Ice Cube was called out by a BIG3 players recently, who said publicly that the pro league has consistently failed to pay its players.
Nick Young, who played 11 seasons in the NBA, mostly for the Los Angeles Lakers, before joining the BIG3, complained on VLAD TV that the league was in disarray this past season.
“I think they need to get back to traveling to all different cities like they was [sic],” Young, aka “Swaggy P,” said. “Cause this past year, it felt like things weren’t ran [sic] well ’cause sometimes we ain’t get our money. Things got canceled. Games got canceled in the middle of the season. They didn’t know if they was [sic] gonna have a season. It was a lot, it was a lot this year.”
Young, 37, played for coach and former NBA star Gilbert Arenas’ Enemies in 2021. Young, who used to date rapper Iggy Azalea, said the BIG3 encountered some drama this past season, which may have contributed to the missed payments.
“I feel like they need to get the right investments and really organize it better because this year in the middle of the season, the season was about to be over ’cause they didn’t have the money or something like that,” he said.
Young added that he believes the idea for a league full of former players is a good idea because of its proximity to the players homes. The league also puts players in nice hotels and offers per diems as well to offset their food costs.
“For me, the BIG3 is just to get out the house, to hang with your friends and play the game a little bit,” Young explained. “And it’s only on the weekends, [it’s] not too much strain on your body. You don’t have to go to China or Russia and deal with all that. You still get to be with your family during the week and then you leave on the weekend. That’s the fun part.”
This past week, Ice Cube, who founded the Big3 in 2017 alongside entertainment executive Jeff Kwatinetz, accused the NBA of deliberately trying to sabotage his league.
