Looking at the 5 major Big 3s in NBA history that could've been great, but didn't play together long enough

#3 Russell Westbrook, Paul George and Carmelo Anthony - OKC Thunder

Photo Credit: Sue Ogrocki/Associated Press.

A trio of reigning NBA MVP Russell Westbrook, Paul George and Carmelo Anthony were exciting prospects for OKC Thunder fans when the organization landed George and Anthony from Indiana and New York, respectively, in 2017.

Although Anthony was already entering a different phase of his career, in which he was not the superstar he used to be, he was still coming off an All-Star appearance in 2017.

Westbrook, George and Anthony led the team to a 48-34 record in the regular season and put it in the Top 10 in both Offensive and Defensive Ratings. However, the team's quest for playoff success fell apart in the first round of the postseason, at the hands of the Utah Jazz and a rookie Donovan Mitchell.

Anthony was traded in the 2018 offseason, while Westbrook and George were together for another season, but a similar fate awaited them in the postseason. Both were traded by OKC in the summer of 2019, officially ending an era at OKC.

#2 Chris Mullin, Latrell Sprewell and Chris Webber - Golden State Warriors

Chris Webber was drafted by the Orlango Magic with the first pick of the 1993 NBA Draft and was traded to the Golden State Warriors, mainly for Penny Hardaway. The trade paired Webber with sophomore Latrell Sprewell and veteran Chris Mullin.

Together, coached by Don Nelson, the trio gave the Golden State Warriors 50 wins in the 1993-94 season and a postseason appearance. Webber averaged 17.5 points and nine rebounds per game to win the Rookie of the Year award, while Sprewell was an All-NBA first-teamer with averages of 21 points, five rebounds and five assists per game.

Mullin, on his side, appeared on 62 regular-season games and gave Golden State 16.8 points, 5.6 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game. Their postseason ended quickly, at the hand of Charles Barkley's Phoenix Suns, and their stint together also ended quickly, with Webber forcing a trade due to issues with coach Nelson.

A short-lived Big Three with two Hall-of-Famers and a four-time All-Star who was definitely solid throughout his NBA career should've certainly had more action together on the court.

#1 Joel Embiid, Jimmy Butler and Ben Simmons - Philadelphia 76ers

Ben Simmons #25, Joel Embiid #21, and Jimmy Butler #23 of the Philadelphia 76ers in 2019.

The Philadelphia 76ers are immersed in a big situation regarding Ben Simmons' status and his desire of not returning to the team, according to reports. The situation has turned into a big mess, and the 76ers could be looking at the end of the Simmons-Joel Embiid era.

Although the team is coming off a season in which it grabbed the first seed in the Eastern Conference, the best chance it had to really compete for an NBA title came in the 2018-19 NBA season, after acquiring Jimmy Butler from the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The move gave the young Embiid-Simmons core an experienced leader in Butler, and the team put up a solid 51-31 record and was the third seed in the East. The team was stacked, with Tobias Harris and J.J. Redick contributing tremendously too.

Embiid and Simmons were All-Stars, and the Cameroonian center also earned All-NBA and All-Defensive recognition. However, the postseason dream ended at the hands of Kawhi Leonard's Toronto Raptors and the famous buzzer-beater in Game 7 of the second round that ended the Big Three's run.

Butler left Philly after a sign-and-trade and went to the Miami Heat in the 2019 NBA Free Agency before leading the team to the 2020 NBA Finals, while the Sixers are yet to reach the Conference Finals with Embiid and Simmons leading it, and aren't likely to keep that core.