Ice Cube’s Big3 basketball league has signed a joint venture deal with Triller, CNBC reported on Thursday (June 3). The league returns this summer with an eight-week regular season, one week of playoffs and a championship game scheduled for Sept. 4.
Per the new deal, Triller will host the league’s first all-star game and share advertising revenue from league events. According to the outlet, both companies will also share signage at events and work to cross-promote each other.
Cube founded Big3 with entertainment executive Jeff Kwatinetz back in 2017. The traveling circuit league plays over the summer in a three-on-three format and features former NBA stars. In a joint statement, Cube and Kwatinetz said they hope the partnership with Triller will help Big3 better reach a Gen Z audience. The deal is the “perfect combination of sports and entertainment for that demographic,” they said, which includes viewers ages 6 through 24.
According to CNBC, Triller will also unveil 30 hours of exclusive content surrounding the Big3, including the league’s draft on June 14. The acquisition reportedly arrives as the social media company moves to add more sports video content to its platform.
“There’s nothing as fun and fast in sports as Big3 basketball and once you watch one game, you’ll be hooked,” Triller co-owner Ryan Kavanaugh said in a statement. “We are excited to partner with Ice Cube and the Big3 organization to bring this exciting and growing sport to Triller audiences around the world.”
Earlier this year, Swizz Beatz and Timbaland also announced the sale of their popular Verzuz series to Triller. With the partnership, Swizz and Timbo were also named brand visionaries at Triller’s Verzuz management team, became significant shareholders and allocated equity stakes in the company to the 43 artists who have participated in Verzuz.
Ice Cube celebrated his own Triller deal with a tweet on Thursday, writing, “Big3 signs deal with Triller” and a popping champagne bottle emoji. See his tweet below.