The NBA has announced that the anticipated 3-point shooting event will not be part of this year's lineup in San Francisco. This decision comes after the event, which was one of the highlights of last year's All-Star Weekend in Indianapolis, brought together two of the biggest stars in basketball: Stephen Curry and Sabrina Ionescu. Despite extensive talks aiming to recreate the spectacle, a rematch between the NBA and WNBA stars will not occur this season.
Stephen Curry, a four-time NBA champion and the league's all-time leader in both 3-point attempts and makes, showcased his sharpshooting prowess last year by edging out Sabrina Ionescu with a score of 29-26. Known for his remarkable career 42.4% shooting from beyond the arc, Curry was a central figure in making the event memorable. Ionescu, who shoots 36.4% from three-point range through her first five WNBA seasons, is a Bay Area native who idolized Curry and the Golden State Warriors growing up.
The NBA had hoped to offer fans another thrilling showdown between these basketball icons. Preliminary discussions even considered transforming the event into a 2-on-2 format, potentially involving Klay Thompson and WNBA Rookie of the Year Caitlin Clark. However, Clark's representatives stated she preferred her first 3-point contest to take place at the WNBA All-Star Weekend in Indianapolis, contributing to the cancellation of the proposed event.
The NBA recognized last year's shootout as a special moment in its history. Mike Bass, an NBA spokesman, expressed the league's sentiment on the decision:
"We weren't able to land on a plan we thought would raise the bar off of last year's special moment." – Mike Bass
Sabrina Ionescu also reflected on the effort to innovate and enhance future events:
"We've been talking about finding different ways to change this up next year," – Sabrina Ionescu
Leave a Reply