HARRIS COUNTY-HOUSTON SPORTS AUTHORITY INSIDER
Drexler excited to bring Big3 season opener to Houston
Patti Smith
Jun 22, 2018, 6:41 am
Clyde Drexler has the Big3 in Houston for opening night. Joe Scarnici/Getty Images
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Still trying to shake off the Rockets’ loss in the NBA, er, Western Conference Finals?
Pondering what could be if LeBron James picks – or doesn’t pick -- Houston?
Or just trying to un-see some of those moments during the Ted Cruz-Jimmy Kimmel Blobfish Classic?
Whatever basketball malaise you’re in, Clyde Drexler is pretty sure he has the cure.
Friday’s Big3 season two opener at 5:30 p.m. at Toyota Center.
The Houston basketball legend-turned-Big 3 commissioner couldn’t be more excited to bring the 3-on-3 league filled with recent NBA stars and coached by Hall of Famers to his hometown.
“Opening week, we wanted to be perfect,’’ Drexler said. “Houston is one of our premier destinations and we can’t wait for it to get started.
“We try to go to cities that follow the NBA game, that are big basketball cities and vibrant economic cities. Houston checked all the boxes. We’ve got an incredible mayor, great leadership and Toyota Center is a great place to play and our fans love the game of basketball.’’
How does a 4 p.m. kickoff concert from Big3 co-founder Ice Cube followed by 8 teams filled with former NBA stars playing four half-court 3-on-3 games in one night grab you?
And don’t forget that five of those teams are coached by Hall of Famers Julius Erving (Tri State), George Gervin (Ghost Ballers), Gary Payton (3 Headed Monsters), Rick Barry (Ball Hogs) and Nancy Lieberman, the league’s first female coach. Lieberman is coaching Power, the team Drexler coached last season.
“Nancy is one of the most competitive people I know,’’ Drexler said of the former college and WNBA star and current Sacramento Kings assistant coach. “She’s a winner. She knows the game of basketball, she’s a leader and I think she’s going to do very well in the Big3.’’
No one knows the city or the game as well as Drexler, who started working his magic here at Sterling High then caught everyone’s eye at the University of Houston as a founding member of Phi Slama Jama. He went on to become a 10-time NBA All-Star at Portland and Houston, helped the Rockets to the 1995 NBA title and has had his No. 22 jersey retired by the Cougars, Trailblazers and Rockets.
He coached the Big3’s Power to a tie for third in the inaugural season – Trilogy beat 3 Headed Monsters for the 2017 title - and said this year’s league has even more talent.
Drexler said about 80 former NBA players competed for 17 open roster spots this season.
“The talent level has risen and the game is becoming more and more popular,’’ Drexler said. “People are getting familiar with the names. We only have 8 teams, we only play for 10 weeks, but all eight teams play every single week in the same arena. We play four games. So when you go, you get to see all these players, all these Hall of Famers.
“It is a festival of basketball. It’s very competitive.’’
The league has a 4-point shot (30-footers from set spots) and a 14-second shot clock. The first team to 25 points is halftime and the first team to 50 points, provided it is up by 2, wins the game. “So the games can go quick,’’ Drexler said, “or they can take a while.”
Last year Drexler’s team included Cuttino Mobley and Corey Maggette. This year, Power added Chris “Birdman” Andersen, Glen “Big Baby “ Davis, and Quentin Richardson.
Trilogy won last year with Al Harrington and Rashad McCants and added Kenyon Martin and James White. Tri State added Nate Robinson and A’mare Stoudemire to go along with Jermaine O’Neal and Bonzi Wells. And the list goes on . .
League co-founders Ice Cube and Jeff Kwatinetz are also committed to giving back to the communities starting with the Young3 initiative for players 7-14 years old. The Young3 will be played Thursday morning at the Boys and Girls’ Clubs.
The Big3 also refurbishes courts in the cities where they play and Drexler said Houston’s project will be in Acres Homes.
Additionally, Drexler said about 1,000 tickets will be made available to Santa Fe High school students who want to attend the event. The community is still healing from the recent tragic shooting at the school.
“We want to show them the love,’’ Drexler said. “We want to let them know that people care about them all over the world and especially here in the city of Houston and shine a little spotlight on them.’’
The Big3 did not play in Houston last year, but Drexler hopes what he calls the best 3-on-3 league will draw big crowds and keep Houston on the league’s schedule.
“With 3-on-3 professional basketball, It doesn’t get any better than the Big3,’’ he said, “So when it comes to your town, you don’t want to miss it.’’
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After finishing up with the Guardians the Astros have a rather important series for early May with the Seattle Mariners heading to town for the weekend. While it’s still too early to be an absolute must-win series for the Astros, losing the series to drop seven or eight games off the division lead would make successfully defending their American League West title that much more unlikely.
Since their own stumble out of the gate to a 6-10 record the Mariners have been racking up series wins, including one this week over the Atlanta Braves. The M’s offense is largely Mmm Mmm Bad, but their pitching is sensational. In 18 games after the 6-10 start, the Mariners gave up five runs in a game once. In the other 17 games they only gave up four runs once. Over the 18 games their starting pitchers gave up 18 earned runs total with a 1.44 earned run average. That’s absurd. Coming into the season Seattle’s starting rotation was clearly better on paper than those of the Astros and Texas Rangers, and it has crystal clearly played out as such into the second month of the schedule.
While it’s natural to focus on and fret over one’s own team's woes when they are plentiful as they have been for the Astros, a reminder that not all grass is greener elsewhere. Alex Bregman has been awful so far. So has young Mariners’ superstar Julio Rodriguez. A meager four extra base hits over his first 30 games were all Julio produced down at the ballyard. That the Mariners are well ahead of the Astros with J-Rod significantly underperforming is good news for Seattle.
Caratini comes through!
So it turns out the Astros are allowed to have a Puerto Rican-born catcher who can hit a little bit. Victor Caratini’s pedigree is not that of a quality offensive player, but he has swung the bat well thus far in his limited playing time and provided the most exciting moment of the Astros’ season with his two-out two-run 10th inning game winning home run Tuesday night. I grant that one could certainly say “Hey! Ronel Blanco finishing off his no-hitter has been the most exciting moment.” I opt for the suddenness of Caratini’s blow turning near defeat into instant victory for a team that has been lousy overall to this point. Frittering away a game the Astros had led 8-3 would have been another blow. Instead, to the Victor belong the spoils.
Pudge Rodriguez is the greatest native Puerto Rican catcher, but he was no longer a good hitter when with the Astros for the majority of the 2009 season. Then there’s Martin Maldonado.
Maldonado’s hitting stats with the Astros look Mike Piazza-ian compared to what Jose Abreu was doing this season. Finally, mercifully for all, Abreu is off the roster as he accepts a stint at rookie-level ball in Florida to see if he can perform baseball-CPR on his swing and career. Until or unless he proves otherwise, Abreu is washed up and at some point the Astros will have to accept it and swallow whatever is left on his contract that runs through next season. For now Abreu makes over $120,000 per game to not be on the roster. At his level of performance, that’s a better deal than paying him that money to be on the roster.
Abreu’s seven hits in 71 at bats for an .099 batting average with a .269 OPS is a humiliating stat line. In 2018 George Springer went to sleep the night of June 13 batting .293 after going hitless in his last four at bats in a 13-5 Astros’ win over Oakland. At the time no one could have ever envisioned that Springer had started a deep, deep funk which would have him endure a nightmarish six for 78 stretch at the plate (.077 batting average). Springer then hit .293 the rest of the season.
Abreu’s exile opened the door for Joey Loperfido to begin his Major League career. Very cool for Loperfido to smack a two-run single in his first game. He also struck out twice. Loperfido will amass whiffs by the bushel, he had 37 strikeouts in 101 at bats at AAA Sugar Land. Still, if he can hit .225 with some walks mixed in (he drew 16 with the Space Cowboys) and deliver some of his obvious power (13 homers in 25 games for the ex-Skeeters) that’s an upgrade over Abreu/Jon Singleton, as well as over Jake Meyers and the awful showing Chas McCormick has posted so far. Frankly, it seems unwise that the Astros only had Loperfido play seven games at first base in the minors this year. If McCormick doesn’t pick it up soon and with Meyers displaying limited offensive upside, the next guy worth a call-up is outfielder Pedro Leon. In January 2021 the Astros gave Leon four million dollars to sign out of Cuba and called him a “rapid mover to the Major Leagues.” Well…
Over his first three minor league seasons Leon flashed tools but definitely underwhelmed. He has been substantially better so far this year. He turns 26 May 28. Just maybe the Astros offense could be the cause of fewer Ls with Loperfido at first and Leon in center field.
Catch our weekly Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast. Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and I discuss varied Astros topics. The first post for the week generally goes up Monday afternoon (second part released Tuesday) via YouTube: stone cold stros - YouTube with the complete audio available via Apple Podcast, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.