Big Three

Big Three is a term used colloquially to refer to the three most prominent entities in any given grouping or subject. It may refer to:

Business and education

• Big Three (automobile manufacturers), describing major manufacturers in different countries
• Big Three (colleges): Harvard, Yale, and Princeton
• Big Three (management consultancies): McKinsey, Bain & Company, and Boston Consulting Group
• Big Three (credit rating agencies): Standard & Poor's, Moody's, and Fitch Group
• Big Three television networks: ABC, CBS, and NBC
• Big Three (law), a term used in New Zealand to refer to its three largest law firms: Bell Gully, Chapman Tripp, and Russell McVeagh
• Big Three in the US telephone companies, AT&T Inc, Verizon, and CenturyLink
• The world's three largest airlines: American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and United Airlines; by passengers carried, passenger-kilometres flown, and fleet size.

Music

• The Big Three (English band), a Merseybeat band of the early 1960s
• The Big 3 (folk group), a folk trio of the early 1960s composed of Cass Elliot, Tim Rose, and James Hendricks
  • The Big 3 (The Big 3 album)
• The Big Three Trio, a blues trio composed of Willie Dixon, Leonard Caston, and Bernardo Dennis
• The Big 3 (Milt Jackson album), 1975

Sports

• Big Three (Netherlands), the nickname for the three most successful association football clubs in the Netherlands
• Big Three (Portugal), the nickname for the three most successful association football clubs in Portugal
• Big Three (Turkey), the nickname for the three most successful association football clubs in Turkey
• Big Three (Miami Heat), trio of basketball stars for the Miami Heat in the National Basketball Association
• The trio of players of the Boston Celtics NBA Franchise during the 1980s consisting of Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, and Robert Parish
• The trio of players of the Milwaukee Bucks NBA Franchise from 1998-2002 consisting of Glenn Robinson, Ray Allen, and Sam Cassell
• The trio of players of the San Antonio Spurs NBA Franchise consisting of Tim Duncan, Manu Ginóbili, and Tony Parker
• The trio of players of the Miami Heat NBA Franchise from 2010-2014 consisting of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh
• The trio of players of the Los Angeles Lakers NBA Franchise from 2008-2011 consisting of Kobe Bryant, Lamar Odom, and Pau Gasol
• The trio of players of the Boston Celtics NBA Franchise from 2007 to 2012 consisting of Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen
• The trio of players of the Cleveland Cavaliers NBA Franchise since 2014 consisting of LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love
• The trio of players of the Los Angeles Lakers NBA Franchise from 2008-2011 consisting of Kobe Bryant, Lamar Odom, and Pau Gasol
• The trio of players of the Chicago Bulls NBA Franchise since 2014 consisting of Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, and Pau Gasol
• The trio of players of the Melbourne Storm NRL Franchise consisting of Cameron Smith, Billy Slater, and Cooper Cronk
• The trio of starting pitchers of the Oakland Athletics MLB franchise from 1999-2006 consisting of Tim Hudson, Mark Mulder, and Barry Zito
• Big Three (cricket) India, England, Australia close to becoming International Cricket Council's 'Big Three'
• The trio of defensemen for the Montreal Canadiens NHL franchise from 1973-1980 consisting of Larry Robinson, Serge Savard and Guy Lapointe

Technology

• Rule of three (C++ programming), or The Big Three, a rule of thumb in programming
• The trio of video game consoles of varying eras, see also console wars
  • 5th generation: PlayStation, Sega Saturn, and Nintendo 64
  • 6th generation: PlayStation 2, Xbox, and Nintendo Gamecube
  • 7th generation: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and Wii
  • 8th generation: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Wii U

Other

• The leaders of the three major Allies of World War II
• The star characters of the cult classic film Windy City Heat
• A term given to One Piece, Naruto and Bleach: three popular anime and manga series from Weekly Shōnen Jump
• In infectious disease, Malaria, HIV/AIDS, and Tuberculosis are called this, sometimes in contrast to neglected tropical diseases.

See also

• Big One (disambiguation)
• Big Two (disambiguation)
• Little Three
• Big Four (disambiguation)
• Big Five (disambiguation)
• Big Six (disambiguation)
• Big Seven (disambiguation)
• Big Eight (disambiguation)
• Big Ten (disambiguation)
• Big 11
• Big 12