NBA All-Star Weekend 2015: Full Event Schedule and Bold Predictions
It's fitting that New York is the setting for this year's NBA All-Star Game, as the biggest stars in sports and pop culture are out in full force. Madison Square Garden has been a sports hub for decades, so it's about time a marquee basketball game gets played there in 2015.
Another intriguing aspect of All-Star Weekend is everything that comes before the game. As much fun as it is to see LeBron James and John Wall on the same team, the Slam Dunk and Three-Point Contests look better as fan events.
No one cares in the All-Star Game; it's just about seeing all these superstars in one spot. The competition that shows off the unique skills of individual players is what keeps fans coming back.
With that in mind, here's a full schedule of events that will take place in New York over the next two days and the best predictions.
| Date | Event | Start Time (ET) | Watch |
| Saturday, February 14 | Degree Shooting Stars | 8:30 p.m. | TNT |
| Saturday, February 14 | Taco Bell Skills Challenge | Approx. 9 p.m. | TNT |
| Saturday, February 14 | Foot Locker Three-Point Contest | Approx. 9:30 p.m. | TNT |
| Saturday, February 14 | Sprite Slam Dunk Event | Approx. 10 p.m. | TNT |
| Sunday, February 15 | 2015 NBA All-Star Game | 8:30 p.m. | TNT |
| Event | Participants |
| Degree Shooting Stars | Team Bosh: Chris Bosh, Dominique Wilkins, Swin Cash; Team Curry: Stephen Curry, Dell Curry, Sue Bird; Team Millsap: Paul Millsap; Scottie Pippen, Elena Della Donne; Team Westbrook: Russell Westbrook, Penny Hardaway, Tamika Catchings |
| Taco Bell Skills Challenge | Patrick Beverly (Houston), Trey Burke (Jazz), Brandon Knight (Bucks), Kyle Lowry (Raptors), Elfrid Payton (Magic), Dennis Schroder (Hawks), Jeff Teague (Hawks), Isaiah Thomas (Suns) |
| Foot Locker Three-Point Contest | Marco Belinelli (Spurs), Stephen Curry (Warriors), James Harden (Rockets), Kyrie Irving (Cavaliers), Kyle Korver (Hawks), Wesley Matthews (Blazers), J.J. Redick (Clippers), Klay Thompson (Warriors) |
| Sprite Slam Dunk Event | Giannis Antetokounmpo (Bucks), Zach LaVine (Timberwolves), Victor Oladipo (Magic), Mason Plumlee (Nets) |
Bold Predictions
Kyle Korver wins Three-Point Contest
If there's one event you want to watch during this year's All-Star Weekend, make sure it's the Three-Point Contest. Not only does it showcase the incredible shooting prowess of all the participants, but this year's field includes Kyle Korver, J.J. Redick. Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry.
There are eight total participants in this shooting exhibition, but the four listed above are the names to watch. They have such great touch from distance with incredible form. It's like watching a great orator deliver a speech or watching Martin Scorsese when he was directing Taxi Driver.
Korver, Redick, Thompson and Curry at the height of their shooting powers, putting them on display for the world to see. Even though Korver isn't the same kind of talent as Thompson or Curry, he's the one person you want taking a long-range shot.
Korver is having a historic season that's not getting enough credit. It's hard to put what he's doing in context because he's not a superstar nor is he the primary scorer in Atlanta. Yet shooting over 50 percent from the floor, 50 percent from three-point range and 90 percent from the free-throw line is something that's never been done before.
The Atlanta star talked about his season with B/R's Ethan Skolnick, saying that it would be a really special feat:
"To be a great shooter, I feel like you have to be a consistent shooter," Korver said. "And to finish off a season with percentages like that, I mean, that's what it really means. Everyone has good shooting nights. It's trying to eliminate the bad shooting nights. Those off games that you might have."
In many ways, Korver is a perfect representation of the Hawks this season. They aren't flashy and don't have a single player as talented as James, but there's an unmistakable ease which they play the game.
That would make it fitting for Korver to win the Three-Point Contest, going up against the likely MVP in Curry and Thompson, who recently had the greatest 12-minute shooting performance in NBA history.
It's fashionable to sleep on the Hawks because they lack that certain appeal, but Korver will help get them more national exposure by shining in something he makes look so easy.
Elfrid Payton will win Skills Challenge
The Skills Challenge is designed to showcase raw tools that each player possesses. It doesn't have to do with current ability in an NBA game, which is why a player such as Orlando Magic rookie Elfrid Payton can steal the spotlight.
On the surface, there's nothing remarkable about Payton's debut season. He's averaging 7.9 points, 5.7 assists and 3.7 rebounds per game with a shooting percentage of 42.3 and free-throw percentage of 54.6.
Those numbers show Payton clearly needs a lot of work and development before fulfilling his potential as the No. 10 pick in last year's draft. Yet we are talking about single skills that require speed and precision.
Why did Payton rise up draft boards last year? Because of his speed and length as a point guard. ESPN's Chad Ford raved about the young point guard in pre-draft workouts last year:
"Payton continues to be this year's high riser. In every pre-draft workout he has held his own against the other elite point guard prospects in the 2014 class. His length, quickness, ability to get to the rim, floor vision and defensive toughness are all well above the norm. His jump shot is his weakness right now, and he needs to get stronger.
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It sounds simplistic to say that Payton's raw abilities make him the perfect fit for a skills event, but that's basically what this is. He's going to go through a lot of the same workouts that took place before the draft, when he went from a borderline first-round talent to a top-10 pick.
This doesn't mean Payton is going to become a star in the second half of the season, as there is a lot still left to fix, but he's ready to take center stage at Madison Square Garden to win a skills event.
Even though the names in the Slam Dunk Contest aren't what they used to be, it's still the event everyone looks forward to. It's gone from a spot where Dominique Wilkins and Michael Jordan would be embroiled in an epic battle to an event for future stars to make their name.
The 2015 field features three NBA sophomores and one rookie. Zach LaVine is the rookie, with Giannis Antetokounmpo, Victor Oladipo and Mason Plumlee as the wily veterans.
Piggybacking off his 12-point, 10-rebound effort in the Rising Stars Challenge on Friday, Antetokounmpo is poised to be the breakout star of All-Star Weekend.
The 20-year-old from Greece is already enjoying the best year of his young career, averaging 12 points and 6.6 rebounds per game, but there's still room for the 6'11" athletic freak to get better.
Antetokounmpo's teammate in Milwaukee, O.J. Mayo, raved about the work that he's done to become a better player, via Steve Aschburner of NBA.com:
"Every day you see the growth, man. Every day he's learning. He can do almost anything with the size of his hands and his length. He's picking up little things. He's gained a lot more confidence in his jump shot. He's gained more confidence in his post-up game. His thing is just time, honestly. Next week he'll be a better player than he is today.
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The good thing about a dunk contest is a player doesn't have to win to become a breakout star. Kenneth Faried had one of the best slams in the 2013 event with his second dunk, as you can see in the video below:
Yet if you recall, Terrence Ross won that particular event. Antetokounmpo is going to do something spectacular at some point in the dunk contest. He's so physically gifted and has evolved as a player to the point where it's fair to expect that.
Whether it's enough to carry Antetokounmpo to a title is another story, but he will be the player everyone is talking about by the end of Saturday night. That's also good news for an underrated Milwaukee team that deserves more national attention.
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