The 2020 NBA All-Star Weekend has officially arrived, as the basketball world will descend on Chicago for the festivities, parties, and the actual basketball being played.
For a long time, All-Star Saturday Night has been considered at the very least to be as much of the marquee event of the weekend as the game itself, with star-making events with the three-point and dunk contests. Some years are better than others, but if nothing else Saturday night provides a unique betting opportunity.
The various competitions provide a chance to bet on your favorite dunker, shooter, and dribbler, and per usual there are some value plays that I see on the board. Below, you’ll find the full list of odds for the Skills Competition, Three-Point Contest, and Dunk Contest, with my favorite plays and an explanation why.
(Odds are via BetOnline, as of Thursday morning)
Skills Challenge
Spencer Dinwiddie +300
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander +400
Pascal Siakam +500
Jayson Tatum +500
Khris Middleton +600
Patrick Beverley +600
Domantas Sabonis +800
Bam Adebayo +1200
The Skills Competition very often comes down to who can make the three-point shot, so I’ll take Tatum and Middleton, the best three-point shooters in the competition, both at 6-1. I don’t hate taking Bam at 12-1 just because that’s an awful lot of value in an 8-person competition with no real favorite.
Three-Point Contest
Duncan Robinson +300
Joe Harris +450
Trae Young +450
Davis Bertans +500
Buddy Hield +750
Zach LaVine +800
Devonte’ Graham +1000
I had Joe Harris last year in the middle of the pack of the odds which was spectacular value and this year I’ll take Bertans as a guy I think could absolutely tear this competition up, at 5-1 and then a sprinkle on Graham because he can get hot and at 10-1 there’s value. The new Mtn Dew Zone balls worth three-points each from 30 feet out are an interesting wrinkle in picking this, and why Trae Young is likely climbing now that Damian Lillard is out. I like Duncan Robinson but going from 5-1 to 3-1, I just can’t take him with the loss in value because I hate favorites.
Dunk Contest
Aaron Gordon +140
Derrick Jones Jr. +175
Pat Connaughton +400
Dwight Howard +500
Pat has absolute bunnies and he’s going to have the biggest surprise factor because of his height and how he looks. Gordon has way too much hype to live up to for me to like him as this much of a favorite, and I fear DJJ will try to do something so absurd that he’ll fail to get one of his first two dunks in. I like Pat’s value at 4-1 and think he’s going to steal the show on Saturday night.
