NBA All-Star Saturday is in the books at the Clippers' Intuit Dome. Heat forward Keshad Johnson, who has played in just 37 career NBA games for Miami in the last two seasons, capped the evening by taking home the Slam Dunk Contest crown. Johnson scored 49.6 points on his first attempt in the final against Spurs rookie Carter Bryant, who entered the night as the betting favorite to win.
The most entertaining event of the evening featured Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard capturing his third career 3-point Contest title. Lillard, who is not playing for the Trail Blazers this season as he recovers from a torn Achilles, tied Larry Bird and Craig Hodges for the most titles all-time. Lillard edged Suns star Devin Booker and Hornets Kon Knueppel in the finals of the 3-point shootout.
The Shooting Stars competition also returned in L.A. Team Knicks -- featuring All-Stars Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns and retired sharpshooter Allan Houston -- won the event by scoring 47 points in the final round. Team Knicks defeated Team Cameron, led by Knueppel, Jalen Johnson, and Corey Maggette -- all former Duke players -- for the title.
Here are the five best moments from All-Star Saturday:
Devin Booker put on a shooting clinic during the first round of the 3-point Contest. Booker finished the first round with 30 points, which was the most of any participant in the round. Hornets rookie Knueppel went first and dropped 27 points, and it looked like no one was going to match that until Booker exceeded it. Some of his makes barely even touched the net.
Booker started off on a heater in the finals as well, but he missed his last three shots at the end -- each of which would have tied Lillard.
Carter Bryant botched his final attempt of the night, which allowed Keshad Johnson to win the Dunk Contest, but the Spurs rookie had the two highest-scoring slams of the night. He threw down a 49.2 in the first round with a windmill. He followed it up with a perfect 50 in his first dunk of the finals. He went between the legs on a smooth slam that impressed the judges.
For the first time since 2015, the Shooting Stars challenge returned. Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns and Allan Houston helped Team Knicks capture the title after scoring 47 points in the final round. What won Team Knicks the contest was the final shot from way beyond the 3-point line. You better believe Spike Lee was enjoying it.
Carter Bryant entered the night as the favorite to win the dunk contest, but Keshad Johnson was able to capture the title after impressing the judges with his first attempt of the final round. Johnson threw it to himself on the baseline, went between his legs and threw down a reverse slam. That helped him earn a 49.6 from the judges.
It was not the most memorable Dunk Contest, and featured little star power and only one perfect score. But Johnson brought the energy all night. The second-year NBA player, who hails from Oakland and played college basketball at San Diego State and Arizona, came out with E-40, jumped over the legendary rapper and showed off his dance moves after every slam.
Damian Lillard has not appeared in a game this season due to an Achilles tear in last year's NBA Playoffs, but that didn't stop him from participating in the 3-point contest. Lillard defeated Kon Knueppel and Devin Booker in the final round to win the event for the third time in his career. Lillard has now won the 3-point Contest in 2023, 2024, and 2026.
He scored an impressive 30 points in his final round.
Lillard isn't able to compete, but it was a treat to see the nine-time All-Star back on the court. He clearly hasn't lost his stroke in his 10 months off.
Miami Heat forward Keshad Johnson has won the Slam Dunk Contest. Johnson finished with a score of 97.4 in the final round. He was able to win the contest after San Antonio Spurs rookie Carter Bryant scored a perfect score on his first attempt. However, on Bryant's final attempt, he didn't land a dunk that impressed the judges. He scored a 43 on his final dunk.
For the first time since 2015, the Shooting Stars challenge returned. Team Knicks, led by Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Allan Houston, won the Shooting Stars title with a final score of 47 points. Team Cameron, led by Kon Knueppel, Jalen Johnson, and Corey Maggette, scored 38 points, but it wasn't enough.
Team Knicks also had the highest score in the first round.
Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard has not appeared in a game this season due to an Achilles tear in last year's NBA Playoffs, but that didn't stop him from participating in the 3-point contest. Lillard defeated Kon Knueppel and Devin Booker in the final round to win the 3-point contest for the third time in his career. Lillard joins Larry Bird and Craig Hodges as the only players to win the event three times. Lillard won it back in 2023 and 2024.
Lillard, who was the final shooter in the first round, scored 27 points to advance to the final. He scored 30 points in the final round and, despite a hot start from Booker, was able to capture the 3-point title. What a way to open NBA All-Star Saturday night.
The top scorer in the final round wins the Slam Dunk Contest. Here is a running scoreboard between Carter Bryant and Keshad Johnson. Each dunker gets two dunks.
Bryant earned a 49.2 on this dunk. That's the highest score of the night ... so far.
He scored 47.2 on this
Johnson had the highest score of any player in the first round.
Richardson scored 45.4 on his first attempt
Bryant scored 45.6 on his first attempt
The top two scorers advance to the final round of the Slam Dunk Contest. Here is a running scoreboard of the first round.
Johnson and Bryant advance to the final.
The top team scorer win the Shooting Stars contest. Here is a running scoreboard of the first round.
The top two scorers advance to the final round of the Shooting Stars contest. Here is a running scoreboard of the first round.
Team Knicks and Team Cameron advance to the final
The second event of the night will be the Shooting Stars challenge, which hasn't been held since 2015. It will replace the Skills Challenge, with four teams competing by making various shots on the floor, including a half-court shot.
| TEAM ALL-STAR | TEAM KNICKS | TEAM CAMERON | TEAM HARPER |
|---|---|---|---|
Kon Knueppel | Dylan Harper | ||
| Ron Harper Jr. | |||
Richard Hamilton | Allan Houston | Corey Maggette | Ron Harper |
The top scorer in the final round wins the 3-point contest. Here is a running scoreboard of the final round.
What a performance by Damian Lillard there at the end to advance. Lillard, Knueppel and Booker will be competing for the 3-point crown here shortly. Knueppel kicked off the event by scoring 27 points. Booker scored the most of any player (30). Lillard, the final player shooting in the first round, hit clutch shots on the "Moneyball" rack to eliminate Mitchell.
Here is a running scoreboard of the first round.
The top three scorers advance to the final round of the 3-point contest. Here is a running scoreboard of the first round.
Knueppel finishes with 27 points in the first round. He knocked down 3 of 5 attempts on the "Moneyball" rack.
We are moments away from the first event of NBA All-Star Saturday night: The 3-point contest. Hornets star Kon Knueppel will be up first first
The opening night of the 2026 NBA All-Star weekend is in the books. Team Vince, coached by Vince Carter, defeated Team Melo, coached by Carmelo Anthony, in the NBA Rising Star Challenge title game behind a standout performance from VJ Edgecombe. The 76ers star guard was named MVP of the event.
This marked the fifth consecutive year that the top rookies, sophomores and G League players were split into different teams during the four-team event. The first team to 40 points in the semifinals advanced to the title game, while the first to 25 points captured the championship.
Edgecombe scored the game-winning free throw to give Team Vince bragging rights. Team Melo advanced to the title game after Dylan Harper, the No. 2 overall pick from the 2025 NBA Draft, knocked down a mid-range jumper over older brother, Ron Harper Jr.
The 3-point contest will kick off the night at Intuit Dome. It's the most star-studded event of the night with Donovan Mitchell, Devin Booker and Tyrese Maxey joining Damian Lillard and Kon Knueppel. Here are the odds for the event (via DraftKings):
Who are our experts picking in tonight's competitions? John Gonzalez, James Herbert, Jack Maloney and Cameron Salerno made their picks heading into this weekend:
