Ice Cube’s traveling 3 on 3 basketball league, known as the BIG3, made its Milwaukee debut on Sunday afternoon at the Fiserv Forum. The event was headlined by seven-time NBA All-Star Joe Johnson, as he led the Triplets to a remarkable 50 to 48 comeback win over Rashard Lewis and the 3 Headed Monsters.
Joe Johnson, a former NBA star who last played for the Houston Rockets, has dominated the BIG3 all summer long for the Triplets under the tutelage of WNBA legend, Coach Lisa Leslie. This is Johnson’s first season in the BIG3, and immediately, he has helped grow the league’s popularity around the United States. He currently leads the league in scoring, assists and steals through seven contests. The Triplets currently sit atop the BIG3 standings at 6 to 1, all thanks to ISO Joe.
On Sunday afternoon, Johnson and company trailed early against the 3 Headed Monsters. NBA and NCAA Champion Mario Chalmers was lighting it up from beyond the arc in the first half. He managed to drop in 12 points before the break, helping the 3 Headed Monsters hold a comfortable 25 to 15 lead at intermission. Former Milwaukee Bucks big man Larry Sanders also saw some action on the court early for the 3 Headed Monsters.
On the other side of the ball, Joe Johnson and the Triplets were visibly dissatisfied with their poor play throughout the first half. This season they have trailed at the half in four out of seven contests. They have shown their success late in the second half of most games this summer, which was ever-present Sunday afternoon.
During the second half of play, the 3 Headed Monsters still held a commanding 37 to 23 lead. Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf was an integral part of their success on the offensive end, adding six points from deep, 14 points in total. The 3 Headed Monsters did an incredible job of spreading the wealth offensively, as Captain Rashard Lewis also eclipsed double-digits in scoring with 10 points on the night. Even though they were successful at sharing the ball from start to finish, their efforts were not enough to stop Joe Johnson from living up to his nickname, ISO Joe.
Down by 14 points in the second half, Johnson took over on nearly every possession for the Triplets, ensuring they would soon pull within a single-digit deficit. Jamario Moon and Alan Anderson helped lighten the load offensively, finding some consistency from three-point range.
Very late in the contest, Joe Johnson and the Triplets found themselves trailing 48 to 46, which happens to be game-point for both teams, as there are four-point circles in the BIG3, along the deep end of the perimeter. Johnson managed to get himself into isolation, closely guarded by Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf. He took a deep step back into four-point range and launched the game winning shot for the Triplets, accounting for over half of their total points, scoring 26. The crowd erupted following the made basket, as they had just witnessed one of the greatest performances in BIG3 history.
I spoke briefly with Joe Johnson in the postgame press conference in regard to him shouldering the load offensively and pulling off the comeback win. I asked if he knew that the four-point shot was going in as soon as it left his hands. Johnson smiled and simply replied, “It felt good, honestly. It felt good.”
ISO Joe and the rest of team Triplets look to continue their domination tour in the coming weeks, as playoff basketball starts near the end of August in New Orleans.