Germantas Kneita
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The recent highlight of the All-Star Weekend returns once more tonight. The Starry 3-point contest is arguably the only event left on All-Star Saturday that does not deter the biggest names in the league from competing, unlike the Slam Dunk Contest. The competition involves players shooting from 5 different racks, one of which they designate as their money-ball rack worth double the points. There are also 2 Starry Ball shots from deep 3-point range that are worth 3 points. Each contestant gets 70 seconds to get all of their shots up. Everybody takes part in the first round, with the top 3 scorers from there moving on to the final round — where they go again.
With the format down, let’s dive into some of the favorites below.
Damian Lillard +420
Damian Lillard returns to the 3-point contest to defend the crown that he was able to win last year. Lillard did so by scoring 26 in both rounds, but he might struggle to recreate that form tonight. He is not having a great year shooting the deep ball this season, with his 3-point percentage dropping from 37.1% last year to 34.1% this time around. This will be his 4th appearance in this competition, too, win 1 win to date — so it is not one that he has dominated in the past. Lillard is also shooting at just a 33.8% clip this season on 3-point catch and shoot 3-pointers. That could really hinder him tonight. It is hard to see him repeating.
Tyrese Haliburton +440
Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton has been an incredibly consistent shooting the ball from deep since he has come into the league. This season, like every one before, he is once again shooting at a 40% clip or above. That rate goes up to 44.9% on catch and shoot 3-pointers. We have already seen how effective that can be in this competition, with the guard scoring an incredible 31 points in the opening round of this competition last year. In the final he came in cold, taking a couple of racks to get going. With experience in this competition under his belt now, look for him to be better prepared this time around. His shooting form looks like it takes minimum effort too, with Haliburton barely jumping on his shots. That should allow for consistency throughout both rounds tonight.
Karl-Anthony Towns +700
One previous winner that is being slept on seems to be Karl-Anthony Towns. He won the competition in 2022, scoring 29 points in the final round. Considering that this season he is shooting at the best 3-point clip of his career, knocking down 43.7% of his attempts this season, he should not be overlooked tonight. That percentage goes up to 44.5% on catch and shoot deep balls. He is similar to Haliburton in that he barely moves on his jump shots, which allows for great consistency. On wide open 3-pointers this season he is also making 49.6% of his attempts. It should allow him to score at least 20-points in the opening round. That would give him a great chance of making the final, where he has delivered before. He is a dark horse for this contest, and worth a look.
Final prediction: Tyrese Haliburton (+420)
In the end, I am going with Haliburton. He is having a terrific season and will be very familiar with these rims, playing in front of his home crowd. We have seen a big performance from him in this competition before and on his second attempt, I expect him to be more consistent. I’m backing the hometown hero to keep the 3-point trophy in Indiana at the end of the night.
