While the NBA regular season remains suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic, the BIG3 basketball league has promised to remain open.
BIG3 co-founder Jeff Kwatinetz detailed some new plans for a reality show entitled âBig Brother.â That show would feature a preseason tournament in May in which participants will be quarantined in the same house. They would then have to play one another in a knockout-style tournament.
Kwatinetz also addressed the uncertainty of the illness. He stated the league will take necessary precautions to ensure proper health and safety measures (
Via Mark Medina of USA TODAY Sports.
âWe canât control what happens with the virus. Nobody can control it,â league co-founder Jeff Kwatinetz said. âIf that has to be pushed back a week or two, thatâs possible. But we feel pretty good about being able to be up and running in May.â
âNo one is allowed to leave the quarantine area. Thatâs part of what keeps the safety and health of the players,â Kwatinetz said. âIt also dovetails with what makes âBig Brotherâ so great. You have a group of 16 people locked in a house together and the social dynamics that come out of that. One minute, youâre hanging out with someone in the house. That night you have to play them.â
BIG3 is still planning to begin its fourth season on June 20 in Memphis, though that timeline could change if the persistent spread of coronavirus interferes.
Nevertheless, it is clear BIG3 is hoping to seize the moment in the absence of sporting events around the world. They figure to see a rise in engagement and viewership if they are the only game in town. In fact, it is unknown at this time when the NBA will resume its season.
Perhaps the âBig Brotherâ tournament will come to be the first of new creative initiatives in association with the league.
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