All-star events in professional sports are meant to showcase some of the best athletes in the world displaying their superhuman talent at the discipline they put so many hours into. Even though this weekend is about the players, it really is for the fans. In a larger scope, all-star events give fans a glimpse into the brotherhood of these leagues and help attract a broader audience. Professional sports leagues are always looking for a new edge to make these all-star weekends even more exciting. The NHL introduced a 3 v 3 format for their all-star game, and the NFL constantly tweaks their “Skills Showdown” in efforts to maximize highlights. While the NBA has found major success in the format of their dunk contest and 3-pt contest, the skills challenge has lacked behind. The NBA attempted to reconcile this event in 2015 with a tournament style bracket, but have ultimately decided to abandon that format this year. Here is the new format for the 2022 NBA All-Star skills challenge.
The Participants:
In former years the NBAs skills challenge participants were split into two sides of a bracket. One side of competitors would be the ‘guards’ and the other side would be headlined by the ‘bigs’, with one player from each side representing their field in the finals. In this year's skills challenge the NBA has opted for three distinct teams and ditched the bracket format. The three teams vying for the skills challenge trophy are: