Latest news with #MichaelBeasley
Forbes
10 hours ago
- Business
- Forbes
How The BIG3 Is Faring As It Begins Its Eighth Season
Michael Beasley goes one on one against Wesley Johnson in the first game of the BIG3's season. Michael Beasley, the second overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft, went mano a mano against Wesley Johnson, the fourth overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft. That kind of one-on-one showdown is a signature of BIG3 play. Each team in Ice Cube's three-on-three basketball league can challenge one foul call per half, creating the 'Bring the Fire' situation, and in the first one of the year, Johnson got the better of Beasley, stripping the ball from the 2024 BIG3 MVP. Profanities and trash talk ensued. Bring the Fire is not only one of the most intense plays of BIG3 action, but it also adds revenue through its Red Lobster sponsorship. 'Sponsors are the lifeblood of sports,' entertainment industry executive/BIG3 co-founder Jeff Kwatinetz exclusively shared. Last season the BIG3 generated more than 25 million impressions for their clients, and several sponsors, including Walmart, Capital One, Merck and Simply Spiked by Coors, have returned. The Snickers candy logo is displayed on the referees' shirts, and ballboys use Swiffers (made by sponsor Proctor & Gamble) during timeouts. Fans wave foam red claws during Red Lobster's Bring the Fire. Such product placement is a positive economic sign, but leagues like the NFL and NBA have about 40 to 50 more sponsors than the BIG3. Nonetheless, Ice Cube is bullish as his league began its eighth year on Saturday. 'I definitely consider it a success,' BIG3 co-founder Ice Cube exclusively shared. Achieving financial success, though, is difficult for any upstart sports league because of the overhead. Kwatinetz noted that challenge of creating a pro league from scratch is 'not for the faint of heart.' 'We're still early,' he said. 'I mean, it took UFC 14 years to become profitable. Hopefully, it's going to take us eight.' To help with profitability, the BIG3 added local ownership for this season. It previously had been a traveling road show, going to a different city each summer weekend. Now based in eight cities, the clubs have been selling for about $10 million, according to a source close to the situation. That not only grows the financial pie, but Ice Cube and Kwatinetz are also hopeful that having localized owners will serve as a way to further engage those markets. Another positive is the ratings, which averaged 455,000 viewers on CBS across all 10 weeks and 512,000 when not coinciding with the Summer Olympics last year. 'Our ratings are great,' Kwatinetz said. The BIG3's 2024 viewership was better than the NHL's 2025 regular season, which averaged 445,000 viewers. The NHL, however, receives an uptick for its playoffs and plays a lot more regular-season games (82), resulting in a bigger cumulative number. For 2025 the BIG3's first two games each weekend are being televised on CBS, and the second two are on VICE Sports. Ratings for the Week One games on CBS were an impressive 513,000 despite airing against the U.S Open and New York Liberty-Indiana Fever game, featuring Caitlin Clark's return from injury. The latter is particularly noteworthy because the WNBA was a ratings behemoth, averaging well more than a million viewers during Clark's rookie year last season. The BIG3 will play most of its games in NBA arenas, including Houston's Toyota Center and Los Angeles' new, cutting-edge Intuit Dome. But Week One was played in Chicago's Allstate Arena, a stadium with a capacity of 18,500, and official attendance was 7,809. Although the lower bowl of the facility with two-level seating was mostly full, no one sat in the 200 level. The BIG3, however, did a good job of cultivating a basketball culture for those in attendance. Matas Buzelis, last year's lottery pick of the Chicago Bulls, sat courtside under the baseline, and so did Antoine Walker, the former Boston Celtics star, who grew up in Chicago. Beasley even flexed and screamed at Buzelis, who laughed it off. Fan interaction with players has long been a goal of the league. Before his game DMV Trilogy coach/14-year NBA veteran Stephen Jackson took selfies with fans. Dwight Howard did the same hours after he memorably ended his BIG3 debut by getting kicked out after a fight. 'It's funny,' Ice Cube said. 'He was thrown out of his first BIG3 game, but welcome to the BIG3.' Landing Howard, an eight-time All-Star and three-time Defensive Player of the Year, was a coup for the league. He is the third Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer to play in the BIG3, joining Chauncey Billups and Allen Iverson, though the latter barely played in the BIG3's inaugural season. Nearly a decade later, Ice Cube's league is still kicking. 'It's a great product,' the hip-hop star said. 'I still want to improve.'
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Michael Beasley On Why LeBron James Is The GOAT: "With Jordan, They Don't Talk About The Negativity"
Michael Beasley played alongside LeBron James on the Miami Heat and Los Angeles Lakers, and he believes his former teammate is the greatest of all time. During an appearance on the Common Denominator podcast Beasley was asked to pick between James and Michael Jordan and went with the former without hesitation. "I start with the one everybody know, the points, the longevity, all that," Beasley said. "With Jordan, they don't talk about the negativity, they don't talk about the playoff losses, they don't talk about the fact that he actively sought out Dennis Rodman, who was already a two-time champion. Advertisement "No shot to Jordan because he's Jordan, but they don't tell the story of him having to learn the championship pedigree, Beasley stated. "LeBron James gave us, or has given us, the opportunity to be witnesses. We watched his good, his bad, we watched his ups, his downs so long, and he's been so great that we don't have anything to say. "So we now talk about his son," Beasley continued. That's my personal argument. My stat argument is LeBron James ... [put] every player's stats on the board and take everybody name off and now we play a Easter egg hunt. We got to find five eggs. "If we look for the best point guard, LeBron James will be somewhere top five, his stats will be somewhere in the top five," Beasley added. "Look for the best two, three, four, five, LeBron James, you'll never see his stats no lower than sixth, seventh on all five of those. Sixth man, all of that." Beasley added that Jordan also had the fortune of not having to deal with social media. He believes that James has had to deal with so much more negativity and is amazed that he is still delivering the way he has. Advertisement The intangible aspects aside, James has built up a solid case to be regarded as the best ever. The 40-year-old has won four titles, four Finals MVPs, four MVPs, a scoring title, and an assists title in his career. James is also the NBA's all-time leading scorer (42,184 points) and ranks fourth in assists (11,584). He has the most All-Star and All-NBA selections as well, with 21 each. It's a phenomenal resume, but is it better than Jordan's? Jordan won six titles, six Finals MVPs, five MVPs, a DPOY, and 10 scoring titles in his career. He made 14 All-Star and 11 All-NBA teams along the way. Jordan also made the All-Defensive First Team nine times, tied for the most in history. Considering Jordan only played 15 seasons compared to 22 for James, he is going to be far behind in terms of stats and certain accolades. The Chicago Bulls icon has still won more titles, though, and that's all that matters in some circles. Advertisement While more and more from today's generation, like Beasley, are siding with James on the debate, a lot of the old heads aren't budging. Kenny Smith stated that James will not touch the Jordan fiber. He claimed that defense is the separating point when it comes to them. We did a full comparison of Jordan and James' careers, and the former came out on top. It wasn't particularly close either. Related: Michael Beasley Finally Reveals If He Beat LeBron James In 1 On 1 Game
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Michael Beasley Challenges Carmelo Anthony To A 1-On-1 Game: "I Would Bust His A**"
Michael Beasley Challenges Carmelo Anthony To A 1-On-1 Game: "I Would Bust His A**" originally appeared on Fadeaway World. Carmelo Anthony is one of the greatest scorers in modern NBA history, but former NBA player Michael Beasley is confident he'd beat him if they played 1-on-1. Beasley made that bold claim when streamer Adin Ross mentioned on N3on's stream that Anthony is one of his favorite players ever. Advertisement Michael Beasley: "I would bust his a**." Adin Ross: "You'd beat Melo?" Beasley: "I will." You admire the confidence. Anthony has not responded to these comments, but if these two do end up facing off, your money should be on the future Hall of Famer, provided he is somewhat in good shape. We just saw Beasley face off against Lance Stephenson in a 1-on-1 match. He did manage to win and walk away with $100,000, but the score was 31-21. If Stephenson, who averaged 9.8 points per game for his career, only lost by 10 points, you'd like Anthony's chances. Anthony averaged 22.5 points, 6.2 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.0 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game in his career. He was a terrific iso scorer and won the scoring title in 2013. Advertisement There are some superstars in NBA history who might not have games that are suited for 1-on-1 battles, but Anthony does not fall into that category. There are only a few whom you would have backed to beat him at his absolute best. Getting back to Beasley, he has been running his mouth lately. He claimed that he blew out LeBron James when they played 1-on-1 during their time as teammates on the Miami Heat. The score was just 11-9 in his favor, though, so blowing out James would be an exaggeration. As for the claim itself, we have heard this story for years about Beasley beating James whenever they faced off during practice. While that might seem unthinkable, he was a pretty good iso scorer. Beasley averaged 19.2 points on 45.0% shooting from the field in his third season in the NBA, and it looked like he could become a star someday. Unfortunately, that was as good as it would get for the second pick of the 2008 NBA Draft, and his career would slowly fall apart. Advertisement It has been reported that Beasley lacked professionalism, and he had some off-the-court issues as well with regard to drugs. All that ensured he never quite fulfilled his potential. Beasley played his final NBA game when he was just 30 years old, and it's a shame that his career panned out the way it did. While Beasley has been boasting about blowing out James, he also recently had some high praise for him, calling him the GOAT. Related: Carmelo Anthony Reacts To His Son Kiyan Saying He Would Fry Him In 1 On 1 This story was originally reported by Fadeaway World on Jun 11, 2025, where it first appeared.
Time of India
11-06-2025
- Sport
- Time of India
Michael Beasley challenges 10-time All-Star NBA Champion Carmelo Anthony to a one-on-one match
Michael Beasley challenges 10-time All-Star NBA Champion Carmelo Anthony to a one-on-one match (Image Source: Getty) Former NBA player, Michael Beasley is again making bold statements. After stating that he beat LeBron James in one-on-one matches, Beasley went ahead and stated that he could beat NBA legend Carmelo Anthony without any difficulty. The statement was made during a live stream with Adin Ross, where Beasley had earlier made claims about defeating James. However, it seems Anthony does not care about Beasley's challenge and is enjoying his time in Macau, where he was recently spotted with soccer legend David Beckham. Michael Beasley challenges Carmelo Anthony on live stream Michael Beasley recently appeared on a livestream hosted by Internet star Adin ross, where they discussed everything related to basketball. In one such live stream, Ross stated that the 10-time NBA All-Star is his favorite player, to which Beasley stated that he can beat Anthony in one-on-one match. — LegionHoops (@LegionHoops) When Ross instigated Beasley by asking whether he can really beat Anthony in a 1-on-1 match, the latter replied, 'I'll bust Melo's a**.' He further went on to add that he can easily beat the NBA champion without any difficulty. How did the NBA legend respond to this challenge? Well, he didn't. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 5 Books Warren Buffett Wants You to Read In 2025 Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List Undo Anthony is currently in Macau, vacationing with his son, and was recently seen with the soccer legend David Beckham. The latter posted a picture of them sharing a meal together, which Anthony reposted on his Instagram handle with the caption, 'Great catching up with you David Beckham.' Carmelo Anthony and David Beckham shared a meal together in Macau (Image Source: Carmelo Anthony via Instagram) The NBA Hall of Famer took retirement from the game back in 2023, and has been spending more time with family and recently joined NBC as an analyst. Anthony's no-reply to Beasley's challenge clearly indicates that he is enjoying his retirement and aims to prevent such matches thereon. On the other hand, the 36-year-old former NBA player recently won a one-on-one match with Pacers' Lance Stephenson and has been making headlines since then. Beasley was once a top player of his time, known for his great defensive tactics. However, continuous legal problems, where the player was linked with drug possession, affected Beasley's career a lot. He started getting fewer opportunities and had to finally retire from the NBA after the 2018-19 season. Also Read: Former Los Angeles Lakers forward Michael Beasley makes bold claim about defeating LeBron James
New York Post
07-06-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Michael Beasley posts raunchy message after epic $100K one-on-one win over Lance Stephenson
Michael Beasley didn't wait long to bust out some outlandish talk after defeating Lance Stephenson in their hyped one-on-one matchup for $100,000. The former Lakers teammates were the main event of the TNC 02 pay-per-view basketball event in Miami on Friday night and delivered what they considered one of the top one-on-one games ever. 5 Michael Beasley celebrates beating Lance Stephenson in a one-on-one game for $100K on Friday night. Overtime/IG Advertisement Beasley bested Stephenson, 31-21, to cash the big check with injured Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving in attendance. Stephenson, 34, cordially tagged the 36-year-old Beasley in an Instagram story after the heated matchup and wrote: 'Great game bro.' That's when things got weird. Advertisement Beasley, who played 74 games for the Knicks in 2017-18, responded to the message with one of his own and somehow dragged the Kardashian into the fray. 'I love you to the moon and back… Now grab a cigarette and a towel… We made a sex tape Kim K would envy,' Beasley wrote back with three crying laughing emojis. 5 Michael Beasley posts raunchy message after $100K win over Lance Stephenson in epic one-on-one battle Michael Beasley/Instagram Advertisement The game itself had a little bit of everything, even if Beasley never trailed after a fast 4-0 start that had Irving on commentary saying he 'would never' want to play Beasley one-on-one Stephenson even got feisty with the ref and fans at points, but it wasn't enough to beat Beasley. Beasley, who played 11 seasons in the NBA, never quite reached the lofty expectations of being the No. 2 pick overall by the Heat in 2008. 5 Michael Beasley (r.) and Lance Stephenson battle in a one-on-one game for $100K on Friday night. Overtime/Instagram Advertisement He was the better scorer between him and Stephenson, averaging 12.4 points per game for his career. Stephenson, the Coney Island product, played 10 seasons in the NBA, including seven with the Pacers. 5 Lance Stephenson #6 of the Indiana Pacers celebrates during the 108-90 win over the Toronto Raptors at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on April 4, 2017. Getty Images 5 Knicks forward Michael Beasley (8) drives as he is defended by Houston Rockets guard James Harden (13) during the second quarter in 2017. Bill Kostroun/New York Post He was one of the best defenders of his era after being drafted 40th overall in 2010 — as he and LeBron James had some epic playoff battles. Stephenson averaged 8.6 points and 4.1 rebounds per game for his career.
