Bring On 3-on-3

The rules are clearly designed to mimic pickup basketball: Only half the court is used, there is an obscenely short 12-second shot clock, and games last 10-minutes. However, it’s the amended point system that will garner the most attention: A traditional 3-point shot is worth two points in this format, while any other field goal is worth one. Free throws on shooting fouls work same way: a player fouled on a lay-up will be awarded one free throw instead of two. This simplified system is the norm for informal pickup play, but the implications are particularly interesting at the Olympic level.

The first possible effect is shot selection. Since the ratio of long-range to short-range shots is now 2:1 rather than 3:2, it’s in any given team’s best interest to hoist the ball from distance. However, based on the ever-rising popularity and general effectiveness of long-distance shots in the NBA—the Houston Rockets hit more threes this year than any other team in history, while Steph Curry continues to launch them at a record-breaking individual rate—that’s not a hard sell. The mid-range jumper will be particularly devalued in this format, though it is statistically questionable at any level. The 21st century principle that 5-on-5 teams need to make the deep shot and finish around the rim to be successful merely remains true.

Which leads to the second point of interest: the kind of player that 3-on-3 ball will enable. Since there will be significantly fewer players on the court (four, to be exact—and yes, I did that math on my own), this stage will emphasize the ability to capitalize on spacing the floor, through crisp passing and creating one’s own shot off the dribble. Length and mobility will also be key, because defenders will need to be agile enough to defend outside, but long enough protect the rim on the inside. So let’s break that down: A player at this level will need to 1) shoot well, 2) handle the ball well, 3) finish around the basket well, 4) pass well, and 5) defend well all over the court. Coincidentally it seems that “the ideal 3-on-3 basketball player” is also “the ideal basketball player,” which is convenient for the numerous players with such talent who thought they might not be qualified. Breathe easy, my friends. Your skills will transfer nicely.

It’s fairly certain that what will occur on the court will be loosely recognizable as normal basketball. The real questions of value, then, are broader in scope, the first of which is, who exactly will be allowed to play? If professional athletes are allowed to participate, then an ideal American trio would look something like LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Steph Curry, especially in light of the fact that they are arguably the three best basketball players in the world. Unfortunately, LeBron has already stated that he’s a fan but he won’t be participating,.

Draymond Green also expressed his love for 3-on-3 basketball, as well as his hope to be ineligible to play. “I grew up playing street ball, so to have 3-on-3 a part of the Olympics, I think it’s also something guys can win that are not pro athletes,” he said. He might get his wish: FIBA has yet to announce whether pros will be eligible to compete. NBC’s Dan Patrick has suggested they won’t be.

A final speculative question concerns the relationship between a country’s 5-on-5 and 3-on-3 rosters. If pros were allowed to play, will countries be allowed to double-dip, so to speak, employing the same player on two teams? If not, then some countries might have a tough job in deciding which team will take precedence. To illustrate this possible dilemma, let’s assume that professional athletes are allowed to play. Then take a country like Greece, who, with the help of a young virtuoso like Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks, might qualify for the Olympic games in 5-on-5, but lack the depth to compete against the world’s basketball powerhouses. Couldn’t it be tempting for those nations to put aside convention and choose to compete in the auxiliary sport where they might actually have a chance for a gold medal instead of competing in the traditional format?

Spain has consistently fielded competitive basketball teams over the past few Olympics, but its stars are aging, and it is unlikely that they will win gold anytime in the near future. Pragmatically speaking, it wouldn’t be outrageous to think even they, the second-most dominant basketball nation in recent years, could be allured by the possibility of winning gold in the new event, rather than chasing an improbable dream of defeating the USA. Not to mention, who wouldn’t avoid running up and down the hardwood for hours in favor of 10 minutes of half-court basketball?

Sounds like an opportunity to have fun and avoid cardiovascular stress, which is the reason pickup basketball exists in the first place, right?