League
Bleacher Report: Nate Robinson, Jason Richardson, Larry Sanders to Return to BIG3’s Tri-State
By BIG3 May 14, 2021
Former NBA players Nate Robinson, Jason Richardson and Larry Sanders have reportedly agreed to contracts with the BIG3 basketball league and will be teammates on Tri-State for the 2021 season.
Yahoo Sports’ Chris Haynes reported the news Thursday.
Robinson is a three-time NBA Slam Dunk Contest champion who’s taken his basketball career around the globe since he last played in the NBA in 2015. He’s made stops in Israel, Venezuela and Lebanon along with a stint in the G League.
Most recently, the 36-year-old Seattle native tried his hand at boxing but suffered a knockout loss to YouTube star Jake Paul in November.
“Thank you everyone for all of the well wishes, I’m OK,” Robinson wrote on Instagram after the loss. “To my coaches, trainers, fans, and teammates, I appreciate all of the time and support you guys put in with me…it wasn’t the outcome that we wanted, but I’m thankful for the opportunity to fight on the biggest stage that there has been.”
Richardson, a two-time dunk contest champ, averaged 17.1 points across 857 career NBA games, and the 40-year-old guard would have probably thrived even more in the current game, which has trended toward his outside-shooting skill set since he last played in 2015.
Sanders, 32, will bring the size at 6’11” for a post presence help support the playmaking ability of Robinson and Richardson. The former NBA power forward averaged 6.4 points and 5.7 rebounds in 238 games for the Milwaukee Bucks and Cleveland Cavaliers from 2010 through 2017.
It’s a strong core three that should make Tri-State a threat during the three-on-three league’s upcoming campaign.
The 2021 BIG3 season is scheduled to tip off July 10 and run for 10 weeks, with a champion being crowned Sept. 4.