Jerome Williams played in the NBA for Detroit, Toronto, Chicago, and the New York Knicks. Before he made the big-time, he spent years developing his game on neighborhood basketball courts. He no doubt participated in some 3-on-3 games on the hardtops, and the 6-9 former post player now works for the Big3 professional 3-on-3 league, where he has two key jobs.
Williams is an assistant coach for the Power team that had the league’s best regular season record and plays in the Big3 Finals Friday night in Brooklyn’s Barclays Center. He also helms the league’s Young3 program, a series of basketball clinics provided to children the Thursday before each Big3 tour stop.
This blog post’s video interview with Williams (aka The Junkyard Dog) was conducted in Long Beach, New York at a basketball court built through the efforts of a charity affiliated with Power’s head coach Nancy Lieberman. Williams and his colleagues conducted a bonus clinic for local kids there that morning, and he discusses the mission of the Young3, his team’s chances Friday in the title game, and the Big3 in general.
