The 2021-22 NBA season comes to a close after a long stretch of activity with All-Star Weekend. All-Star Saturday Night, the prelude to the All-Star Game, will once again include a trio of star-studded events: the Skills Challenge, 3-Point Contest, and Slam Dunk Contest.
The Skills Challenge kicked off the night, with three teams competing: Team Rooks (Scottie Barnes, Cade Cunningham, Josh Giddey), Team Cavs (Jarrett Allen, Darius Garland, Evan Mobley), and Team Antetokounmpo (Giannis and his brothers Thanasis and Alex). In the end, Team Cavs won the championship after Evan Mobley hit the team’s second try from half court to seal the title.
The 3-Point Contest followed, with eight competitors vying for this year’s shooting crown: Luke Kennard, Patty Mills, Fred VanVleet, Trae Young, Zach LaVine, Desmond Bane, CJ McCollum, and Karl-Anthony Towns. Kennard, Towns, and Young all advanced to the final round, with the Timberwolves’ star emerging victorious with a final-round score of 29.
As always, the Slam Dunk Contest concluded the night, with Cole Anthony, Juan Toscano-Anderson, Obi Toppin, and Jalen Green demonstrating their talents and agility for the top prize. At the end of the night, Toppin became the third Knicks player to get the award.
1. Karl-Anthony Towns breaks record in 3-point Contest
In likely the most surprising finish of the night, Towns won the 3-point Contest after scoring 29 points in the final round to defeat Kennard and Young. That final score surpassed the record for most points scored in the final round of the 3-point Contest, beating Devin Booker’s 2018 total of 28 points.
Towns came into this event already declaring himself the “best big-man shooter of all time,” and while Dirk Nowitzki may want to have a word with him about it, winning the 3-point Contest certainly helps his case. Towns is the first centre to win the event, and the first big man to do so since Kevin Love in 2012.
Towns put on an amazing performance for a Timberwolves squad that should be in the chase for a playoff position this season. Towns’ 41 percent 3-point shooting is just one reason Minnesota has been playing so well this season, and his strong play on offence earned him another All-Star selection this season. The win on Saturday night was a nice moment for Towns, who has been quietly guiding a Timberwolves club that appears to be figuring things out after several years at the basement of the Western Conference.
2. The dunk contest just isn’t what it used to be
Every year as we watch the dunk contest, we get pumped up for the event, only to be let down within the first two minutes when the first contender misses three or four attempts in a row. That was the widespread consensus on Twitter and among pundits, who were pleading with the NBA to hold the 3-point Contest last so that there would be at least some assured excitement to close the night.
While the league is unlikely to consider that, it cannot be argued that the dunk contest has lost some of its lustre since Zach LaVine and Aaron Gordon competed in a final round in what is widely regarded as one of the best dunk contests ever. Part of the problem is the event’s lack of star power. Whereas Kobe Bryant, Vince Carter, and Michael Jordan used to compete for the title, now we’re seeing less well-known individuals, thus the excitement level is low right away. It’s also difficult for men to come up with truly unique dunks when we’ve seen so many tries.
I’m not sure what the league’s solution is since I don’t think rewarding the Slam Dunk Contest will bring in the huge stars everyone wants to see. However, expanding the tournament beyond NBA players and bringing in other people who are regarded professional dunkers and have knocked down some genuinely jaw-dropping dunks may rekindle interest in the event.
