Intro
It was an intense week! We got answers to some important questions… some of them from 3x3 basketball wizard. Can you recognize him? Our favourite 3x3 player of all time, read till the end to see him in action.
Thanks to all readers, especially subscribers, you rock! If you like our work, please share within your network. Remember, we are on X too, and our FB group is lacking your wisdom!
Interesting facts about 3x3 basketball
This time we are visiting UK, BIG3 and… gym. Yes, you need to practice before you play, there was only one Allen Iverson.
Train with the 3x3 World Champions
Two years ago FIBA 3×3 has prepared a series of videos showing in detail how the team from Novi Sad prepares physically for the game.
Check out the playlist containing 30(!) short videos in which the players of the legendary team demonstrate the exercises that have made them undefeated for many years and helped them win everything there is to win in 3×3 basketball. The team from Novi Sad has always stood out in terms of physical preparation, and now you can see how they got there and follow the same path.
Dušan Domović Bulut, Dejan Majstorović, and Marko Ždero show in detail exercises for specific muscle groups, performed with various types of equipment and focusing on specific skills needed in 3×3 play. The icing on the cake is an interview with the coach of the Novi Sad team and the Serbian national team, Danilo Lukic.
3x3 basketball communities around the world
Did you know, that it is actually possible to mix 3x3 basketball with NBA? Jr. NBA 3v3 is a fantastic program aiming to support teachers and young players. You can see it in action next week in London. A free tournament for secondary schools will take place at Trafalgar Square. Boys and Girls teams will compete to become London's first Jr. NBA 3v3 champions. Fingers crossed!
It’s not the first time. Two months ago similar tournament in India - ACG Jr. NBA 3v3 - created lots of interest in the biggest country in the world:
BIG3
Full season 8th schedule is already available. Tickets starts at $76,30. To prepare well, we recommend you to watch documentary series about season 7th, just released:
FIBA 3x3 World Tour
Marseille Masters didn’t disappoint!
Week summary
The French stop of the World Tour did not bring any sensational results, but brought some sensational individual performances. Mr. Mustache averaged over 10 points per game in this tournament! And he did it in style:
Week ago we expected Serbian-French final. Half true. The Serbs did play in the final and won it, but the French failed to do so. However, they played the most spectacular basketball, as confirmed by the best plays of the tournament:
Besides Dr Strange, two players caught our eye:
Cameron Forte – the left-handed Baby Shaq from the Chinese team Chongming. Practically unstoppable alone under the basket, unless you are 210 cm tall. In Marseille, he averaged 7.5 rebounds per game! If it weren't for Lasmanis' injury and Chongming's unchanged performance in the semifinals, we might have seen him with the MVP trophy in his hands.
Henry Caruso – this year could be the Caruso’s year! In the absence of Mitch Hahn, he led the Miami team in rebounds and also shot accurately from distance. Throughout the tournament, he averaged 4.8 rebounds and 42% for two.
Best games?
In the group stage, the match between Toulouse and Chongming (Forte in action!) was interesting and exciting until the very end, so it's worth taking a look:
The best game in the playoffs was definitely the match between Miami and... Toulouse again. A classic! The excitement was evident in the fact that the players almost came to blows after the final whistle – not usual thing on 3×3 courts.
#3x3PowerRanking
TOP17 teams in the world, in our opinion. Since the previous one, no new teams were added.
Format: position, team, position change, current FIBA3x3 ranking (May 27th 2025), reason. No big changes after Marseille Masters.
Toulouse, -, 3, bad luck but still top plays.
Amsterdam, -, 2, second again in Marseille, third final this year.
Miami, -, 4, Andrew Kelly knows stuff.
UB, +1, 1, one man show worked in France.
Raudondvaris, -1, 6, quiet May costed them few positions.
Liman, -, 7, almost beat Ub, almost...
Chongming, +3, 10, strooong team, when healthy.
Hangzhou, -1, 15, took well deserved break.
Vienna, -1, 5, only one win in Marseille.
Riffa, -1, 8, it will be tough to stay in top 10 long term.
Partizan, -, 9, didn’t play.
Ulaanbaatar, -, 14, as above.
Lausanne, -1, 12, 0-2 again.
Utrecht, +1, 17, definitely potential for top 10.
Shinagawa, -1, 22, two losses in Marseille.
Carolina, -, 16, have to play more frequently.
London, -, 11, didn’t play in WT this week.
Predictions
Sukhbaatar Challenger is going to be fierce competition! And there is no better place for Ulaanbaatar team to advance in our power ranking above. Ub will look for a second win in a row, Amsterdam plays without Worthy De Jong and Chongming without Latvians. We will cheer for Barcelona in the qualifying round, and later on. It would be nice to see them in semifinals, together with Ub, Ulaanbaatar, London and Amsterdam. But we feel anything can happen in Mongolia, don’t bet too much on our predictions this time.
3x3 basketball national teams
World Cup 2025 is set, last six free slots filled in. Let’s see how it happened.
Women’s Series surprise in Baku
Latest stop in Azerbaijan had one favourite - Dutch team. Until the final game everything went according to the plan, they went through playoffs without noticeable problems. But, on the other side of the bracket, Latvia team (6th seed) was playing great 3x3 basketball, too. Their game against China (2nd in world ranking after Netherlands) was especially impressive:
Final was decided by last second shot by Latvia. MVP of the tournament, Ketija Vihmane, registered a 3x3 equivalent of triple-double - triple-five - in last game with 7 points, 5 rebounds and 5 highlights.
World Cup 2025
In general, it was probably the best week in whole Latvia history of women 3x3 basketball. The final six tickets to this year world championships were secured during the FIBA 3x3 World Cup Qualifier tournament in Baku, on May 24-25. Brazil, Latvia and Chile women team finished with happy end, while Montenegro, Canada and Great Britain earned their tickets in the men's.
Soon after that, the World Cup pools has been announced. It is really difficult to find the most difficult groups… but if you ask us, we would prefer to join group B, in both cases.
How was the Canadian team able to beat all opponents, including strong Great Britain and local teams? The answer below.
Sir Steve Sir
This man is like wine, the older the better. Can you imagine yourself being 42 years old and competing in the most physically demanding sport against players 20 years younger? And he is not only competing, he is winning! 7,3 points per game, enjoy Steve Sir basketball IQ and shots until you can:
This is not the first time we write about our most favourite player of all time, and hopefully not the last one.
Take care and don’t forget to share our content after playing streetball during the weekend!