NBA: 5 BIG3 players who deserve a roster spot next season

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(Photo by M. Anthony Nesmith/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

The BIG3 has produced some great performances this year, which should prompt NBA teams to give some of these guys a look.

When Ice Cube first started the BIG3 league, nobody knew exactly what to expect. The premise of allowing older or forgotten NBA players the chance to play competitively was sound.

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Finding arenas, willing participants and, most of all, filling out seats was a task much easier said than done that other recreational leagues have failed to accomplish.

Now during its third season, the BIG3 has become a staple of summer basketball, a fix for die-hards to quench their thirst for hoops with the NBA on break.

Not only is it a league filled with recognizable NBA talent including former All-Stars and NBA champions, but its a platform taken very seriously by everyone involved that’s created a surprising level of competitive basketball.

It’s a niche perfectly filled. Guys in their late 30s can’t withstand the wear and tear of an 82-game season. That doesn’t mean they can’t suit up once a week over two months to keep their competitive juices flowing.

For some, that’s all the BIG3 is, a great way to stay in shape that allows them to continue to play the sport they love at a reasonably high level.

Others, however, still feel as though they have more left to give the NBA and view the BIG3 as an ideal platform that offers far more exposure than overseas to help prove themselves.

Whatever level of stardom each player showed in the pros is long gone. Then again, a team can have a maximum of 15 players on their roster, and a number of those spots are wasted.

To assume nobody in the BIG3 is deserving of one of them is silly, with these five in particular — whether due to their stats or playstyle — the ideal candidates to make a return.