Ice Cube was honored with an Impact Award at the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. Ironically, the ceremony occurred on MLK Day inside the Springfield, Massachusetts, shrine to the game. O’Shea Jackson has been working on his dream of more professional opportunities for veteran basketball players and Black ownership in professional basketball.
At first, it seemed the award was a strategy coordinated by the NBA to offer an olive branch to the BIG3 League co-founder. After all, Ice Cube has claimed that the NBA has been blackballing the BIG3’s ability to land top sponsors for his 3-on-3 league. The Department of Justice is taking the claims seriously and investigating the NBA late last year for potential antitrust violations.
However, on Nov. 14, the Naismith Basketball Hall Of Fame announced that it is starting the award, recognizing people working to improve their community and using basketball to help kids. Ice Cube is the award’s first recipient, and he will chair the now annual award, overseeing the selection committee for future award nominations.
“Its an award that I get the first on, but we are going to give it out every year to people who’ve made a positive impact using the game of basketball so I’m out here because it’s a huge honor for me, and its great to be able to interact with the community as well,” Ice Cube said to Western Mass News.
The NBA wasn’t ready for a 3-on-3 tournament fueled by a more authentic, nontraditional voice. Ice Cube holds himself accountable as a leader within the Black community, which compels fans to support BIG3 along with its entertaining game play.
“The Hall of Fame team enjoyed meeting and honoring Ice Cube as we welcomed him to the Hall of Fame family. We look forward to utilizing Cube’s platform in both entertainment and basketball to discover and celebrate people in challenged communities nationally who are using basketball as a lever to improve their neighborhoods, and more importantly, help guide young people by reinforcing positive life skills through their love of the game,” said John Doleva, president/CEO of Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in a release.
Ice Cube’s value to the basketball world is now enshrined in the place every player hopes to land at the end of their career. Fittingly, Ice Cube makes retirement a choice more than a guaranteed early outcome, and the NBA should align with BIG3 now or get out of the way of progress.
