Brown talks BIG3, one-and-done rule and life after the NBA
Kwame Brown has heard it all.
The former No. 1 pick in 2001 by the Washington Wizards is commonly referred to as one of the biggest busts in league by NBA pundits. After averaging 6.6 points and 5.5 rebounds over a 12-year NBA career, Brown retired.
However, the BIG3, a three-on-three basketball league composed of former NBA players, gave him a chance to get back on the court. Brown was in Tulsa on Sunday, where the BOK Center played host to the third week of the BIG3. He spoke with The Oklahoman about the BIG3, his perception as a bust and life after the NBA.
Q: What was your reaction when they initially contacted you and asked you to be a part of this?
A: “Like everybody else, you hear 3-on-3 and you don’t know what to expect. Once I went out to the combine and saw who was a part of it — Ice Cube is not going to put his name on something that’s not first class and it’s been first class the whole way.”
“I think it will be a big thing. I think bigger names are gonna come in next year, and guys are gonna see that it’s real basketball and it’s not just people fooling around. Especially when you get to playoff time. You’re gonna see the intensity kick up, and things are gonna be a little more serious. Especially now that it’s going to be in the Olympics.”
People obviously know you as the No. 1 pick that maybe didn’t live up to those high expectations, but you stayed in the NBA for several seasons. Do you think people need to look at it a little differently?
“You’ve just got to let people be people. They’re gonna have an opinion. Boxers go through it. Basketball players go through it. People don’t know what it’s like to live the grind and make it to the NBA or make it to become a judge or a lawyer or something that’s a specialty thing. They’re gonna always be in awe and always have an opinion. It’s just an opinion.”
You were 18 when you entered the NBA and getting to interact with Michael Jordan. What was that like?
“It’s a different experience. It was unbelievable. I was just as much in awe as everyone else having such a legend standing next to you. But it kind of stunted my growth in a sense because I never really got the chance to take over a team like a No. 1 draft pick is groomed to do, but I have no complaints. He gave me an opportunity, and I don’t disrespect people that give me opportunities whether it came out great or whether it didn’t. My life changed and my family changed because of it, so I’m always going to be grateful for that.”
Now players can’t do what you did and enter the NBA straight from high school. Do you think that’s how it should be or they should change it back?
“I don’t understand why they (took it away) in the first place. You look at all the top players in the NBA as it stands right now, they’re either high school players or one-and-done players. Kobe Bryant is gonna go down as one of the best players to ever play out of high school. LeBron James, out of high school. Kevin Durant spent five months on a college campus. Carmelo spent five months on a college campus. The list goes on. I think they just like to bring my name up to prove a point, which doesn’t really get proved because I played 12 years in the NBA. I don’t see how going to college would’ve gave me a better life than I have right now. It’s all relative to your opinion.”
Another thing to factor in is the pressure on a player so young. You’ve got this media attention and everything else. Was that a little overwhelming for you?
“I stopped listening to the media. Media is not about basketball anymore. If you look at any media outlets, it’s not about X’s and O’s. I always go back to the Kris Porzingis thing. They love him now, but when they first drafted Kris Porzingis because they didn’t know who he was, everybody thought they were tanking the season and trying to go for picks and they hated this kid before he even touched a basketball. The media now, they sway perceptions before a guy even gets a chance to be who he is. I think it needs to go back old school with less media and just let people play the game.”