A huge spectacle is just around the corner!
During the 82-game season, the NBA players rarely take a breather. That changes for many players this weekend. Because from Friday to Sunday (February 17 to February 19), the 72nd All-Star Weekend will take place in the Vivint Smart Home Arena (Salt Lake City). Most of the players have time to rest, the best players in the league can look forward to a weekend full of spectacle.
NBA All-Star Weekend schedule
In the home arena of the Utah Jazz, the all-star weekend began on Saturday night with the “Celebrity Game”. The 28 most promising talents in the NBA and G-League then competed in the “Rising Stars Challenge”.
On Sunday night there are three highlights for NBA fans: the “Skills Challenge”, the “Three Point Contest” and the Dunk Contest. It starts at 2 a.m. on Sunday.
The long-awaited “NBA All-Star Game” will finally take place on Monday from 2 a.m.
The NBA All-Star Weekend schedule at a glance:
| Event | German time |
|---|---|
| Celebrity Game | Saturday, 2/18/23, 1 a.m |
| Rising Stars Challenge | Saturday, 2/18/23, 3 p.m |
| Skills Challenge | Today at 2 o’clock |
| Three-Point-Contest | Today after the skills challenge |
| Dunk Contest | Today after the three point contest |
| All-Star-Game | Monday, 2/18/23, 2 a.m |
NBA-All-Star-Game
The All-Star Game is THE big highlight of this weekend. On Monday night, the 24 best basketball players in the world meet in a show match. The fans, players and media representatives determined the ten starters of the All-Star-Games via a survey.
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These players received the most votes from fans, players and media:
Eastern Conference: Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks), Kyrie Irving (damals Brooklyn Nets mittlerweile Dallas Mavericks), Donovan Mitchell (Cleveland Cavaliers), Jayson Tatum, (Boston Celtics), Kevin Durant* (damals Brooklyn Nets mittlerweile Phoenix Suns)
Eastern Conference coach is Joe Mazzulla (Boston Celtics).
Western Conference: LeBron James (Los Angeles Lakers), Nikola Jokic (Denver Nuggets), Stephen Curry* (Golden State Warriors), Luka Doncic (Dallas Mavericks), Zion Williamson* (New Orleans Pelicans)
The Western Conference coach is Michael Malone (Denver Nuggets).
*missing due to injuries
The other All-Stars are: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City Thunder), Damian Lillard (Portland Trail Blazers), Paul George (Los Angeles Clippers), Lauri Markkanen (Utah Jazz), Ja Morant, Jaren Jackson Jr. (for Memphis Grizzlies), Domantas Sabonis, De’Aaron Fox (for Sacramento Kings) Anthony Edwards (Minnesota Timberwolves), Jaylen Brown (Boston Celtics), Joel Embiid (Philadelphia 76ers), Demar DeRozan (Chicago Bulls), Julius Randle (New York). Knicks, Jrue Holiday (Milwaukee Bucks), Tyrese Haliburton (Indiana Pacers), Bam Adebayo (Miami Heat), Pascal Siakam (Toronto Raptors)
De’Aaron Fox, Anthony Edwards and Pascal Siakam have all been called up after Steph Curry, Kevin Durant and Zion Williamson were injured.
Are the teams set yet?
No! As the players with the most votes from the voting, LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo have already been determined as captains of each team.
It is not yet known which players will be on the field alongside the two superstars.
Only this much is clear: Before the All-Star Game there will be a draft in which James and Antetokounmpo can put together their team from the remaining 22 All-Stars.
They will first determine the reservists of their teams. Only then do they select the players they want to start the game with.
By the way: Since the inception of the All-Star Draft five years ago, LeBron James has been one of the two captains and has won each of the five All-Star Games.
What is the mode of the NBA All-Star Game?
Since 2020, the All-Star Game has had its own mode, which is intended to ensure more intensity and excitement in the show match. For this purpose, the first quarters are played over the usual 12 minutes. The special thing about this: Each of the three quarters is played individually and a winner is determined. At the beginning of a new quarter, the points of both teams are reset to zero.
For winning a quarter, teams will receive $100,000 to donate to an organization of their choice.
Everything changes in the fourth quarter: Because the last quarter is not played over 12 minutes, but ends when a team reaches a predetermined target number of points. The so-called “Target Score” results from the points scored in the first three quarters and an additional 24 points, which are added to the previously scored points in honor of the late NBA legend Kobe Bryant (41†).
The team that achieves the “Target Score” first wins the “All-Star Game”. In addition, the winner receives 200,000 US dollars, which can be donated to a good cause.
Slam Dunk Contest
In the “Dunk Contest” some of the best athletes in the NBA compete against each other and try to put the ball in the basket in creative and spectacular ways. Players have multiple attempts to show their best dunks. The dunks will be judged by a panel of judges this year consisting of Jamal Crawford, Lisa Leslie, Karl Malone, Harold Miner and Dominique Wilkins.
Here are the best dunks in the history of the competition.
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The participants of the “Slam Dunk Contest” 2023:
Kenyon Martin Jr. (Houston Rockets)
Trey Murphy III. (New Orleans Pelicans)
Mac McClung (Philadelphia 76ers)
Jericho Sims (New York Knicks)
Three-Point-Contest
In the “Three Point Contest”, eight NBA stars compete against each other and determine the best long-range shooter in the league. The competition has been part of the All-Star Weekend since 1986.
The goal is to hit as many shots as possible from behind the three-point line within a given time. Last year, the players had 70 seconds for 27 shot attempts. The most successful shooter was Karl-Anthony Towns of the Minnesota Timberwolves.
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These players compete in the “Three Point Contest”:
Tyrese Haliburton, Indiana Pacers
Buddy Hield, Indiana Pacers
Tyler Herro, Miami Heat
Kevin Huerter, Sacramento Kings
Damian Lillard, Portland Trail Blazers
Anfernee Simons, Portland Trail Blazers
Lauri Markkanen, Utah Jazz
Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics
Skill Challenge
The NBA Skill Challenge has been part of the NBA All-Star Weekend since 2003. In the competition, three teams, each consisting of three players, compete against each other. The players have to go through an obstacle course as quickly as possible. The obstacles require players to demonstrate their dribbling, passing and throwing skills, among other things.
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These teams compete against each other in the “Skill Challenge”:
Antetokounmpo: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Thanasis Antetokounmpo (both Milwaukee Bucks). Alex Antetokounmpo (Wisconsin Herd)
Utah Jazz: Jordan Clarkson, Walker Kessler, Collin Sexton (alle Utah Jazz)
Rooks: Paolo Banchero (Orlando Magic), Jaden Ivey (Detroit Pistons), Jabari Smith Jr. (Houston Rockets)
Rising Star Challenge
In the “Rising Star Challenge” on Saturday at around 3 a.m. 28 NBA and G-League talents will compete against each other in a small tournament. The 28 players are divided into four teams each. Two semi-finals and one final will be played. The teams will be led by former NBA stars Pau Gasol, Joakim Noah, Deron Williams and Jason Terry, who will coach on the sidelines.
In contrast to regular games in the NBA, however, four quarters of 12 minutes each are not played, but a so-called “target score” (German: target number) was defined in advance. In the semi-finals, the team that scores 40 points first wins. In the final, the target score is 25 points.
The most famous faces in the “Rising Star Challenge” include Franz Wagner (21), Paolo Banchero (20/both Orlando Magic) and Evan Mobley (21/Cleveland Caveliers).
These are the teams in the NBA’s Rising Star Challenge:
Team Pau Gasol: Jose Alvarado (New Orleans Pelicans), Paolo Banchero (Orlando Magic), Jaden Ivey (Detroit Pistons), Benedict Mathurin (Beide Indiana Pacers), Keegan Murray (Sacramento Kings), Scottie Barnes (Toronto Raptors)
Team Joakim Noah: Josh Giddey (Oklahoma City Thunder), Jalen Duren (Detroit Pistons), Quentin Grimes (New York Knicks), Evan Mobley (Cleveland Cavaliers), Jeremy Sochan (San Antonio Spurs), Jabari Smith Jr. (Houston Rockets)
Team Deron Williams: Walker Kessler (Utah Jazz), Alperen Sengu, Jalen Green (for Houston Rockets), Trey Murphy III. (New Orleans Pelicans), AJ Griffin (Atlanta Hawks), Bones Hyland (LA Clippers), Franz Wagner (Orlando Magic)
Team Jason Terry: Scoot Henderson, Sidy Cissoko, Mojave King, Leonard Miller (alle vier Ignite), Kenneth Lofton Jr. (Memphis Hustle), Mac McClung (Delaware Blue Coats), Scotty Pippen Jr. (South Bay Lakers)
By the way: Jason Terry, Dirk Nowitzki’s former teammate, will oversee a cast of G-League players. The G-League is a league where promising junior and reserve players can get playing time and recommend themselves for the NBA.
Celebrity Game
The All-Star weekend will open on Friday with the “Celebrity Game”. In the “Celebrity Game” two teams consisting of celebrities compete against each other. The two team captains are former NBA superstar Dwayne Wade (41) and Utah Jazz owner Ryan Smith (44).
The Puerto Rican reggaeton singer Ozuna (30) and wrestling superstar “The Miz” (42) are among the “Team Ryan”. “Team Dwayne” includes rapper 21 Savage (30), tennis player Frances Tiafoe (25) and NFL star DK Metcalf (25/Seattle Seahawks) on the record.
Here you can see all participants of the “Celebrity Games”:
In the night from Sunday to Monday, the highlight of the entire weekend takes place with the All-Star-Game (at 2 a.m. German time). The best players in the league play against each other there. Half of the other starters from both teams were chosen by a spectator vote and the other half by current players and media representatives. LeBron James (38) leads the Western Conference team and Giannis Antetokounmpo (28) that of the Eastern Conference. This year, for the first time, the two captains choose their teammates just minutes before the start of the All-Star Game. Before that, the “NBA G League Next Up Game” will take place from 9 p.m., where the best young players will meet.
transmission
The entire NBA All-Star Weekend will be streamed live from the sports streaming service DAZN (advertisement) transmitted. It starts on Saturday night at 3 a.m. with the “Rising Stars Game”. Sunday night, the second day’s broadcast begins at 2 a.m. In the night from Sunday to Monday, the transmission of the All-Star-Game starts at 1.30 a.m.