The Spurs legend coached his team, the Ghost Ballers, in a tough matchup against Tri-State, which featured fellow NBA Hall of Famer Julius "Dr. J" Erving as coach.
Stakes were high for the game: the winner would head to this season's playoffs, while the loser would go home. Adding to the expectations, the Ghost Ballers reached the semifinals last season, and the BIG3 — a three-on-three basketball league founded in 2017 by hip-hop star and actor Ice Cube — named Gervin last season's Coach of the Year.
But, in the end, Tri-State seized a 50-34 victory. A BIG3 game ends when a team reaches 50 points.
Leading the Ghost Ballers in scoring were former L.A. Clipper Mike Taylor and former Minnesota Timberwolf Chris Johnson with 13 points each. One-time Utah Jazz player Kevin Murphy led Tri-State with 22 points and ended the game with a four-pointer, an optional field goal that's a feature of the BIG3 league.
During the game, Gervin elected to challenge a pair of calls. When a BIG3 issues a challenge, they hit a button on the scorer’s table, which triggers a player from each team going one-on-one to decide if the call will stand. The league calls the move “Bring the Fire,” and it sets off pyrotechnics inside the arena.
Besides the BIG3 players and coaches, other stars in the building included league founder Ice Cube, NBA Hall of Famer and BIG3 commissioner Clyde Drexler, former Spurs champion Avery Johnson and current Spurs players Jeremy Sochan and Sidy Cissoko.
Earlier this summer, the BIG3 league announced that a format change for its 2025 season that will have teams play for specific markets. Gervin will coach a team based in Detroit since that's his hometown.
"The entire team … and I are thrilled to bring a BIG3 franchise to the Motor City," Gervin said in a statement. "My experience as part of the BIG3 these past few seasons has shown me that the league is at the forefront of three-on-three basketball's increasing growth and global traction.”
The BIG3’s two-week-long playoffs begin on August 11 and end with the championship game on August 18. Games air live on CBS, Paramount+ and X.
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