Portland Trail Blazers’ long-range shooter Damian Lillard put on a show during the 2023 All-Star 3-Point contest and went on to win the whole thing. Against Lillard were Indiana Pacers’ Buddy Hield – league’s leading 3-point scorer this season and 2020 3-point contest winner, and Hield’s teammate Tyrese Haliburton. Lillard, who is known for making clutch game-winning shots deep in the game, however, just about managed to beat Hield by one point as we won the contest for the first time in three tries. Lillard was one of the five All-Stars playing in the contest alongside Pacers’ Tyrese Haliburton, Celtics’ Jayson Tatum, Knicks’ Julius Randle and Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen. Here’s the video of all the 3-pointers made by Dame:
Speaking after the win, Lillard said, “As I got down the stretch of that last two racks, I was, like, counting. I knew I had to make all of them, but I thought I was on track to tie him. I actually lost count. But I knew I needed to make all of them. Then when I looked up, I was, like, oh, that’s 26.”
“It’s ironic that it came down to that, and I had to tighten up and come up big at the end. But, like you said, that’s typical. That’s typical for me,” he added.
In the first round, Lillard, Hield, Haliburton edged out Tatum (20 points), Markkanen, (20 points), Miami Heat’s Tyler Herro (18 points), Julius Randle (13 points) and Sacramento Kings’ Kevin Huerter (8 points) to enter the final round. In the first round, Haliburton, a first time All-Star, scored 31 points, highest in this year’s contest. The Pacers’ player, however, vowed to return with more force next year after failing to make an impact in the final round of the 3-point contest. “Unfortunately, I choked in the last round, but, you know, things happen,” said Haliburton. “I’ll be back next year.”
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