Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry wins NBA 3-point contest; Indiana Pacers’ Domantas Sabonis takes skills challenge

Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry won his second 3-point contest, with Indiana Pacers forward Domantas Sabonis outdueling Orlando’s Nikola Vucevic in the skills challenge final round prior to Sunday’s NBA All-Star Game.

Curry made 28 buckets in the final round of the 3-point contest, nailing his last money ball shot to beat Utah’s Mike Conley by one basket.

“I could hear whatever crowd was in here, I could hear the temperature rise a little bit,” Curry said when asked about the final shot on the TNT broadcast. “I knew I had to knock it down. It was a fun battle.”

Curry became the seventh player to win multiple 3-point contests — his first title came in 2015 — and the first to do so in non-consecutive contests. Larry Bird (1986-88), Craig Hodges (1990-92), Mark Price (1993-94), Jeff Hornacek (1998, 2000 — no contest in 1999), Peja Stojakovic (2002-03) and Jason Kapono (2007-08) were the other players to win multiple All-Star 3-point titles.

Sunday marked Curry’s seventh 3-point contest, tying him with Dale Ellis for the second-most appearances in NBA history, behind only Hodges’ eight.

Conley, who took injured Phoenix Suns star Devin Booker’s spot in the All-Star Game and 3-point contest, finished as the runner-up. Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum also advanced to the final round.

Chicago’s Zach LaVine, Utah’s Donovan Mitchell and Boston’s Jaylen Brown were eliminated in the first round of the 3-point contest. LaVine and Mitchell, former dunk contest winners, were each looking to become the first player ever to win both the dunk contest and 3-point contest in their career.

All-Star Weekend was originally scheduled to be held at Sabonis’ home arena in Indianapolis, before the coronavirus pandemic forced the NBA to relocate the festivities to Atlanta.

Wearing his Pacers-themed jersey, Sabonis was able to overcome his second-place finish in the event a season ago.

“It was fun to come out and make sure I got it done this time,” Sabonis said on the broadcast following his victory.

The skills challenge featured two guards — Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic and Phoenix’s Chris Paul — and four forwards/centers. Doncic and Paul each picked up a first-round bye while the big men duked it out.

However, after Sabonis and Vucevic defeated the New York Knicks’ Julius Randle and Portland’s Robert Covington, respectively, in the first round, each big man got by the guards to advance to the final round.

In the finals, it came down to the final shot for both players. Sabonis was able to get his 3-pointer to fall before Vucevic to win the contest.

Since the events took place just a short time before the All-Star Game itself, participants wore their game jerseys.

Covington, the only non-All-Star in either of the first two events and only HBCU graduate in the NBA, wore his Tennessee State jersey and announced prior to the contest that he was donating two $25,000 scholarships to students at his alma mater.