NBA All-Star Saturday Night Game Thread

All-Star Saturday is sort of a bummer without Joel Embiid participating, but the busiest night of the weekend will have to go on without the Sixers center’s participation. Things get started around 7:00 for East Coasters, so grab some snacks, pull up a chair and get ready for the usual events.

Here’s what you can expect tonight in New Orleans:

7:00-8:00 p.m. — TNT NBA Tip-Off Preview Show / Adam Silver media availability

If you want to get a firmer grasp on how little basketball Charles Barkley watches aside from the games he’s assigned to cover, feel free to turn the channel to TNT. If that doesn’t suit you, Commissioner Silver will talk to the media over on NBA TV.

8:00-11:00 p.m. — All the stuff you actually want to watch (TNT)

THE EVENTS

Skills Challenge

Embiid was supposed to participate in this, but life is pain and Sixers fans aren’t allowed to have nice things. Here’s who you get to watch instead:

Anthony Davis, New Orleans Pelicans

DeMarcus Cousins, Sacramento Kings

Kristaps Porzingis, New York Knicks

Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets

Gordon Hayward, Utah Jazz

Isaiah Thomas, Boston Celtics

John Wall, Washington Wizards

Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns

Three-Point Contest

For my money, the best part of All-Star Weekend. Most of the sizzle of the dunk contest, with none of the arbitrary scoring mistakes from judges. Klay Thompson is the defending champion and likely favorite, but since Kyrie Irving and his flat-Earth nonsense are dominating the headlines so far, let’s go with him to win. The participants:

Klay Thompson, Golden State Warriors

Kyrie Irving, Cleveland Cavaliers

Kyle Lowry, Toronto Raptors

Kemba Walker, Charlotte Hornets

Wesley Matthews, Dallas Mavericks

CJ McCollum, Portland Trail Blazers

Nick Young, Los Angeles Lakers

Eric Gordon, Houston Rockets

Slam Dunk Contest

Freed from the shackles of the Orlando Magic for a weekend, Aaron Gordon’s inability to play small forward doesn’t matter during the Dunk Contest. With Zach LaVine sidelined thanks to an ACL tear, Gordon is the (heh) slam-dunk favorite tonight. I wouldn’t bet against him -- he had a reasonable case to win last year, and his competition isn’t expected to be too fierce. But the favorite in our hearts is G-Rob III, the only Process-adjacent participant tonight:

Aaron Gordon, Orlando Magic

DeAndre Jordan, LA Clippers

Glenn Robinson III, Indiana Pacers

Derrick Jones Jr., Phoenix Suns