The NBA is being investigated by the United States Department of Justice over allegations the league attempted to sabotage Ice Cube’s Big3 league, according to TMZ Sports. The league has denied the allegations.

Ice Cube and Big3 co-founder Jeff Kwatinetz have met with Department of Justice lawyers regarding concerns the NBA may have engaged in anticompetitive behavior.

The allegations include the NBA interfering with sponsorship deals, discouraging television networks from broadcasting games, and making arbitrary rules to prevent players from joining the league, despite the NBA and Big3 seasons not overlapping.

The report also claims Big3 officials believe they have been “unfairly targeted by the NBA” and sources in the story say NBA owners have been discouraged from investing in Ice Cube’s league.

NBA spokesman Mike Bass told TMZ the allegations were “not true”.

“We have been supportive of the Big3 since its inception, but we declined to invest.”

The NBA would face a substantial fine if found guilty.

  • GillbergsAdvocate@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    2 years ago

    If the punishment is just a fine then this is kinda a non-story

    NBA is a multibillion dollar company, they’ll survive a fine

  • scifier2@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    2 years ago

    Ice Cube needs to get over himself. He cant handle the fact his Big 3 league was a joke and a failure. The reality was no one wants to pay to see old washed up players and players not good enough to make the league. He is mad because he went to the NBA for money and they said “not interested”.

  • paddiction@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    2 years ago

    So basically Ice Cube filed a complaint. Wasn’t he begging the NBA to bail him out a while ago?

  • GoatmontWaters@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    2 years ago

    The NBA will have to settle this. There is no shot they risk a trial jury to their fate vs a Celebrity.

  • stilloriginal@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    2 years ago

    I mean this ridiculous in-season tournament is just payback to the NCAA for allowing players to get paid…this isn’t shocking at all

  • goobdaddi@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    2 years ago

    I get it and I don’t. You’d think that the NBA would appreciate adding legs to former players careers. Unfortunately this is a business and I can also easily see them trying to flex their muscles and control it all. Why let another league make money they should be making? I have no idea how successful the Big3 is but if they’re not this is a clear example of how companies raise the barriers to entry to market.

  • milkonyourmustache@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    2 years ago

    Why would the NBA not sabotage it’s competition? I can believe this happened but that it would be extremely difficult to prove, nobody is going to go out on a limb for Big3 if it means being blackballed by the NBA