With FIBA contemplating adding 3 on 3 basketball as an Olympic sport possibly as soon as the 2016 games in Rio de Janeiro, the NBA blogs of SB Nation were wondering what an NBA 3 on 3 Tournament might look like. Last week each blog picked their team, and over the next month or so we'll be conducting the tournament.
The Teams
The 30 NBA 3 on 3 teams, as chosen by the SB Nation blog covering that team, are listed below.
Eastern Conference
Chicago Bulls -- Derrick Rose, Luol Deng, Joakim Noah -- Blog a Bull
Miami Heat - Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Chris Bosh -- Hot Hot Hoops
Indiana Pacers -- Paul George, Lance Stephenson, Danny Granger -- Indy Cornrows
Boston Celtics -- Rajon Rondo, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett -- CelticsBlog
Atlanta -- John Jenkins, Josh Smith, Al Horford -- Peachtree Hoops
Orlando Magic - Jameer Nelson, Arron Afflalo, Gustavo Ayon -- Orlando Pinstriped Post
New York Knicks -- Iman Shumpert, Carmelo Anthony, Tyson Chandler -- Posting and Toasting
Philadelphia 76ers -- Jrue Holiday, Evan Turner, Andrew Bynum -- Liberty Ballers
Milwaukee Bucks -- Monta Ellis, Luc Mbah a Moute, Ersan Ilyasova -- Brew Hoop
Detroit Pistons -- Stuckey Stuckey, Jonas Jerebko, Greg Monroe -- Detroit Bad Boys
Toronto Raptors -- Kyle Lowry, Terrence Ross, Andrea Bargnani -- Raptors HQ
Brooklyn Nets - Deron Williams, Joe Johnson, Brook Lopez -- NetsDaily
Cleveland Cavaliers -- Kyrie Irving, Dion Waiters, Anderson Varejao -- Fear the Sword
Washington Wizards -- John Wall, Trevor Ariza, Nene -- Bullets Forever
Charlotte - Ramon Sessions, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Byron Mullens -- Rufus on Fire
In addition the the 15 teams of the Eastern Conference, in order to avoid any byes in the tournament (because byes of just boring) and because there were some good players from deep rosters that got left off of 3 on 3 teams, we've chosen a team of other Eastern conference players to round out the field.
East Leftovers - Brandon Jennings, Gerald Wallace, Roy Hibbert
Western Conference
San Antonio Spurs -- Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, Tim Duncan -- Pounding the Rock
Oklahoma City Thunder -- Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, Nick Collison -- Welcome to Loud City
Los Angeles Lakers -- Steve Nash, Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard -- Silver Screen and Roll
Memphis Grizzlies -- Tony Allen, Rudy Gay, Marc Gasol -- Straight Outta Vancouver
Los Angeles Clippers -- Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, Lamar Odom -- Clips Nation
Denver Nuggets -- Andre Iguodala, Wilson Chandler, Danilo Gallinari -- Denver Stiffs
Dallas Mavericks -- Delonte West, Dirk Nowitzki, Elton Brand -- Mavs Moneyball
Utah Jazz -- Alec Burks, Gordon Hayward, Derrick Favors -- SLC Dunk
Houston Rockets -- Jeremy Lin, Jeremy Lamb, Donatas Motiejunas -- The Dream Shake
Phoenix Suns -- Goran Dragic, Jared Dudley, Marcin Gortat -- Bright Side of the Sun
Portland Trail Blazers -- Damian Lillard, Nicolas Batum, LaMarcus Aldridge -- BlazersEdge
Minnesota Timberwolves -- Ricky Rubio, Andrei Kirilenko, Kevin Love -- Canis Hoopus
Golden State Warriors -- Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Andrew Bogut -- Golden State of Mind
Sacramento Kings -- Isaiah Thomas, Tyreke Evans, DeMarcus Cousins -- Sactown Royalty
New Orleans Hornets - Eric Gordon, Ryan Anderson, Anthony Davis -- At the Hive
And just as in the East, there's one more West team to round out the field:
West Leftovers - James Harden, Zach Randolph, Pau Gasol
Teams are composed not just of the best three players on a roster of course, but based on the blog's best guess as to who would be most successful in a 3 on 3 format. As you can see, different blogs used different strategies, with most choosing a more traditional point, wing, big lineup, while a few mixed it up with three wings or other variations.
The rules of the hypothetical tournament are straightforward:
- Half court,
- two and three point baskets,
- free throws on shooting fouls,
- bonus after seven fouls,
- losers outs,
- clear change of possession to the three point line,
- one ten minute period or first to 31,
- best two out of three.
Note that these rules are a slight departure from the official format of FIBA 3 on 3 tournaments, most notably in the scoring (where the FIBA format is one point for field goals inside the arc and two points for field goals outside the arc) and the fact that FIBA teams consist of four players. However, for the purposes of running this hypothetical tournament, we felt it would be easier if the scoring followed NBA rules and there were no substitutes.