A three-on-three basketball league, led by famed pop star Jay Chou, held its founding press conference in Beijing on Tuesday, aiming to provide a venue for grassroots basketball lovers.

The JYB Three-on-Three Basketball League, co-founded by Jay Chou, Starz Sports International and PCG Bros, will absorb regulations, rules, points systems and commercial models from home and abroad, while combining music, entertainment and basketball, in a bid to build a competition platform for grassroots basketball players and music lovers.

Three-on-three basketball (3X3) is a form of the game played by three players a side on one hoop. Chou has been a basketball fan since he was young and his original song Bull is constantly used as background music in basketball competitions. Chou once played one-on-one with Kobe Bryant and Jeremy Lin.

Jay Chou spoke at the press conference on Tuesday. (Photos: Qu Qiuyan and Qiao Wai/People's Daily)

Similar to music, basketball could also serve as a language, which transcends cultures and regions, to connect all the Chinese around the world, said Chou at the press conference.

Lu Hao, president of Starz Sports International, told the press that he knows the importance of grassroots basketball lovers to basketball’s development in China, and will fully support the development of the JYB League and three-on-three basketball.

Those who attended the press conference also included American rapper Ice Cube, American retired professional basketball player Clyde Drexler, and JYP co-founder and head of Tmall’s business and operation department Liu Bo, among others.