Explanation:
this is strangely phrased.
I understand it in the following way (and base my solution on that) :
a new basketball league is being formed with teams consisting of 3 players. a total of 30 individuals qualify to be on a specific team. how many different formations can be formed for this team ?
these are combinations (the order does not matter) without repetition :
30 over 3 (in how many ways can I create groups of 3 out of the 30 individuals).
that means
30! / (3! × (30-3)!) = 30×29×28 / 3! = 30×29×28 / 6 =
= 5×29×28 = 4,060
the order does not matter, because a team formation with the players A, B, C is the same as e.g. C, A, B.
and no repetition, because no individual can be twice or three times in the same team formation. e.g. A, A, A is not a valid team formation.
if my understanding of the question is wrong, please let me know, so that I can correct the solution.