5 THINGS FIBA 3-ON-3
The FIBA 3x3 World Tour returns to Saskatoon this weekend for a second straight year. Darren Zary looks at five things to know about the event, which begins today at noon in downtown Saskatoon at the intersection of 21st Street and Fourth Avenue
1.
THE WORLD’S ON STAGE
The Saskatoon three-on-three basketball championship will feature 12 teams from across the world with the host Saskatoon team being joined by representatives from Canada, Serbia, United States, Mongolia, Latvia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
There are four pools with three teams each. Host Saskatoon will play round robin pool games at 3:15 p.m. and 5 p.m. against Riga (Latvia) and Montreal (Canada).
Playoffs begin Sunday at 12:30 p.m. with the championship final slated for 4:15 p.m.
Saskatoon is the first stop on the 2018 FIBA 3x3 World Tour Masters calendar. Nine other tournaments follow in Japan, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Hungary, Mexico, India, China, Malaysia and again in China.
2.
QUICK AND FAST-PACED
It’s loud. It’s fast. It’s over in a flash.
Teams include a roster of four players, including a substitute available on the sidelines. Games are over once a team reaches 21 points. Otherwise, games are 10 minutes long with a 12-second shot clock and no halftime.
There is non-stop music playing, play-by-play public address announcing and fan engagement. Games are played in an urban setting.
There is no in-game coaching.
3.
SKILL COMPETITIONS
Sunday’s lineup will include a shootout contest at 2:30 p.m. and dunk contest at 3:45 p.m.
Winner of the dunk contest will receive $2,500. Runners-up will each receive $500.
The shootout winner gets $500 and, if he sets a record with more than 15 points, a $5,000 bonus. If he shoots a perfect record and 21 points, he gets another $10,000.
Team Saskatoon’s Steve Sir, who played for the NBA Milwaukee Bucks’ summer league squad, won the shootout contests in Lausanne in 2017 and Beijing in 2017. He still holds the NCAA college record for best three-point percentage.
Team Liman’s Stefan Stojacic, 29, was the shootout winner in Saskatoon last year. Stojacic won a world U19 basketball championship back in 2007 when Serbia defeated the United States and Stojacic out-scored future NBA star Stephen Curry.
“I got really lucky that game,” Stojacic says.
4.
MO’ GAMES, MO’ MONEY
The FIBA World Tour added two tournaments to its schedule in 2018 and increased prize money from $400,000 to $1 million (U.S.).
The winning team will receive $30,000. Runner-up gets $20,000. Third place includes a $12,000 payout and fourth place means $8,000.
“We’re excited for the World Tour season to kick off in Saskatoon,” said FIBA event manager Ignacio Soriano.
A Most Valuable Player will be named by FIBA at the end of the event as well as a Most Spectacular Player as selected by fans on social media.
5.
LOOKING TO ADVANCE
Teams will be competing for a ticket to the FIBA Masters Tour final.
The top 12 teams in the World Tour season standings — including the winners of each Masters event — qualify for the final.
Serbia’s Zemun won the World Tour in 2017, while Slovakia’s Ljubljana, which won the Saskatoon event last summer, was the World Tour champ in 2016.
Last year, the host Saskatoon squad was the runner-up in the inaugural FIBA 3x3 World Tour Masters event in Saskatchewan.
Saskatoon has a pair of FIBA World Tour wins ( World Tour Chicago, 2014) and Lausanne Masters (2016) as well as four second-place finishes (World Tour San Juan 2013, World Tour Tokyo Final 2014, World Tour Prague 2016 and World Tour Masters Saskatoon 2017).