BIG3 announces new sport FIREBALL3 for 4th season

The BIG3 is undergoing some big changes for its fourth season.

On Wednesday, the three-on-three basketball league announced the creation of a new global sport called FIREBALL3, which will use an all-red basketball.

"There are a lot of sports out there that require similar skill sets, like MMA and boxing, football and rugby, baseball and cricket. Our fans let us know that we were playing something extremely unique, FIREBALL3, which is nothing like the typical three-on-three FIBA game coming to the Olympics," BIG3 co-founder Ice Cube said.

"We've needed the freedom to keep innovating without potential new fans thinking it was typical three-on-three. Plus, we didn't want our deep love and respect for the NBA to be misinterpreted by our use of different rules," Ice Cube added. "We could never compete with the NBA any more than we could compete with the NFL or FIFA. We are the BIG3, our own unique thing. But that doesn't mean FIREBALL3 can't coexist with these sports and still be many fans' favorite sport."

Other changes introduced for the upcoming season include lowering the minimum age from 27 to 22, holding open tryouts for the public to qualify for the BIG3 combine, and allowing teams to challenge a foul call with an in-game one-on-one possession.