On Saturday night, during NBA All-Star weekend in Indianapolis, the best 3-point shooters in the NBA and WNBA will go head-to-head in a battle for sharpshooting glory. Golden State Warriors star Steph Curry and New York Liberty standout Sabrina Ionescu will partake in the Starry 3-Point Contest.
Curry and Ionescu are arguably the best shooters in their respective leagues, and now they will determine which one reigns supreme over both the NBA and WNBA. Following the standard NBA 3-point competition, and before the Slam Dunk Contest, Curry and Ionescu will take the court at Lucas Oil Stadium.
How to watch Steph vs. Sabrina
Date: Saturday, Feb. 17 | Start time: ~9:15-9:30 ET (time is approximate, event will start after the NBA 3-point contest)
Location: Lucas Oil Stadium -- Indianapolis, Indiana
TV: TNT | Live stream: TNT app
In an press conference leading up to the event, Curry said he was excited to compete against one of the best shooters in basketball right now.
"However this plays out, it's what sports is about, right?" Curry said. "Competing, whatever the format is. She's the champ, so I'm the contender. Let's lay it out on the line."
Ionescu, the defending 3-point contest champion in the WNBA, said that this will be a "pinch-me moment" when she walks onto the floor with Curry, whom she's looked up to since she was a child.
"He used to be my background screensaver," Ionescu said. "I used to have wallpapers. Everything you could think of up in my room. This is a pinch-me moment knowing what we're able to do this next weekend is every kid's dream."
How did this competition come about?
During last summer's WNBA All-Star weekend, Ionescu set a record for both leagues with a whopping 37 points. After the competition, Ionescu tweeted at Curry challenging him to a 3-point competition of their own.
Shoot out??😂 @StephenCurry30
— Sabrina Ionescu (@sabrina_i20) July 15, 2023
Just a few days later, Curry went on ESPN and accepted Ionescu's challenge, saying he wanted to break her record.
"I gotta go after Sabrina's record," Curry said. "I got something to shoot for now that she went crazy with the 37 points in their All-Star weekend. I guess we gotta settle that one for sure."
Fast forward about six months later, and the NBA announced that Curry and Ionescu would settle it during the 2024 NBA All-Star weekend. Now, there will be no doubt about who is the true 3-point competition champ.
Which 3-point line will they shoot from?
When the contest was first announced, Curry was set to shoot from the NBA 3-point line (23 feet, nine inches), and Ionescu would shoot from the WNBA 3-point line (22 feet, 1.75 inches). However, Ionescu has since stated that she will be shooting from the NBA 3-point line to level the playing field with Curry.
Ionescu told CBS Sports' Isabel Gonzalez that she practices from that range anyway. Ionescu said it was a "no-brainer" to opt for the NBA line once she found out the decision was up to her.
"Personally, I shoot from that range to begin with," Ionescu said. "I practice from that range wanting to be a better shooter and a better basketball player. Just get better as a whole. Knowing I had that opportunity to pick what line I wanted to shoot from, it was a no-brainer from when it was first presented that I wanted to shoot from the NBA line."
Curry said he was impressed with Ionescu calling her shot from NBA range.
"It was like when you're in the gym, we've all been in a shooting competition," Curry said. "... It was like, through the internet, pointing to the ground. It was like, 'Nah, I'm right here.' I absolutely loved it."
What are the rules?
The rules will be standard NBA 3-point competition rules, with a slight twist. There will be five racks of five balls placed at different points around the 3-point line. Four of the racks will have four standard balls, which are worth one point, and one "money ball" worth two points.
One of the racks will be filled entirely with "money balls." The shooters will get to choose where that rack is placed along the 3-point line.
In addition to the standard and "money balls," there will be another special ball that could make a big difference in the competition. There will be two Starry range balls, which will be from long range. Those shots will be worth three points each.
Curry will use NBA balls in the competition. Ionescu will use WNBA balls.
When the shooter begins, he or she will have 70 seconds to take all of the shots. The player with the most points at the end of the round will be declared the winner.
What are their career 3-point shooting percentages?
There is a reason Curry and Ionescu will be featured in this event, and it's because they both have tremendous range on the court. Both players can light up the scoreboard from beyond the arc.
Curry has already established himself as the best 3-point shooter in NBA history, with 3,640 made 3-pointers. That is 667 more than Ray Allen, who is in second place all-time. This season, Curry is shooting 42.3% from deep, which is almost right in line with his career average of 42.7%.
On top of that, Curry has won the NBA's 3-point shooting competition twice throughout his career (2015, 2021).
Ionescu has established herself as a tremendous 3-point shooter going back to her time at Oregon. While with the Ducks from 2016-20, Ionescu knocked down 42.2% of her 3-point attempts. In the 2023 WNBA season, Ionescu was cooking from deep, hitting 44.8% of her 3-point shots and winning the WNBA 3-Point Shootout.
