One of the most exciting dates on the NBA calendar is nearly here: All-Star Saturday Night. The Three-Point Contest is the second event on the schedule, sandwiched between the Skills Challenge and Dunk Contest.
Let’s take a look at the odds for each competitor and go over the best bets you can make ahead of the action.
NBA Three-Point Contest Odds
All NBA odds are current as of Thursday, Feb. 16, at 2 p.m. ET, and courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
- Damian Lillard, Portland Trail Blazers (+425)
- Buddy Hield, Indiana Pacers (+425)
- Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics (+500)
- Tyler Herro, Miami Heat (+550)
- Kevin Huerter, Sacramento Kings (+550)
- Tyrese Haliburton, Indiana Pacers (+600)
- Julius Randle, New York Knicks (+650)
- Lauri Markkanen, Utah Jazz (+700)
Before continuing to read about Three-Point Contest lines, take a peek at the latest futures and daily bets with our NBA Odds widget:
This year’s Three-Point Contest is loaded with All-Star talent, featuring Haliburton, Lillard, Markkanen, Randle, and Tatum. Joining them are some of the league’s most efficient shooters in Herro, Hield, and Huerter.
Hield is both the most efficient of the bunch (42.6% from deep on the year) and most prolific, knocking down a league-best 230 three-pointers through Feb. 15. Markkanen is the only other player to rank inside the top 20 in three-point percentage.
NBA Three-Point Contest Best Bet
Buddy Hield (+425) at DraftKings Sportsbook
WAGER: 1 Unit
Hield is the only member of the field with a previous Three-Point Contest title on his resume, and familiarity counts in this competition. Shooting proficiency is also, unsurprisingly, a massive factor, and Hield may be the most qualified player of the bunch in that department, too.
The 30-year-old sharpshooter is knocking down over 42% of his 9.0 three-point attempts per game this year, and he’s ranked inside the top five in three-point field goals made in each of the last five seasons.
He deserves to be the co-favorite to win this event, making this my NBA bet of the day.
Check out more of our NBA All-Star Weekend Predictions:
- NBA All-Star Game Best Bets & Predictions
- NBA All-Star Game Props
- NBA All-Star Game MVP Odds
- NBA Skills Challenge Predictions
- NBA Dunk Contest Predictions
NBA Three-Point Contest Contenders
Damian Lillard (+425) at DraftKings Sportsbook
WAGER: 0.5 Units
If there’s anybody in this field who can take advantage of the “Starry Range" shots, it’s Lillard. The seven-time All-Star routinely pulls up from near-half-court during regular-season games, and, well, he wouldn’t do that if he didn’t make most of them.
Kevin Huerter (+550) at DraftKings Sportsbook
WAGER: 0.5 Units
The most popular “sleeper" to win this event, Huerter started his season by knocking down 50% of his three-point attempts through his first 16 games. A long-lost “Splash Brother" if ever there was one, the 24-year-old has long deserved to take part in this contest, and he’s likely to make the most of the opportunity.
NBA Three-Point Contest Format
Players competing in the Three-Point Contest will get 70 seconds to make as many shots as possible, with a maximum of 27 shots. Five ball racks are positioned at various spots around the three-point line, each loaded with five balls, and two “Starry Range" spots are positioned well behind the three-point line.
At the end of each rack is a money ball, which is worth two points instead of one. Additionally, one ball rack is made up entirely of money balls. The position of this rack is chosen by each player before they begin their round.
The “Starry Range" spots have one ball apiece, and because these shots are significantly deeper than a regular three-point shot, they’re worth three points each.
Once all eight competitors have finished the first round, the top three scorers will advance to the final round, where they’ll compete for the trophy. Tiebreaker rounds will take place between competitors when necessary.
