The debut of the BIG3's FIREBALL3 rebrand will have to wait until next summer.
The BIG3 issued a statement announcing that it is canceling the 2020 summer season due to the coronavirus pandemic, with a plan for a “great return in 2021.”
In January, the 3-on-3 league announced a bevy of changes, including acknowledging their unique sport as FIREBALL3 — complete with 4-point shots and 14-second shot clocks. The BIG3 also lowered the age limit (from 27 to 22) and opened participation to two-sport athletes.
Unfortunately, these new changes will have to wait, due to a variety of factors:
Ultimately, we need the fan experience and the games themselves to be great. While other leagues have more immediate financial considerations, as a rising league, we need to put the fan experience above all and ensure each season is better than the one before. While we investigated many alternative scenarios, such as playing at a single location like a Los Angeles studio sound stage, the extension of the California stay at home order, California’s constant confusion and changing of the rules when combined with the multiple other issues listed above led to us to determining these scenarios were not feasible.
The BIG3 also noted that their reality TV program, “BIG3: Not In My House,” is still planning on premiering before next season after experiencing delays.
BIG3 co-founder Ice Cube released his own statement:
“We tried everything in our power to give our fans a nice 2020 season but with a long list of obstacles, we decided to shift our focus to having a great 2021 season with our fans in the stands. Our goal from day one has always been to provide a remarkable experience of top-level competition and entertainment. With the creation of BIG3: Not In My House and more time to prepare for next season, we will definitely come back with the fire.”
Read the full BIG3 statement below:
— BIG3 (@thebig3) May 18, 2020
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