during week four of the BIG3 three on three basketball league at Wells Fargo Center on July 16, 2017 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Allen Iverson took a page from Derrick Rose’s book on Sunday and skipped out on the BIG3’s stop in Dallas. Iverson was one of the biggest names to join the new professional basketball league, but he’s played in only three of six games for a total of 27 minutes. In what was supposed to be a huge homecoming when the league visited Philadelphia two weeks ago, AI showed up to the arena but did not play due to injury, letting down 76ers fans everywhere.

But this weekend in Dallas was different as Iverson never even showed up, leaving DerMarr Johnson as the stand-in player coach and captain for 3’s Company. The league released this statement after Iverson’s no-show, via ESPN:

“We had no advance warning and do not have information as to all the circumstances surrounding his absence. The league is launching an investigation to gather all the facts and then will make an informed, official statement,” the league said.

With as underwhelming as the BIG3’s inaugural season has become, I don’t blame him. Along with Iverson, the league snagged some big former NBA names like Chauncey Billups and Kenyon Martin. But neither of those players has appeared in more than half of the games, leaving talented but less recognizable guys like Rashard Lewis and Mike Bibby as the league’s main forces.

As you can see, when Iverson and his nasty crossover aren’t involved, interest in the BIG3 wanes.

https://twitter.com/ahdubbie/status/891781912271912961

If the BIG3’s business model continues to rely on AI showing up, I can’t imagine the league stays around for long.

[ESPN]

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About Jesse Kramer

Jesse is a writer and editor for The Comeback. He has also worked for SI.com and runs The Catch and Shoot, a college basketball website based in Chicago. He is a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. Follow Jesse on Twitter @Jesse_Kramer.