Defending champ Devin Booker up against Curry brothers; Dirk Nowitzki in 3-point contest
FILE – Devin Booker #1 of the Phoenix Suns during the first half of the NBA game against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Talking Stick Resort Arena on January 22, 2019 in Phoenix, Arizona. Christian Petersen/Getty Images/AFP
Defending champion Devin Booker will go up against Curry brothers Stephen and Seth as well as NBA veteran Dirk Nowitzki in the All-Star weekend three-point contest later this month, the league said Tuesday.
Phoenix Suns star Booker won last year’s three-point contest with a record 28-point final round.
He defends his title in a field of 10 sharp-shooters that will include Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry and his brother Seth — who plays for the Portland Trail Blazers and is shooting an NBA-high 48.5 percent from three-point range this season.
The three-point contest will be on All-Star Saturday on February 16, on the eve of the All-Star game in Charlotte, North Carolina.
(FILES) In this file photo taken on January 23, 2019, Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors celebrates from the bench in the first half against the Washington Wizards at Capital One Arena in Washington, DC. – Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry and his younger brother Seth will battle in the NBA All-Star weekend three-point shooting contest, US media reported. “The three-point shootout will be fun with the Curry brothers,” Stephen Curry told ESPN. “I know he’s going to be gunning for me, though. That’s the problem.” Seth Curry, who plays for the Portland Trail Blazers, is shooting 48 percent from three-point range this season — second-best in the NBA.
Stephen, who is third all-time in made three-pointers, is making 44.4 percent of his shots from beyond the arc. This year’s All-Star weekend February 16-17 in Charlotte, North Carolina, will be a homecoming for the Curry brothers. Their father, Dell, played 10 seasons for the Charlotte Hornets. (Photo by Rob Carr / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / AFP)
It will be a homecoming for the Curry brothers, whose father, Dell, played 10 seasons for the Charlotte Hornets.
Stephen Curry will be appearing in his sixth three-point contest. He won it in 2015, but skipped the event the past two years.
He has also been voted a starter for the All-Star Game.
The field includes 2019 NBA All-Stars Damian Lillard of the Portland Trail Blazers as well, along with Khris Middleton of the Milwaukee Bucks and Kemba Walker of the Charlotte Hornets as well as Danny Green of the Toronto Raptors, Joe Harris of the Brooklyn Nets and Buddy Hield of the Sacramento Kings.
In other All-Star Saturday action, Charlotte Hornets forward Miles Bridges, Atlanta Hawks forward-center John Collins, Oklahoma City Thunder guard Hamidou Diallo and New York Knicks guard Dennis Smith Jr. will showcase their aerial artistry in the Slam Dunk contest.
