Colin Kaepernick Not Investing in Ice Cube’s BIG3 League Despite Reports

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Former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick won’t be helping to keep Ice Cube’s BIG3 in operation despite previous reports, a representative told The Athletic on Thursday.

Kaepernick was reported to be investing in the three-on-three basketball league, “which was on the verge of potentially shutting down,” according to The Athletic and Stadium’s Shams Charania on Wednesday.

The news comes as Kaepernick is working toward an NFL comeback.

The former San Francisco 49ers quarterback, who has not appeared in an NFL game since the 2016 season, the same year he began kneeling during the national anthem to protest police brutality and racial injustice, worked out for the Las Vegas Raiders in May.

Raiders starting quarterback Derek Carr endorsed Kaepernick while speaking with reporters in June. However, he has not been signed.

“I don’t want to speak for everybody in that kind of sense—I don’t want someone mad at me for saying, ‘I think it would be great,’—but I know him and I would get along great,” Carr said. “I know we have in the past, and I think we would again. I think for the most part, I think he’d get along great with our guys.”

As for the BIG3, it was founded by Ice Cube and entertainment executive Jeff Kwatinetz in 2017. The league consists of 12 teams, which compete in an eight-week season before advancing to the playoffs.

The BIG3 also has an All-Star Weekend, like many professional leagues do, but it occurs after the season has concluded.

NBA Hall of Famer Clyde Drexler serves as the BIG3’s commissioner, and the league also features a number of former NBA players, including Mario Chalmers, Ricky Davis, Josh Powell, Cuttino Mobley, Amir Johnson and Joe Johnson.