NBA Slam Dunk Odds and All-Star Game Betting Preview
Rookie Zach LaVine of the Minnesota Timberwolves is the 10-11 (-110) favorite to win the Slam Dunk Contest on the betting lines at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark as the NBA prepares to stage its annual All-Star Game and accompanying events in Brooklyn and Manhattan this weekend.
LaVine’s competition in the Slam Dunk Contest, which will take place on Saturday at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, includes three second-year players in Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks (2-1), Victor Oladipo (3-1) of the Orlando Magic and Mason Plumlee (7-1) of the Nets.
The Three-Point Contest will also take place on Saturday at the Barclays Center, and the betting favorites for the event are two players from the two best teams in the NBA, Stephen Curry (13-4) of the Golden State Warriors and Kyle Korver (15-4) of the Atlanta Hawks.
Korver is shooting an NBA-best 53 percent from beyond the arc this season and averaging 3.1 treys per game. Curry, a 40 percent, three-point shooter, leads the league with 3.2 trifectas per game, but his teammate, Klay Thompson (4-1), is actually shooting a higher percentage than him at 44.
The All-Star Game itself will then take place in New York City for the fifth time on Sunday. The Eastern Conference will be hoping to stay perfect there after going 4-0 against the Western Conference in the previous four games in the Big Apple. The old Madison Square Garden was the site of the first three NBA All-Star Games hosted by the New York Knicks, with the last one taking place at the new building in 1998.
The East will try to win consecutive NBA All-Star Games for the first time since 2006 as the West has been victorious in three of the past four. The East’s 163-155 win last year was the largest margin of victory since 2009 when the West came out on top in a 146-119 blowout. The four NBA All-Star Games from 2010-2013 were all decided by five points or less and saw at least 280 points or more scored between the teams.
Last year’s NBA All-Star game in New Orleans set all-time records for the most points scored for the winner, loser and combined. Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving won MVP honors with 31 points and 14 assists and became the fifth backcourt player in six years to win the award.
Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard Kobe Bryant won two of his four career MVPs during that stretch, including one he shared with former teammate Shaquille O’Neal when the West routed the East in Phoenix six years ago.
