Almost a capacity turnout in Brooklyn’s Barclays Center Sunday as Big3 3-on-3 Basketball League Debuts with its new look and Hall of Famers

Julius Erving, Allen Iverson, Clyde Drexler coaching. The eight-team league will play on 10 weekends, with the championship on Aug. 26 in Las Vegas, Nev., with games on television viewed on Monday nights 

By ARNIE LESHIN 

Only in America? Well, maybe not, but when you outdraw the Barclays Center National Basketball League tenant, Brooklyn Nets, it brings attention. 

The announced crowd of 15,177 Sunday was only 615 less than the basketball capacity that the Nets hardly ever saw. It was on a par with the full house that the National Hockey League’s Brooklyn Islanders offer, except they, too, hardly ever saw a packed house. 

So what’s in town on a Sunday? Well, these hoop fans apparently knew, drum roll please, that it was the initial season opener of the Big3, a 3-on-3 league with rosters of many no names, big-name coaches, and former stars in the stands for a league organized by rapper/actor Ice Cube. 

And that’s a lot of filled seats for an event that just bounced in. There was an added treat, a convert, before the games began. Introductions were many, and the crowd rose for each one. 

Especially when three of the head coaches, Hall of Famers Julius (Dr. J) Erving, Allen Iverson and Clyde Drexler were introduced. So too were the ones looking on that featured NBA Most Valuable Player candidate James Harden, recently retired Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett, entertainer LL Cool J, and Andre Owens, the star of Iverson’s 3’s Company. 

Of the familiar names on the rosters, you can refer to Kenyon Martin, Rashard Lewis, Kwame Brown, Al Harrington, Reggie Evans, Stephen Jackson, Corey Maggette, and Jason Williams. 

Only Iverson played, but it was for just nine minutes as his 3’s Company team turned back the Ball Hogs, 61-51. Now 42, the former NBA MVP, went 1-for-6 from the floor and added two assists in game three. 

His team received 20 points and 15 rebounds from Andre Owens, DerMarr Johnson tossed in 14 points and Al Thornton added 13. 

For the Ball Hogs, Rasual Butler had the game-high 22 points that included six 3-pointers. Derrick Byars chipped in with 19 points. 

“Sky’s the limit,” Iverson said. “Obviously you see the debut, but I didn’t even expect it to be like this. And those retired players looking on might even get the itch to play some more.” 

And he added that he signed up to be coach, player and captain, and not to expect the Allen Iverson of old. 

In the opener, Rashard Lewis tossed in a 3-pointer with his 3 Headed Monster team facing game points, and it brought a 62-60 win over the Ghost Ballers. There’s also a 4-pointer on the menu and it was Lewis making the first. 

There were injuries. Former flashy point guard Jason Williams out of Duke, left with a right leg injury. In game two, Maggette of Power also hobbled off the court, but both are said to be okay. 

Said Cube: “I knew the games would be competitive. Players are vying for a revenue share bases on final league standings. There was pushing and shoving in the post, a few hard fouls, and the physically and trash talking 

appeared to heat up as the games went on. With hand checking, the games looked nothing like today’s NBA game.” 

The quality of play was also spotty as players had to shake off some years of rust, but the word is that it was certainly competitive and had the fans enjoying it all. 

Drexler’s Power team got past Erving’s Tri State, 62-58, in the second game behind a clutch 3-pointer from DeShawn Stevenson. Maggette contributed 15 points before his injury, and Cuttino Mobley added 14. For Tri Star, Jermaine O’Neal showed the way with 18 points and Mike James dropped in 13 points and took down 12 rebounds. 

Then it was the final game, with Trilogy picking up the game-high 25 points from Harrington as it cruised past the Killer 3’s, 60-45. Teammate James White added 16. In defeat, Evans tossed in 18 and Jackson 17. 

Martin of the Trilogy offered his opinion of the new league on the block. 

“Some people like that style, some people don’t,” Martin said, “so we’re here to fill that void for the people that appreciate the way the game has been played forever, you know what I’m saying, that basketball is a contact sport. 

The eight-team league will play on 10 weekends, culminating with the Aug. 26 championship in Las Vegas, Nev. Games can be viewed on Monday nights on Fox Sports 1. 

But there’s no doubt that it was a hit in Brooklyn on opening night, and that’s at least close to Broadway.