Youth, as the old saying goes, is wasted on the young.
Whether you attribute it to George Bernard Shaw or Oscar Wilde, the sentiment of wishing that the wisdom that comes with age could have been present during those peak years of youth remains the same. Rarely is that truer than in sports, where the crafty guile of a veteran mind would certainly benefit from the spry abilities of a rookie body.
At the same time, however, athletes from all walks of sporting life are playing well beyond ages once deemed “too old.” LeBron James, 39, will enter his 22nd NBA season in 2024-25 and play with his son Bronny after the Lakers took him Thursday in the second round of the NBA Draft.
The list goes on. Tom Brady won a Super Bowl for the Tampa Bay Bucs at age 43. Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals remains one of the NHL’s top players as he nears his 40th birthday. Diana Taurasi of the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury will be playing for her SIXTH Olympic gold medal later this summer in Paris at age 42.
Which brings us to one of our favorite new breakout endeavors at alphabeats – the BIG3 basketball league.
Co-founded in 2017 by rap legend-turned-actor Ice Cube (N.W.A., “Friday” movies), the BIG3 is a 12-team, 3-on-3 basketball league whose rosters are made up of former NBA and international players, many of whom were household names at points during their careers.
Though players as young as 22 are eligible to play in the BIG3, the majority of its players would be considered more of a basketball “senior tour.” The league’s coaches, meanwhile, consists of names as varied as recent retirees Stephen Jackson to living legends like Julius Erving and Nancy Lieberman.
The league’s brand of play is called “Fireball3,” which differs from the FIBA rules now found in the Olympics and features wrinkles such as four-point shots, three-point fouls shots and a sudden-death overtime to two points. The teams don’t represent cities but rather barnstorm the country as a group on Saturdays. The league tipped off its seventh season in late-June and today visits the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ.
At alphabeats, we’re firm believers that age is just a number. Numerous studies have shown that there is no real age “cutoff” to experiencing the benefits of neurofeedback and we welcome the opportunity to work with athletes across the spectrum of experience, particularly as opportunities like BIG3 basketball continue to flourish.
Ready to elevate your game? Join us at alphabeats and discover how our neurofeedback and music integration can transform your mental training. Because when you train your mind, you can achieve anything.