Brooklyn Nets sharp-shooter Joe Harris
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — 3-Point Contest ended for Stephen Curry’s on Saturday night at the hands of Brooklyn Nets sharp-shooter Joe Harris.
Harris, who came into the weekend shooting a career-high 50.1 percent from 3-point land, stunned a capacity crowd in Curry’s hometown by knocking down 26 points in the final round, beating Curry’s score of 24.
“Obviously it’s incredible,” Harris said. “Steph is the greatest shooter of all time. Again, shooting off of the rack for a minute is not indicative of being a better shooter than Steph Curry. I don’t want anybody to get it twisted at all. He’s come in and won this thing [in 2015] and lost. He’s participated a number of different times. So for me to come in my first time and to win obviously is quite a surreal experience.”
The 27-year-old set the tone as the first shooter of the night, knocking down 25 points in the first round, including all five of his shots in the moneyball rack in the left corner.
3-Point Contest Results
First Round (Top 3 Advance)
Stephen Curry, Golden State, 27 points
Buddy Hield, Sacramento, 26
Joe Harris, Brooklyn, 25
Danny Green, Toronto, 23
Devin Booker, Phoenix, 23
Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas, 17
Damian Lillard, Portland, 17
Seth Curry, Portland, 16
Kemba Walker, Charlotte, 15
Khris Middleton, Milwaukee, 11
Finals
Joe Harris, Brooklyn, 26 points
Stephen Curry, Golden State, 24
Buddy Hield, Sacramento, 19
“I think I was lucky to be the first guy to shoot,” Harris said. “Because I was able to get kind of warm beforehand, and you don’t really have a ton of anxiety because you can’t have time to think about it. You’re going right into it, right into shooting.”
Despite Harris’ strong effort at the beginning, it was Curry who electrified the crowd in the first round, scoring a high of 27 points, including knocking down all five shots in his own moneyball rack in the right corner. He received a loud ovation after the performance as he excitedly made his way back to the bench.
After Harris put up 26 to start the final round, Sacramento Kings swingman Buddy Hield managed just 19, clearing the way for Curry to win it at the end. Curry started strong, knocking down nine of his first 10 shots, but he cooled off in the middle two racks, missing four of his next 10 attempts. When he failed to hit his third attempt in the final moneyball rack, the contest was over.
Curry, who won the event in 2015, initially said this was “most likely” the final time he would participate in the event, but afterward said he didn’t know whether he would come back toward the end of his career, as Dallas Mavericksgreat Dirk Nowitzki did Saturday night. Nowitzki finished with 17 points and did not advance.
Joe Harris goes perfect on his money ball rack and wins the #MtnDew3PT contest with a final round score of 26! #NBAAllStar #WeGoHard #StateFarmSaturday on @NBAonTNT pic.twitter.com/xw7WABBHeW
— NBA (@NBA) February 17, 2019
