All players in the All-Star event was confirmed at the New Orleans Smoothie King Center in Louisiana. On the third day, the NBA released a list of 20 players who will play in the Skill Challenge, 3-point Contest, and Dunk Contest, the main event of the All-Star game.
In the Skill Challenge, tall and short players will be divided and play tournament game v. John Wall (Washington), Devin Booker (Phoenix) and Gordon Hayward (Utah) are in a single-player group to compete for the title, while IsaiahThomas (Boston), who missed his last three-point shot title last season. In addition, the group was named after Kristaps Porzingis (New York), Joel Embry (Philadelphia), Anthony Davis (New Orleans) and DeMarcus Cousins (Sacramento).
The three-point shot contest is really a 'Star Wars'. Defending champion Clay Thomson (Golden State) will challenge the second consecutive victory. Eric Gordon (Houston), who has been on the road for the first time this season,
In addition, competition is expected to further intensify as Kyrie Irving (Cleveland), the winner of the three-point contest in 2013, is also participating. Kyle Lowry (Toronto), Campbell Walker (Charlotte), C.J. McCollum (Portland), Wesley Matthews (Dallas) and Nick Young (Lakers). Meanwhile, Stephen Curry (Golden State), who ranks first in the league in the league has declared his absence.
Gordon, who had a runner-up victory over last year's Zach LaVine (Minnesota), is interested in winning the title. However, in the tournament, Zach LaVinedeclared his absence early and now Gordon is one of the strongest candidates.
Jordan, who joined the club last season, also announced his participation, attracting the attention of fans. Jordan brings pleasure to the crowd with an all-around dunk shot and an exciting one-handed slam dunk.