INDIANAPOLIS — The names on the trophies didn’t change from 12 months to 12 months in both of the NBA’s major contests on All-Star Saturday Evening.
Mac McClung, the G League journeyman who shocked the world together with his dunk contest win in Salt Lake Metropolis final February, did it once more in Indianapolis, beating Jaylen Brown by leaping over 7-foot-1 Shaquille O’Neal within the closing spherical for an ideal 50 from the judges.
And within the 3-point contest earlier, Damian Lillard hit the final moneyball on his final rack to edge Trae Younger for his second-consecutive win within the occasion.
McClung, 25, who has performed a complete of 4 NBA video games in his profession, gained a contest that featured a second G Leaguer — Jacob Toppin, the brother of 2022 NBA dunk champion Obi Toppin. McClung, who additionally jumped over two folks for a dunk, and dropped the ball whereas hovering to the rim earlier than re-catching it and slamming it for one more, put his highschool jersey on Shaq’s huge body, leaped over him and completed a reverse slam.
HE’S DONE IT AGAIN 🤯
Mac McClung is the back-to-back #ATTSlamDunk champion ‼️
Straight 5⃣0⃣’s#StateFarmSaturday on TNT pic.twitter.com/p2sBx7h2IM
— NBA (@NBA) February 18, 2024
“Shaq was so cool to place my highschool jersey on,” McClung stated. “Man, that nearly makes you emotional that he would do this. I informed him, ‘Effectively, you place it on.’ And he stated, ‘You higher not miss a dunk.’ I used to be like, ‘All proper, I gained’t miss it.’”
The 2 present NBA gamers within the dunk contest didn’t fare so nicely. Miami Warmth rookie Jaime Jaquez Jr. was the primary participant eradicated, whereas Brown, an All-Star for the Boston Celtics, was booed after almost each dunk in an obvious signal from followers that they felt his scores have been too excessive for the dunks he executed, particularly when in comparison with McClung.
Brown, the primary All-Star to take part within the dunk contest in years, put “stress” on McClung together with his closing dunk by placing a Mickey Mouse-sized glove on his left hand, then leaping and taking a ball off somebody’s head with that gloved hand and dunking it.
With the left 👋🏾 pic.twitter.com/CvnPt23UVU
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) February 18, 2024
“I believe finally (in) this media period, some gamers are afraid to make it right into a meme or something like that,” Brown stated. “Like I wished to return out and have enjoyable with it, and that’s what I did.”
McClung, who now performs for the Orlando Magic’s G League affiliate, is the primary back-to-back dunk winner since Zach LaVine in 2015 and 2016. McClung, LaVine, Nate Robinson, Jason Richardson and Michael Jordan are the one gamers to win consecutive dunk contests.
“That is my story, and I’m embracing it,” McClung stated.
Lillard is the primary back-to-back 3-point champion since Jason Kapono in 2007 and 2008 and joined Kapono, Larry Chicken, Craig Hodges, Mark Worth, Jeff Hornacek and Peja Stojakovic as winners of the 3-point contest in consecutive years.
He edged Younger and 2022 NBA 3-point winner Karl-Anthony Cities within the finals, additionally persevering by a four-way tiebreaker during which the three finalists and Indiana’s Tyrese Haliburton, needed to shoot for 30 seconds (regular rounds are 70 seconds) to advance out of the primary spherical.
Cities went first within the finals and scored a 22. Younger beat him with 24, and Lillard was caught on 24 on his closing rack till that final shot.
DAMIAN LILLARD’S 26 POINTS MAKE HIM THE BACK-TO-BACK #Starry3PT CHAMPION!
His final shot is the winner… due to course ⌚️ pic.twitter.com/OqcHpurcfE
— NBA (@NBA) February 18, 2024
“I knew, as soon as I acquired to that three-point ball, the deep one, I may win it if I knock these down and simply give myself a bonus going into my bonus rack proper there earlier than that final one,” Lillard stated. “So I knew I had probability.
“After I acquired to the ultimate rack, I didn’t know my precise rating, however after I missed a pair, I heard the group simply oohing and aahing. As soon as they stored doing it again and again, I knew I used to be nonetheless alive as a result of I knew they might have stopped if it had been over for me. The subsequent two balls, I missed once more, after which I grabbed the following one and I knew I wanted that to win.”
Sandwiched between the 3-point and dunk contests was the historical past shootaround between Stephen Curry and WNBA star Sabrina Ionescu, gained by Curry. The annual All-Star Saturday came about on a model new, forgiving, LED glass court docket developed by German firm ASB GlassFloor, put in at Lucas Oil soccer stadium for All-Star Weekend. The ground modified colours, graphics and messages all through the evening.
STEPHEN vs. SABRINA WAS A MOVIE.
Sabrina Ionescu opened on hearth and dropped 26… earlier than Stephen Curry got here by within the clutch to win it with 29!
Take pleasure in. 🍿 pic.twitter.com/Sz104f95FZ
— NBA (@NBA) February 18, 2024
The Pacers’ trio of Haliburton, Myles Turner and Bennedict Mathurin — MVP for the Rising Stars Sport on Friday evening — gained the annual expertise problem, rising victorious in particular person rounds of an impediment course, passing contest and taking pictures competitors. Haliburton, who would later lose the tiebreaker to get into the ultimate spherical of the 3-point competitors, drained a halfcourt shot in a expertise problem tiebreaker to clinch it for the Indiana Pacers.
“It’s residence cookin’, holding it down,” Turner stated.
Tyrese Haliburton hit the halfcourt shot to win the Abilities Problem after which hit them with the Reggie choke signal 😂🔥 pic.twitter.com/TN0QoIYQYB
— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) February 18, 2024
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(Photograph: Stacy Revere / Getty Photographs)