Tag: Ice Cube

WATCH: Ice Cube and his son have love for Baltimore sports teams

Rap legend O’Shea Jackson, better known by his stage name Ice Cube, loves Baltimore sports team

Sports-wise, Rap legend O’Shea Jackson, better known as Ice Cube, goes bicoastal. The Los Angeles native loves his local teams out in SoCal.

However, he also loves both of Baltimore’s major pro teams. Appearing on the podcast hosted by Cal Ripken’s son, Cube praised (or I guess we could say Jackson praised) the Orioles hat.

“The hat to me is fire; the bird on the hat is fire,” he said while a photo of him wearing it appeared on the Ryan Ripken Show.

And his son, Shareef Jackson, loves Ray Lewis, the Ravens G.O.A.T.

“It was Ray Lewis and the Ravens all the way for him,” the former member of N.W.A. said while a picture of his son in a Ravens shirt appeared on the podcast.

“Still a big time ravens fan, loves Lamar, and Baltimore continues to be in our heart.”

Move over Biz Markie, as there is another member of the hip-hop community within the Ravens fanbase.

Caitlin Clark unsurprisingly deflects questions about Ice Cube and the BIG3’s $5 million offer

If you expected Caitlin to say anything else, we hate to break this news to you.

Caitlin Clark’s $5 million offer she received from Ice Cube and the BIG3 earlier this week has the internet buzzing. But Clark is seemingly unbothered by the noise or the actual offer, for that matter. She recently (and unsurprisingly) deflected any questions about it.

On Wednesday, news broke that Ice Cube and the BIG3 offered Caitlin Clark $5 million to play for their league. Fans immediately questioned the offer, given the conflicting season schedule with the WNBA and other factors that Ice Cube might not have considered.

During Friday’s media availability for the NCAA tournament, Iowa head coach Lisa Bluder was asked how Clark’s teammates handled the news. Bluder said it wasn’t a discussion point and that the only thing talked about was something Caitlin shared with her — a USA Basketball training camp invite for the Paris Olympics. When also asked about the offer, Caitlin deflected any questions but seemed to echo a similar sentiment.

Per ASAP Sports, here’s what she shared with reporters:

“I found out about the Big 3 thing at the exact time you all did, and my main focus is just on playing basketball. I think that’s the biggest thing. Like you said, USA Basketball is my — that’s your dream. You always want to grow up and be on the Olympic team, but lucky for me, I have the opportunity of possibly not doing that because I want to be at the Final Four playing basketball with my team.”

“But more than anything, my focus is on winning these two games, and that’s exactly how it should be. I honestly don’t talk about those things with really anybody. I have other people that deal with it, and they haven’t said a word to me about it.”

Caitlin Clark receives blockbuster $5 million offer from Ice Cube’s Big3 league

I gotta say it was a good day.

Throughout her entire athletics career, Caitlin Clark has shattered the mold for women’s sports. Whether it be for record-breaking play or record-breaking viewership, she has set the benchmark for collegiate women athletes.

Now, it appears as though she has an opportunity previously unthinkable for women in professional sports, to play with the men as an equal.

TMZ broke the news on Wednesday that Clark received a $5 million offer from Ice Cube’s Big3 league. This is no rumor either. The legendary hiphop artist confirmed the report with his post on X.

“We intended the offer to remain private while Caitlin Clark plays for the championship. But I won’t deny what’s now already out there: BIG3 made a historic offer to Caitlin Clark. Why wouldn’t we? Caitlin is a generational athlete who can achieve tremendous success in the BIG3,” Ice Cube wrote on X.

The rapper and movie star referenced the success that women such as Nancy Lieberman and Lisa Leslie have had in the Big3 league as coaches, expressing hopes for Clark to further break down barriers for women in professional basketball.

“The skeptics laughed when we made Nancy Lieberman the first female coach of a men’s pro team, and she won the championship in her first year. Then Lisa Leslie won it all in year two. With our offer, Caitlin Clark can make history and break down even more barriers for women athletes.

“America’s women athletes should not be forced to spend their offseasons playing in often dismal and dubious foreign countries just to make ends meet. And they should have more than just one professional option in the US at a time where American pro sports leagues are being infiltrated by autocratic, anti-women regimes such as Qatar. Our pathbreaking offer to Caitlin Clark demonstrates that BIG3 now offers another choice for athletes,” Ice Cube wrote.

In the original TMZ story, it is clear that the Big3 is not trying to poach Clark away from the WNBA. Rather, they seek to provide a better accompaniment to the WNBA than playing in European leagues, a path taken by most WNBA players during the offseason to make more money.

The way Ice Cube and the Big3 see it, this is a win-win-win for all three sides.

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Why Caitlin Clark likely won’t accept Ice Cube’s $5 million offer to play in the BIG3

We respect the hustle, but have some shame, Ice Cube. It’s okay to have shame.

Another day, another company vying for the chance to get in on the phenomenon that is Caitlin Clark. This time, it’s Ice Cube and the BIG3, offering to drop five million reasons why she should come play in their league.

We’ve been saying it, but Caitlin Clark has no shortage of money or offers to give her more moolah in exchange for her talents. Even with going to the WNBA, she’s picking up deals along the way. Now, she’ll have another one to consider. Ice Cube and his BIG3 basketball league want Caitlin to play for them.

According to TMZ, Cube is offering $5 million to Caitlin if she plays eight regular-season games and potentially two playoff games.

After details of the offer leaked, Ice Cube took to X (formerly Twitter) to plead his case and explain why the offer was made.

There’s just one problem: The Big3’s season — which starts in June — runs smack dab in the middle of the WNBA’s season. That means while the offer is substantial, but it’s likely more a gesture to show that the league understands Clark’s value.

Also, the current WNBA Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) prioritization clause, which requires players to prioritize the WNBA over other leagues, would complicate Clark’s involvement. This is part of the reason why several players go overseas or play in other leagues during the offseason.

Pair the schedule and CBA restrictions with the major injury risk Caitlin Clark would assume by getting involved with the BIG3, and it’s very easy to see why this is not entirely feasible right now. Things could change in the future, but for the moment, the offer merely brings a lot of positive publicity to the BIG3.

Ice Cube says the Lakers will win the NBA championship this season

Legendary rapper, actor and filmmaker Ice Cube boldly proclaimed that the Lakers will win it all this coming NBA season.

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It is common knowledge the Los Angeles Lakers have much of Hollywood and show business in general behind them.

Numerous celebrities are Lakers fans, or at least attend games from time to time. One die-hard fan of the Purple and Gold is O’Shea Jackson Sr., the rapper, songwriter, actor and filmmaker known to the public as Ice Cube.

He grew up in the Southland in the 1970s and 1980s as a fan of the Showtime Lakers, and he has been vocal in his support of the team ever since he became a household name. Most notably, he mentioned the team in his seminal hit from 1993 “It Was A Good Day.”

On a recent episode of ESPN’s “First Take,” Jackson was asked by Stephen A. Smith where the Lakers will end up this coming season, and he replied by simply saying “championship” (h/t Lakers Daily).

The Lakers miraculously turned their season around with some midseason trades that took them from a struggling, mediocre squad to one that reached the Western Conference finals.

They should be better this fall simply by virtue of retaining D’Angelo Russell, Rui Hachimura and Austin Reaves in free agency and having a full training camp together. But Los Angeles also added Gabe Vincent, Taurean Prince and Jaxson Hayes, who could fill some roster holes it had.

Perhaps a day in June 2024 will be a good day again for Ice Cube and the Lakers if the team ends up lifting the Larry O’Brien Trophy.

Sources close to the league claimed …

Sources close to the league claimed that Kaepernick’s investment would allow the league to continue operating. Multiple players with the BIG3 league had been preparing for a potential shutdown, sources told The Athletic. BIG3 is a 3-on-3 basketball league founded by Ice Cube and entertainment executive Jeff Kwatinetz. The league began in 2017 and consists of 12 teams. After the 2020 season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the league restarted in 2021. Team Trilogy — consisting of former NBA players including Jarrett Jack and Amir Johnson, coached by Stephen Jackson — won the league last year.

Even before Nigeria’s self-imposed …

Even before Nigeria’s self-imposed two-year ban from international basketball was announced last month, D’Tigers captain Ike Diogu saw the writing on the wall and joined Snoop Dogg’s Big3 team, Bivouac. Having previously turned down approaches to play in the Big3, a professional 3×3 league founded by rapper Ice Cube, in favour of national team duty, Diogu changed his mind this year and signed on after competing in the Basketball Africa League.

The 38-year-old former Golden State …