School, according to Lily Altavena of The Arizona Republic. Bibby recently coached the school’s basketball team to its fourth consecutive state title, but has been removed from his position following these allegations, Altavena writes in a separate story.
The BIG3 has added another former NBA starter to its player pool, announcing this week (via Twitter) that Charlie Bell will participate in the 3-on-3 league this season. A one-time Michigan State standout, Bell appeared in 376 total regular season NBA games between 2001-11, primarily as a member of the Bucks.
Another former NBA player, Carlos Delfino, has a new team in Italy, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando, who passes along word that the veteran forward has officially signed with Fortitudo Bologna. Delfino had a contentious exit from his former team, Fiat Torino, earlier in the season.
In an entertaining Insider-only article for ESPN.com, Chris Herring, Bobby Marks, and Kevin Pelton ranked the NBA’s top 25 players under the age of 25. Giannis Antetokounmpo tops the list, followed by Joel Embiid, Nikola Jokic, Karl-Anthony Towns, Ben Simmons, and Luka Doncic.

Gilbert Arenas To Play In BIG3

February 14th, 2019 at 8:39am CST by Luke Adams

The BIG3 has added another notable name to its roster of players, announcing this morning (via Twitter) that former NBA guard Gilbert Arenas is joining the league for the 2019 season.

Arenas, one of the NBA’s most memorable characters over the last couple decades, hasn’t played in the league since 2011/12, but is still just 37 years old. In 11 NBA seasons, the man known as Agent Zero averaged 20.7 PPG and 5.3 APG, earning three All-Star nods during his time with the Wizards. He also spent time with the Warriors, Magic, and Grizzlies.

In addition to his on-court achievements, Arenas is remembered for an off-court altercation involving then-teammate Javaris Crittenton. The two players brought guns into the Wizards’ locker room and, according to an account from Caron Butler, an argument over gambling debts resulted in Crittenton pointing one of those guns at Arenas. Both players earned lengthy suspensions due to the incident.

The BIG3, a three-on-three league which already featured former NBA players like Baron Davis, Nate Robinson, Rashard Lewis, Carlos Boozer, Stephen Jackson, and Kenyon Martin, has been adding to its player pool in recent weeks. Lamar Odom, Daniel Gibson, C.J. Watson, Steve Blake, Carlos Arroyo, and Royce White are among the newest additions to the BIG3.

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Gilbert Arenas

And-Ones: A. Davis, Moreland, Weber, Stokes

February 11th, 2019 at 4:05pm CST by Luke Adams

ESPN’s Brian Windhorst reported last week that the Pelicans were told by the NBA that they’d be subject to fines of $100K per game if they sit a healthy Anthony Davis for the rest of the season, but league spokesperson Mike Bass suggested today that that’s not quite right, according to Marc Stein of The New York Times (Twitter links).

“The NBA did not tell New Orleans that it would be fined $100K per game if Anthony Davis were held out for the remainder of [the] season,” Bass said in a statement to Stein. “The Pelicans were advised that the team had not identified a proper basis for making that determination at this time and league rules governing competitive integrity therefore require that he be permitted to play.”

It seems clear that the Pelicans will face penalties if they elect to sit Davis and ensure that he’s healthy in advance of summer trade talks, and the league’s approach to the issue has been the subject of plenty of debate among NBA observers.

Several other teams, including the Rockets (Carmelo Anthony), Cavaliers (J.R. Smith), and Grizzlies (Chandler Parsons) have held out healthy players for much of the season, not even requiring those players to be with the team, and they haven’t faced any sort of discipline from the NBA, as Stein tweets. Of course, those players don’t have nearly the same on-court impact that Davis has — the Pelicans can’t make the case that they’re better off without AD, whereas perhaps those teams could have made that case with regard to their exiled players.

On the other hand, Davis and his representatives were fined by the league for making a public trade request, and it’s probably in the Pelicans’ best long-term interests to sit the All-NBA big man to protect their trade asset and to improve their spot in the draft lottery, writes Michael McCann of Sports Illustrated. You could make the case that the Pelicans should be allowed to run their team as they wish, given the unusual circumstances surrounding Davis and the franchise.

As we wait to see how the AD saga plays out, let’s round up some odds and ends from around the basketball world…

While players who were released at the trade deadline are generating the most speculation at the moment, keep an eye on Eric Moreland, tweets Michael Scotto of The Athletic. According to Scott, Moreland – who was waived by Phoenix last month – is on NBA teams’ radars.
It got lost amidst last week’s trade deadline madness, but journeyman guard Briante Weber has landed in the EuroLeague, inking a contract with Greece’s Olympiacos. Nikos Varlas of Eurohoops first reported that Weber was nearing an agreement with Olympiacos, while Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel (Twitter link) confirmed that a deal was in place.
Free agent big man Jarnell Stokes, who last played in the NBA in 2016/17 for Denver, has reached an agreement with the Xinjiang Flying Tigers in China, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. We reported at the end of January that Stokes was drawing interest from Chinese clubs.
Longtime NBA guard Carlos Arroyo, who played in 569 total regular season games for seven teams, has joined the BIG3 draft pool for the 2019 season, the league announced today (via Twitter). The BIG3 has slowly been revealing the new additions to its player pool for ’19, as we noted last week.

Lamar Odom, More Former NBA Players Join BIG3

February 7th, 2019 at 10:46am CST by Luke Adams

Longtime NBA forward Lamar Odom, who spent 14 seasons with the Clippers, Lakers, Heat, and Mavericks, has become the latest addition to the BIG3 player pool, the league announced on Thursday (via Twitter).

Odom hasn’t played in the NBA since 2012/13, when he wrapped up his career with the Clippers. He signed with a team in Spain in 2014, but lasted just two games before returning home with a back injury. The former NBA champion has battled addiction issues and survived a drug overdose several years ago, but is healthy now and indicated back in the fall that he intended to join Ice Cube’s three-on-three league.

Odom is one of a handful of former NBA players who have joined the BIG3 within the last week, as the league has slowly been revealing the new additions to its player pool for the upcoming 2019 season. Besides Odom, the following players are poised to play in the BIG3 for the first time this year:

Steve Blake, G (link)
Will Bynum, G (link)
Daniel Gibson, G (link)
C.J. Watson, G (link)
Royce White, F (link)

White is a former first-round pick while the other four veterans all played in the NBA for at least seven seasons. Watson suited up for an NBA squad most recently, appearing in 62 games for Orlando in 2016/17.

As we previously relayed, the BIG3 is adding four new teams for the 2019 season and expanding its schedule. In 2018, a team featuring longtime NBA players Corey Maggette, Glen Davis, Cuttino Mobley, and Quentin Richardson – and coached by Hall-of-Famer Nancy Lieberman – won the league’s title.

And-Ones: Munford, Stokes, Davis, Perkins, Brown

January 31st, 2019 at 10:48pm CST by JD Shaw

Former NBA guard Xavier Munford has left the Chinese Basketball Association to join the Wisconsin Herd, G League affiliate of the Bucks, the team announced this week.

Munford appeared in 34 games with the Herd last season, holding per-game averages of 24.4 points, five rebounds and 5.2 assists. He shot 50.9% from the floor and 44.4% from 3-point range during that stint, earning a two-way contract with the Bucks in January of 2018.

Munford went unsigned in free agency and agreed to a deal with the Fuijan Sturgeons this past December. He holds NBA experience with the Grizzlies and multiple summer league stints over the past few seasons, going undrafted in 2014 out of Rhode Island. NBA teams could look to Munford for a potential 10-day contract in the coming weeks.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

Free agent Jarnell Stokes has registered interest from teams in China, a source told Hoops Rumors. The Sioux Falls Skyforce announced that Stokes, 25, left the team this week to pursue other opportunities. Stokes was waived from his two-way contract with the Grizzlies in early January after the team was faced with injuries to Dillon Brooks, Kyle Anderson and other wing players.
The Maine Red Claws have re-acquired Trey Davis, the team announced in a press release. Davis is expected to be in uniform on Friday when Maine takes on the Greensboro Swarm. Davis, a 6-foot point guard, originally made the team out of open tryouts as an undrafted guard in 2017.
Kendrick Perkins and Shannon Brown have become the latest ex-NBA players to sign with Ice Cube’s BIG3 league this summer, the association announced (Twitter links). Perkins, a bruising center who spent 15 seasons in the NBA, played a key role in helping the Celtics win a championship in 2008. Brown, a high-flying guard who held stints with several different teams, won two NBA championships as a member of the Lakers in 2009 and 2010.

And-Ones: BIG3, Stretch Provision, Hawes

January 10th, 2019 at 3:34pm CST by Luke Adams

Changes are coming to Ice Cube‘s BIG3 basketball league for the 2019 season, as the BIG3 announced today (via Twitter) that it will expand from eight teams to 12. According to Ice Cube (via Twitter), the first of those four new franchises – the Triplets – will be coached by longtime WNBA star Lisa Leslie.

In other BIG3 news, the league is lowering its age minimum from 30 years to 27 and will allow current NBA or international pros to participate. The BIG3 will also play games twice a week in 2019, appearing in a total of 18 cities.

In 2018, a team featuring longtime NBA players Corey Maggette, Glen Davis, Cuttino Mobley, and Quentin Richardson – and coached by Hall-of-Famer Nancy Lieberman – won the BIG3 title.

Here’s more from around the basketball world:

In an interesting piece for SI.com, Jake Fischer takes a closer look at the pros and cons of the NBA’s stretch provision from the perspective of players impacted by it.
Within that same story, Fischer notes that veteran NBA center Spencer Hawes continues to seek another shot in the league. “I don’t want to go out getting cut,” said Hawes, who was waived by the Bucks in September 2017. “I know it’s a rare thing to kind of go out on your terms. But I still have a lot in the tank. I don’t want to look back and say I was done at 29 and just kind of gave up on it.”
Teams that still have mid-level and bi-annual exceptions available will see those exceptions prorate daily by 1/177th starting today, ESPN’s Bobby Marks points out (via Twitter). For instance, the $8.641MM mid-level exception will decline in value by about $49K per day for the rest of the season. Proration won’t impact trade exceptions or disabled player exceptions.
After some confusion on Wednesday, Adam Johnson of 2 Ways & 10 Days confirms (via Twitter) that Orlando’s G League affiliate has waived rookie Justin Jackson following his season-ending injury. The Lakeland Magic have added Anthony Brown to replace Jackson, notes Johnson.

Lamar Odom Plans To Join BIG3

November 3rd, 2018 at 10:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

Lamar Odom hasn’t given up on his basketball career, even at age 38 and after a catastrophic health emergency in 2015, tweets Ryan Ward of Clutch Points. Odom told Ward that he plans to play in the BIG3 League next summer and would like to get an opportunity in China (hat tip to Bryan Kalbrosky of HoopsHype).

“I’m getting myself into game shape, which I’m not too far from it now,” Odom said. “I’ll be playing. Hopefully, I’ll be playing. I also plan to play in the CBA in China in 2019 … I just want to compete again. NBA2K is not enough.”

Odom spent 14 seasons in the NBA, but hasn’t been in the league since 2012/13, when he wrapped up his career with the Clippers. He signed with a team in Spain in 2014, but lasted just two games before returning home with a back injury.

Odom suffered a severe health scare following a drug overdose three years ago. He claims he had 12 strokes and six heart attacks and was hospitalized for about three months.

Several of Odom’s former teammates have prominent roles in the BIG3, Kalbrosky notes, including Corey Maggette, Quentin Richardson and Kwame Brown.

Kobe Bryant Reiterates He’s Done Playing Basketball

August 28th, 2018 at 3:10pm CST by Luke Adams

Having been the subject of recent speculation involving the BIG3, Kobe Bryant appeared on The Rich Eisen Show to reiterate that he has no plans to come out of retirement and play basketball again in the NBA, the BIG3, or any other league, as Christian Rivas of Silver Screen & Roll relays.

“There’s about a 0% chance that I come back to play,” Bryant said. “Nothing. Done, that’s it.”

Bryant, who turned 40 years old on Thursday, last appeared in the NBA in 2016 when he scored 60 points in his final game as a Laker. The 18-time All-Star’s notorious competitiveness led to some speculation that he wouldn’t be able to stay away from the game for good. As he explains to Eisen though, Kobe viewed that skepticism as a challenge in its own right.

“When I retired, everybody was saying, ‘OK, he’s too competitive, he’s not going to know what to do with himself, he’s going to have to come back,'” Bryant said. “I took that as a personal challenge of them thinking I am this one-dimensional person, that all I know is how to dribble the ball, shoot the ball and play basketball. … I took that as a personal challenge.

“I will never come back to the game, ever,” Bryant continued. “I’m here to show people that we (professional athletes) can do much more than that. Creating this business, winning an Oscar, winning an Emmy, those are things that are showing other athletes that come after, ‘No, no. There is more to this thing.’ So I would never (come out of retirement). It’s not even a thought.”

Of course, Bryant hasn’t stepped entirely away from the game of basketball — he continues to work with some NBA players who have reached out to him, and he coaches his daughter’s team. However, he appears to have definitively shut the door on his days as a player.

BIG3 co-founder Ice Cube joked last week that Bryant would need to get a “restraining order” against him to stop him from trying to convince Kobe to join the BIG3. But by the sounds of it, Ice Cube and fellow co-founder Jeff Kwatinetz won’t have much luck with their recruiting efforts.