Tyrese Maxey couldn’t be more deserving of his starting spot in this year’s NBA All-Star game, and now it’s been confirmed he’ll be giving us some extra entertainment in the Three-Point Contest as well.
Here’s the full lineup of who he’ll be taking on next Saturday:
While this year’s group is largely highly
experienced veteran guards (credit to Bobby Portis, a 45.1 percent three-point shooter this season, albeit on far simpler/lower volume, for throwing himself in the mix) Kon Knueppel is a great inclusion to represent the rookie class. Knueppel is one of the NBA’s highest volume shooters, with his 7.8 attempts per game ranking 15th in the league, all while making them at a stellar 42.8 percent clip.
Jamal Murray’s weekend will be a memorable one too, what with him finally making his debut as an All-Star.
Damian Lillard is a surprising inclusion. He’s not even playing this season as he’s out for the year with an Achilles injury, but he’s clearly keen to go for his third win of the contest after taking home the trophy in 2023 and 2024.
Obviously it comes down to who gets hot on the night and can stay consistent, but Donovan Mitchell will likely be a big threat for Maxey with the way he’s shooting this season. The Cavs guard is taking more threes (9.7 attempts per game) than everyone bar Steph Curry and Luka Doncic, including a ton off the dribble as usual, and making 37.9 percent of them.
Even though Maxey’s three-point shooting has cooled off over the last few weeks (30.4 percent over his last 14 games), he’s still at 38.2 percent from deep for the season on a whopping 8.8 attempts per game, including tons of high-difficulty pull-ups and step-backs.
His range has continued to grow and he’s so comfortable attempting any kind of shot, whether he’s flying into a three running off movement, pulling up off deep ball screens, or creating space for himself.
It’ll be exciting to see if Maxey can get on a heater and take home the Three-Point Contest win.
