Ice Cube’s BIG3 Basketball tips off its ninth season at Intuit Dome in Los Angeles on Saturday afternoon with an exciting four-game slate.
The half-court, 3-on-3 league is fresh off an announcement of a merger with Graf Global Corporation and $290 million pre-money valuation ahead of becoming the first traditional professional U.S.-based sports league to go public.
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As customary, the BIG3’s eight teams’ rosters are adorned with a host of accomplished names including the LA Riot’s Dwight Howard and the defending champion Miami 305’s dynamic duo of Mario Chalmers and Michael Beasley, to name but a few.
Ahead of this season’s inaugural set of games, we focus on a trio of PrizePicks props for some of the BIG3’s most recognizable stars:
Michael Beasley, Miami 305 (at Los Angeles Riot), Saturday, June 20, 5:00 p.m. ET
Bet: More Than 21.5 Points
Beasley has been a scoring machine dating back to his AAU and high school days and continuing through his one college season at Kansas State and his extensive NBA tenure. Beasley even lit up the scoreboard consistently across the globe in China, affording him unquestioned credentials as an offensive wizard worldwide.
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Since 2022, Beasley has been a BIG3 fixture, winning league MVP twice (2024, 2025) and averaging 21.3 points or better in each of the last three seasons. Beasley was a key component of Miami 305’s title-winning 2025 campaign, averaging 23.1 points per contest.
Beasley poured in 21 points against the Riot in last year’s opener, and Los Angeles finished the season having surrendered the fourth-most points (370). He ultimately scored a league-high 162 points on a league-high 59 field goals a season ago, and he was second in both made three-pointers (12) and four-pointers (3).
Beasley’s role as 305’s primary scorer, comfort level with the 3-on-3 format and consistency as a shooter all engender plenty of confidence in his chances of a big season-opening performance.
Dwight Howard, Los Angeles Riot (vs. Miami 305), Saturday, June 20, 5:00 p.m. ET
Bet: More Than 13.5 Points
By his own admission, Howard had a bit of an acclimation curve in his first BIG3 season, but by the end of the 2025 campaign, he was close to clicking on all cylinders.
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The eight-time NBA All-Star and five-time NBA First Team honoree averaged 14.1 points, 8.9 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 1.0 blocks across 18.7 minutes per game, and he should be primed for an even bigger season in 2026.
Howard posted 10 points and seven rebounds in his regular-season encounter with 305 last season, but that was his first career BIG3 game and Howard’s ejection for a fight with Lance Stephenson naturally capped his production.
However, he went on to average 14.1 points per contest last season, and this rematch with the defending champions should offer plenty of incentive and shapes up as a likely wire-to-wire battle that Howard should enjoy plenty of opportunity in.
Glen Rice, Jr., Dallas Power (vs. Boston Ball Hogs), Saturday, June 20, 7:00 p.m. ET
Bet: More Than 16.5 Points
Rice entered the BIG3 the same year as Beasley, and he’s been similarly accomplished as his fellow NBA vet on the scoring front. Rice validated his No. 1 overall pick status in the 2022 BIG3 Draft instantly, as he won Rookie of the Year at the end of that campaign.
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Rice averaged 19.0 points over 19.5 minutes per game last season, and he finished third in field goals (55), fourth in made three-pointers (11) and even first in assists (32). The offensive-minded veteran is always aggressive when on the floor and has plenty of chemistry with his existing teammates, who regularly rely on him as a primary source of offensive production.
The Ball Hogs gave up an average of 46.1 points per game last season (each BIG3 game is played until one team scores or exceeds 50 points), and Rice contributed to that figure by pouring in 23 points against Boston in last year’s opener.
Ultimately, Rice scored over 16.5 points in seven of his nine games (including the playoff game against 305), and the two occasions in which he fell short saw him land right on 16 points. Given his track record, this is a prop he’s in very good position to deliver on.
This article was originally published on Forbes.com
