The Three-Point Shootout is always one of the highlights of the NBA’s All-Star Weekend, and Saturday night’s contest is scheduled to feature some of the league’s highest-profile long-range marksman.
NBA Three-Point Shootout 2013: Time, TV schedule, participants and more
Stephen Curry has his chance at comeuppance Saturday for his All-Star snub when he squares off against five other sharpshooters in the 2013 Three-Point Shootout.
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This year's edition, which will take place as part of All-Star Saturday Night beginning at 8:30 p.m. EST on TNT, may be most notable for the inclusion of Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry. Curry was popularly tabbed as the top snub from Sunday's All-Star Game, so the Three-Point Shootout gives Curry the chance to make them look silly for his exclusion from the big game. The fourth-year veteran is having his best season to date, shooting 44.8 percent from three-point range (his overall field-goal percentage is 43.1, which means he shoots better from outside the arc than inside) and averaging a career-best 20.9 points per game. This will be his first appearance in the Three-Point Shootout since his rookie season (that year's champion was Paul Pierce).
How New York Knicks forward Steve Novak has not appeared in a three-point contest until this year is a question for another time, but the effortless 6’10 shooter will make his event debut Saturday. Novak is shooting 44.1 percent on the season from deep a year after leading the league with a 47.2 percentage. Novak’s quick release and economical motion seem ideal for a three-point contest.
New Orleans Hornets forward Ryan Anderson is the only holdover from last year's contest. He scored 17 points on his only rack in 2012, and he was one shot away from advancing to the final round over eventual champion Kevin Love, who is injured and cannot compete this year. He's leading the NBA in made three-point field goals this season.
The only shooter who is also part of Sunday's All-Star Game is Cleveland Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving. The second-year player from Duke has already made more threes than he did in his entire rookie season and is shooting 42.9 percent from deep.
Indiana Pacers forward Paul George is also taking part in his first Three-Point Contest. The third-year player from Fresno State and San Antonio Spurs veteran Matt Bonner (also a Three-Point Contest rookie) round out the field.
The Three-Point Contest has been a consistent source of excitement, as opposed to the up-and-down nature of the dunk contest. Love won last year's final over Kevin Durant and James Jones.
The Three-Point Contest airs on TNT around 8:30 p.m. ET and immediately precedes the dunk contest.
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