nba all-star 2026 3 point contest

The 2026 NBA All-Star 3-Point Contest is set for All-Star Saturday Night at Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California, and it’s loaded with big-name shooters and a notable comeback story.

Key details at a glance

• Event: 2026 NBA All-Star 3-Point Contest.

• Date: Saturday, February 14, 2026 (All-Star Saturday Night).

• Venue: Intuit Dome, Inglewood, California.

• Start time: All-Star Saturday coverage tips off around 5 p.m. ET, with the 3-point contest leading off the night.

• Broadcast: NBC on TV, streaming on Peacock in the U.S.

Participants

The field has eight shooters, mixing past champions, current stars, and a hyped rookie.

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Player	Team	Notable angle
Damian Lillard	Portland Trail Blazers	Two-time 3-Point champion aiming for a third title after missing the season with an Achilles injury.
Devin Booker	Phoenix Suns	Former 2018 3-Point Contest winner returning as a past champion.
Kon Knueppel	Charlotte Hornets	Rookie sharpshooter with a chance to become the first rookie ever to win the event.
Tyrese Maxey	Philadelphia 76ers	First-time participant, known for his explosive scoring and improved three-point shooting.
Donovan Mitchell	Cleveland Cavaliers	All- Star guard with deep-range pull‑up ability.
Jamal Murray	Denver Nuggets	First-time participant, hitting around the low‑40s percent from three this season and having a career year.
Bobby Portis Jr.	Milwaukee Bucks	One of the league’s most accurate high‑volume shooters this season, sitting near mid‑40s from three.
Norman Powell	Miami Heat	Efficient floor‑spacer and veteran scorer from deep.

Fans on basketball forums are especially focused on Damian Lillard’s return, with many joking about how wild it would be to see him win again despite being out all season. There’s also a lot of buzz around Bobby Portis’s hot shooting and Kon Knueppel’s chance to make history as a rookie.

Format and rules

The basic format is unchanged from recent years.

• Two-round contest:
  • First round with all eight participants.
  • Top three advance to the final round; highest final score wins.

• Time limit: 70 seconds per round to shoot from five different spots beyond the arc.

• Racks and scoring:
  • Five shooting locations around the three‑point line with standard racks and a “money ball” rack, plus extra deep shots added in modern formats, allowing a max score of 40 points.

The contest opens All-Star Saturday this year instead of coming later in the program, which means the energy in the building should be high from the jump.

Storylines and what to watch

• Lillard chasing history: He can join Larry Bird and Craig Hodges as the only players with three 3-Point Contest titles, which would cement him as one of the event’s all‑time greats.

• Booker back in the mix: As a former winner with a smooth, repeatable stroke, he’s a natural favorite in any shooting contest.

• Knueppel as the wild card rookie: Media and blogs highlight his composure and efficiency, framing this as a “can a rookie really steal it?” storyline.

• Elite efficiency: Portis and Murray are among the top percentage shooters in the field this season, so many analysts see them as dark‑horse picks.

• Fan chatter: Forum threads lean heavily into jokes and memes about Lillard’s return and Portis’s trebuchet-like shot form, but underneath the humor there’s real respect for how stacked this year’s field is.

How to watch and follow

• TV: NBC in the U.S. as part of All-Star Saturday Night.

• Streaming: Peacock will carry the live broadcast.

• Start: Coverage begins at roughly 5 p.m. ET, with the 3-Point Contest as the first event.

If you want the “forum” flavor in real time, threads on major basketball subreddits and sports discussion boards are already active, and they typically live‑post reactions during each round.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.