Predictions for the third World Tour stop
The FIBA 3x3 World Tour has traveled from Asia to Europe and, for the first time in history, made a stop in the beautiful Croatian city of Zadar.
The pools are as follows; we have highlighted the teams that we believe will advance to the playoffs.
Pool A: Ub (SRB), Toronto (CAN), Baskets Bonn (GER)
Pool B: Miami (USA), Vienna (AUT), Fuengirola (ESP)
Pool C: Liman (SRB), Antwerp (BEL), Cibona (CRO)
Pool D: Amsterdam RABOBANK (NED), Shanghai (CHN), Qualifier
The roster of this season’s breakout team—Liman—looks intriguing. They might be a few centimeters short in height... but they can definitely make up for it with their biceps width. The home team from Cibona is a big unknown, especially since they’ll have the crowd on their side. Amsterdam, Miami will be strong as usual and Fuengirola is ready to play at the highest level, too.
Later on, as is often the case in 3x3 basketball, anything can happen, of course. However, we expect one of the teams from Group A to make it to the final. We wouldn’t be surprised if Bonn beat Ub in the group stage and the final turned into a rematch—that’s happened before.
One thing we know for sure—it’s going to be a great tournament!
Why is it worth following the BIG3 league?
Last season, an animal talent was enough to win the title. We believe this is only possible in this league. And that’s cool.
This whole Ice Cube’s project isn’t just about sports, entertainment, and cheering… it’s also about memories, nostalgia, and a bit of therapy. We’d bet that winning the BIG3 league championship is worth more than 100 sessions with a psychotherapist, wouldn’t you agree?
Last season’s finale turned into a one-man show. A man who had hit rock bottom. There’s not a single word of exaggeration in that—for several months, Michael Beasley was a wreck of a man, a homeless person sleeping in his car. And we’re talking about one of the NBA’s greatest talents, selected second overall in the 2008 draft by the Miami Heat! The guy went through hell and came back to basketball. And now, for the moment, he’s in heaven. If saving him were to be Ice Cube’s only success related to creating the 3×3 league, it would have been worth it.
Even if you haven’t watched the entire eighth season—watch the finale at least:
Yes, B-Easy is definitely a good candidate to have his own “What Could Have Been” article to be written by Dominic Butler.
And this is just one of the many fascinating human stories that BIG3 is full of…
Anyway, here is the plan for the 2026 season:
There’s already big money in the BIG3: the prize for the winners is a cool million dollars, and the games are watched by as many as a million fans at times! The league’s sport level is rising and driving up the financial stakes—or perhaps it’s the other way around? In any case, it was another year of undeniable progress.
Last season, the BIG3 league averaged 546,000 viewers on CBS, an 8% increase compared to the same period last year (506,000). Last weekend’s games in Boston drew 588,000 viewers (+13% year-over-year). The league also reported an 85% increase in viewership for full game replays offered for free on YouTube.
That’s one of the reasons why the two subjects of this article—FIBA3x3 and BIG3—don’t like each other, even though we love both of them. But that’s a topic for a completely separate post...
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