Game 1 (CBS): Bivouac (4-0) vs Ball Hogs (2-2)
Can anyone slow down Bivouac at this point? For the Ball Hogs, they hope it’s their squad as both teams look to inch closer to making their first playoff berth. With four wins already under their belt, Bivouac is one of the few teams in the driver’s seat to make the playoffs. Corey Brewer continues to be in the MVP conversation for his contributions as a two-way threat this summer. After putting up another 20-point game and adding a couple more steals, he now sits in the top-5 in scoring while leading the league in steals. In fact, this entire Bivouac squad has been able to wreak havoc on the defensive side of the ball as they lead the league in steals and are third in the league in blocks. Their ability to defend and win 50-50 balls, all while having a strong offense, make this dangerous club. As long as they limit the turnovers (10 last week), they could be in position to continue their historic pace.
Rick Barry’s squad got a much needed win last week, albeit it wasn’t the prettiest of wins. As Ice Cube posted in the stream on X, it was “Brick city in Brick City” during the early going as Ball Hogs has struggled from behind the 3-point line all season (27 percent from the 3-point line). Now they face another test and need a victory in order to keep themselves in a promising spot for the playoff race. Luckily, Leandro Barbosa and Jodie Meeks both had season-highs last week and in the second half, they looked like the Ball Hogs we’ve seen over the past couple years that move the ball and find cutters for easy buckets. If they can find the range from the perimeter, we could see a much improved team down the stretch. Maybe even as early as this week for a potential upset.
Typically though, teams that win six games are a lock to make the playoffs and Bivouac has yet to make it easy on any team they’ve faced so far. Should be a good one and a candidate for game of the week.
Game 2 (CBS): Triplets (3-1) vs 3’s Company (3-1)
Although the opening game of Week 5 will be a doozy, this very well may be the best game of the week. Two teams that have suffered their only loss to the other undefeated teams and are looking to separate themselves in the standings. Quite honestly, this could be a preview of the playoffs with how well they’ve both played.
On one hand, there’s the knockdown shooters of Triplets, who have torched teams behind their long range shooting barrages. On the other hand, we have an extremely efficient 3’s Company squad who has shot 46 percent from the field through four weeks. Triplets have played a bit of a different style this summer with Joe Johnson not being the sole provider but instead a key contributor. Meanwhile, Jeremy and Jannero Pargo have shot the lights out of the ball as they lead the league in 4-pointers and 3-pointers, respectively. Plus, this team has been lethal in transition and getting quick, open looks.
For 3’s Company, they may just be heating up. After Michael Beasley did his usual thing the first couple weeks, it has been the play of Nasir Core that’s given this squad the bonafide threat they’ve been searching for the past few seasons. Couple that with the league’s best rebounder in Reggie Evans, as well as, one of the league’s best shot blockers in Sean Williams and this may be the most well rounded squad in the entire league.
This will be Triplets toughest test since Week 1 but can 3’s Company run Triplets off the 3-point line and beyond enough to keep this game within striking distance? Ultimately, it could be the deciding factor in this one.
Game 3 (CBS): Killer 3’s (0-4) vs Enemies (4-0)
Killer 3’s chances of making the playoffs are extremely slim at this point but they may have to settle for spoiling another team’s hopes. That being said, Enemies have been virtually unstoppable. Hustle stats and ball movement haven’t been their strong suit up to this point. However, Nick Young’s team just knows how to put the ball in the hoop and get stops. They’re second in points against and second in points scored through four weeks. Jordan Crawford has still been one of the hardest players to guard but he’s gotten his team a lot more involved this summer, evidenced by being top-5 in assists across the BIG3. Simply put, it’s the defending champions playing like the defending champions. They’re seven game win streak is the third longest in league history and no team has yet to find an answer on how to put an L in their loss column.
On the flip side, it’s been the complete opposite for the Killer 3’s. They can’t seem to get enough stops and offensively they’ve been extremely inconsistent. The first couple weeks it was the bigs carrying the load while the guards were struggling. In Weeks 3 and 4, Franklin Session and Dominique Johnson have found their stride while Donte Greene and Josh Powell have been underwhelming. Additionally, they’ve lost their last two games by at least 15 points. If anything, this is a chance to help some other teams in the hunt. They’ll need their best game of the season though, especially on the defensive end, if they want to get their first win.
Game 4 (X): Ghost Ballers (2-2) vs Trilogy (0-4)
Despite not playing their best, the Ghost Ballers have managed to collect a couple wins while hanging around in the middle of the pack. And they’ve done so even with the second worst point differential in the BIG3. Both of their wins have been one possession games while their two losses have been by 14 and 23, respectively. Turnovers have been a major issue as they’ve beaten themselves on a number of occasions in the second half. Mike Taylor is tied for the most turnovers in the league and Ryan “Hezi God” Carter has averaged just 7 PPG after avering 21 PPG during Rookie of the Year campaign. They’re a team missing Jonathon Simmons, who was injured before the start of the season, and they’ve yet to be able to make up for his impact.
If there’s any team who can relate to a disappointing start, it’s probably Trilogy. They come off a week in which Isaiah Briscoe set a BIG3 single-game record for most points in a game and still found a way to lose. Briscoe and Earl Clark have been the main source of offense but both players have had rollercoaster seasons while the rest of the squad has had a minimal impact. No team has made the playoffs starting the year 0-4 in the history of the league and with eight teams over .500 that probably won’t change this year.
All that being said, Trilogy has been a tough out (lost their last two games by a combined eight points) and Ghost Ballers can still be a dangerous team.
George Gervin’s team will need to get Taylor and Carter back on the right track if they want to return to the playoffs but the guard play will be important here. If turnovers are an issue once again and Briscoe puts up even a third of his 37-point outing last week, they could find themselves in a hole that they can’t climb out of.
Game 5 (X): Power (1-3) vs Aliens (1-3)
Both Power and Aliens find themselves in unexpected positions midway through the season. What many thought was one of the best roster reconstructions of the off-season, Power hasn’t lived up to the hype. Meanwhile, Aliens looked like a team ready to rebound from their 2023 season, especially since their new addition Paul Millsap was living up to expectations prior to his injury. Instead, they find themselves 1-2 since it was announced that he was out for the season.
With Nancy Lieberman’s squad, we’re used to a team that has a multitude of facilitators and finds the easy shot alongside the playmaking ability of Glen Rice Jr. However, Rice Jr. has been the only consistent player making things happen, but he hasn’t even been able to finish out half of the games after he was ejected last week for the second time this season. They constantly look out of sorts, have energy levels fluctuate due to issues with the officiating, and the defense has been subpar. And while we’ve seen flashes from Marcus Foster, they’ve had trouble finding a weekly No. 2 option alongside Rice Jr.
While Aliens were able to avenge the loss of their captain in Week 2, it’s been downhill since then. Granted they did play two of the top teams in Enemies and Triplets back-to-back weeks, they’ve had problems trying to stop some of the most potent offenses. John and Abe Millsap have each had big games but haven’t shown that they can create their own shots on a regular basis. Add in the fact that Dusan Bulut is having his worst season since joining the league and Al Jefferson looks every bit of 39-years-old and it makes sense why this team has had trouble keeping up when trailing.
This should be an interesting one as Power should be able to take advantage of their defensive matchups. There’s nobody on this Aliens’ team that can guard Rice Jr. or Royce White (even if he’s having a tough season himself) but new addition Devin Ebanks has showcased he can match firepower for firepower if he’s knocking down his shots. It’ll ultimately come down to who can show up on the defensive end and take advantage of the other team’s misfortunes.
Game 6 (X): 3 Headed Monsters (2-2) vs Tri-State (2-2)
Even after four weeks, there seems to be more questions than answers for both of these teams. 3 Headed Monsters odds of making the playoffs should be less than 20 percent had it not been for Trilogy’s epic collapse last week. With Tri-State, they’ve exposed teams but also been exposed a couple times themselves.
Timely runs by their opponents and missed free throws during crucial moments have been 3 Headed Monsters Achilles’ heel. Fortunately for Rashard Lewis’ team they were able to make a couple runs of their own last week but the best offenses have been able to put games out of reach against them. They’ve also struggled to make free throws when it counts in the two games they lost. The good news is Jeff Teague has gotten better every week (BIG3 career-high 17 points in Week 4) and Brandon Moss found his form again after a 15-point second half to help lead the comeback.
For Tri-State, it’s a simple problem to solve. When Jason Richardson plays well, they win. When he doesn’t they lose. Even with Kevin Murphy dropping 25 points and 10 rebounds, they need J-Rich doing what he does to complement the play of Murphy. Richardson scored just three points last week and in their two losses has scored under 10 points. In comparison, he’s scored at least 16 points in their two victories.
Tri-State can be a deadly team in the second half of the season and if both Richardson and Murphy get going, it’ll be tough for 3 Headed Monsters to hang around. Defensive will need to be an emphasis for the 3 Headed Monsters. If they can stop one of the two leading scorers for Tri-State and keep the offense as a whole in check, they should be able to provide enough offensively to pull out another big win.