A legendary leap, a perfect performance and an unprecedented three-peat.
5 STORIES IN TODAY’S EDITION 🏀
Feb. 16, 2025
74th NBA All-Star Game: 4 teams, 3 duels and a midseason classic unlike any other (8 ET, TNT)
An Ode To Saturday Night: The return of the Mac caps a night that witnessed rare air
Mac Mania: McClung rocks the rim, and the hoops world, amid a historic AT&T Slam Dunk 3-peat
More Hardware: Team Cavs win Kia Skills Challenge, Herro heats up from deep
Behind The Scenes: All-access footage from Saturday’s All-Star Media Day presented by AT&T
BUT FIRST … ⏰
All-Star Weekend’s main event…
The 74th NBA All-Star Game tips off tonight on TNT with the event’s first three-team, four-game mini-tournament, beginning with Kenny’s Young Stars facing Chuck’s Global Stars (8:20 ET). Then, Shaq’s OGs will face Candace’s Rising Stars (9:10 ET) before the winner-take-all championship (10 ET).
On Saturday, Tuskegee University defeated Morehouse College in the fourth annual NBA HBCU Classic before Commissioner Adam Silver met with the media for his annual All-Star Press Conference.
Reads Of The Day: AP on Kevin Durant’s return to Chase Center and Steph & Ayesha Curry as hosts this weekend … NBA.com on Damian Lillard giving back to Bay Area kids.
1. TONIGHT ON TNT: THE 74TH NBA ALL-STAR GAME
In the All-Star Game’s 74-year history, there’s never been one quite like tonight’s (8 ET, TNT).
Four teams. Three games. Two semifinals. One winner-take-all championship.
And for the first time, the league’s next generation enters the mix.
- Format Refresher: Three teams (Chuck’s Global Stars, Shaq’s OGs and Kenny’s Young Stars) are composed of the 24 NBA All-Stars, drafted by Team GMs Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal and Kenny Smith
- The Fourth Squad? Friday’s Castrol Rising Stars champion, representing Team Candace – led by honorary GM and WNBA legend Candace Parker
The Rising Stars’ semifinal matchup? A showdown with LeBron James, Steph Curry, Kevin Durant and Shaq’s OGs (9:10 ET, TNT), who don’t plan on taking it easy against the young bucks.
- “They’re probably on a nice little high thinking they can come in here Sunday and beat us,” said Curry on Team Candace. “But that’s not going to happen.”
- Confidence In Experience: Led by LeBron (record 21 selections), KD (15), Steph (11) and James Harden (11), Shaq’s OGs boast a combined 86 All-Star nods and unmatched resume…
In the first semifinal (8:20 ET, TNT), fans get an All-Star vs. All-Star clash as Chuck’s Global Stars battle Kenny’s Young Stars – featuring future faces of the league and current Kia MVP candidates.
- World-Class Talent: Chuck’s squad boasts six players from six countries, headlined by Kia Ladder leaders Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Canada) and Nikola Jokić (Serbia), alongside first-time All-Star Victor Wembanyama
- Fresh Faces: Speaking of first-timers, Kenny’s Young Stars includes four All-Star rookies in Cade Cunningham, Tyler Herro, Evan Mobley and Jalen Williams
- Young Energy: With an average age of 24.79, Kenny’s squad would be the third-youngest roster in the NBA
Four of the NBA’s top five leaders in clutch points – Trae Young, Anthony Edwards, Brunson and Jokić – are All-Stars, while Shaq’s OGs have solidified legendary legacies in the clutch. Or, could we see a Castrol Rising Star shock the world?
Who goes for the Kobe Bryant MVP? We’ve seen five straight first-time All-Star MVPs the past five years – Damian Lillard (2024), Jayson Tatum (2023), Curry (2022), Giannis (2021) and Kawhi (2020). Will that streak continue in 2025?
Who Makes The Moment? From Magic’s legendary MVP return in ‘92 to Kobe & MJ’s timeless trash talk in ‘03 and Dame Time’s halfcourt dagger in 2021, the All-Star Game is defined by moments that live far beyond the final buzzer.
Who will add their name to the forever reel tonight?
2. RARE AIR: A STORYBOOK ALL-STAR SATURDAY NIGHT
One of the most iconic nights in sports delivered – and then some.
State Farm All-Star Saturday Night saw cars cleared, ladders climbed, hardware hoisted and records rewritten.
So, in honor of sights both special and rare, we’ll let the rhymes and visuals take you there…
Boasting the most All-Stars with three, the East-leading Cavs took the Kia Skills Challenge trophy.
Up Next? A Hield vs. Herro heat test as Miami’s star claimed the Starry 3-Point Contest.
And then – well, this happened:
The score? A perfect 50, leaving fans amazed.
Baron Davis? Priceless, in a moment of pure daze.
The ‘Bouncy Castle’ too had some 50s up his sleeve.
But McClung soared to a level few could conceive.
As Mac traveled where no Slam Dunk champ had ever gone before…
“Three in a row,” chanted Giannis, as the Chase Center crowd roared.
3. MAC MANIA: HOOPS WORLD ERUPTS AS McCLUNG CLAIMS HISTORIC 3-PEAT
In 2011, Blake Griffin broke the internet by jumping over the hood of a Kia.
Last night, Mac McClung cleared the entire vehicle.
And that was only his first dunk.
McClung Wins AT&T Slam Dunk: Aiming for the first three-peat in AT&T Slam Dunk history, the G-Leaguer pulled out all the stops and put on a show, recording a perfect 50 on all four of his dunks to top Spurs rookie Stephon Castle by 0.4 points, 100-99.6, in the finals. | Recap | Full Event
- 200 For The Title: After soaring over a Kia5, McClung hopped Nate Dougherty with a 360 – while seemingly freezing in mid-air – to punch his ticket to the final
- Up Next? Two dunks in one jump, along with a mid-air exchange from a spinning hoverboard
- For The Win: On his final attempt, McClung had to clear two things: A 6-foot-11 Evan Mobley (standing on a platform) and a score of 49.6 to beat Castle
- The Result? You guessed it – a perfect 50 with a double-tap to clinch the triple title, leaving Steph Curry like this
25 years after Vince Carter’s iconic Slam Dunk performance in Oakland, VC looked on as McClung joined him in dunking lore, lighting up the Bay – and the basketball world.
- Kendrick Perkins via X: “Yep. McClung is one of the Greatest Dunkers of All-Time.”
- Trae Young via X: “MAC DUNK DIFFERENT OMG 🔥🔥🔥🔥”
- Precious Achiuwa via X: “Wait how does bro keep coming up with these dunk ideas?”
- Dwight Howard via X: “The best dunks happen in a magic jersey 🔥”
Amid the awe, Kenny Smith, who famously declared “it’s over” after Carter took the league’s breath away a quarter century ago, placed McClung in the same rarefied air.
- Kenny: “Vince Carter, you are being challenged for the greatest dunker in dunk history!”
- Replied Carter: “There’s something in the water here in Oakland.”
4. HERRO’S 3-POINT HEATER, TEAM CAVS CALL THEIR SHOT
Career-high averages across the board earned Tyler Herro his first All-Star nod this season.
And on Saturday, his hot hand delivered another highlight in his breakout year.
Herro Wins Starry 3-Point Contest: With Buddy Hield tying Steph Curry’s first-round record with 31 points and Darius Garland tallying 24, Herro narrowly squeaked into the final with a score of 19 to edge out 18 from Damian Lillard.
But with the belt on the line, the Heat star heated up, opening with 24 points to top Garland (17) and hold off Hield, who finished one point shy (23). | Recap | Full Event
- Heat From Deep: Herro is the fifth Heat player to win the competition – the most of any NBA team – joining Glen Rice, Jason Kapono, Daequan Cook and James Jones
- “I just tried to rely on the work,” Herro said on the win. “All morning I’ve been thinking about this. Just staying into the process and happy I got the win.”
- Dame’s Quest: Seeking a historic three-peat, Damian Lillard came up one triple shy of advancing to the championship round
Before Saturday’s Kia Skills Challenge, Donovan Mitchell, alongside his partner Evan Mobley, had a simple message for the rest of the field:
And Mitchell was a man of his word.
Team Cavs Wins Skills Challenge: In a fitting Cavs vs. Warriors finals from the Bay, it was Mitchell & Mobley who outpaced Draymond Green & Moses Moody in the two-man relay with a winning score of 1:00.3. | Recap | Full Event
- Photo Finish: To reach the finals, Team Cavs edged out Zaccharie Risacher & Alex Sarr (Team Rooks) by less than a second, while the Spurs were DQ’d
- Unbeaten Ev: It was Mobley’s second Skills Challenge title in his second try, as he also helped Team Cavs win the event in 2022
“It means a lot,” said Mobley on the two titles. “I feel like we got a pretty skilled team.”
5. ON THE GROUND FOR ALL-STAR MEDIA DAY PRESENTED BY AT&T
“Best players in the world, in the best league in the world, are here,” said Shai Gilgeous-Alexander at Saturday’s All-Star Media Day presented by AT&T. “To be around that is a blessing and an honor.”
Shai wasn’t the only All-Star reflecting on the moment yesterday, as many of the game’s best paused to appreciate what made this weekend so special and the journey that got them here.
- Jaren Jackson Jr.: “When I went in my yard, I liked to pretend I was KD or TMac or Kobe … I just imagined being one of those superheroes on the court. And I think this feeling is way better than how I imagined it.”
- Tyler Herro: “Soaking it all in. First one … I remember as a kid watching the entire weekend.”
- Wemby: “Feels like the whole city is vibing around the NBA.”
Even 11-time All-Star James Harden was taking in the scenes from Shaq’s OGs’ locker room before speaking on the wealth of talent in the younger generation of All-Stars.
- “You’ve got somebody like Wemby, you’ve got Shai … Anthony Edwards … JT & Jaylen Brown … Luka,” said Harden. “There’s a lot of guys who can carry this league – because it is the best sport in the world.”
On The Ground: Held at Oakland Arena (previously known as Oracle Arena), All-Star Practice & Media Day delivered its usual dose of gold, with our all-access cameras along for the ride.
- Inspiring Connection: Anthony Edwards shares a heartwarming reunion with his No. 1 fan Luca, who’s battling cancer and gifted Ant a bracelet he now wears during games
- Timeless Wisdom: The All-Stars share the advice they’d give to their 12-year-old selves – including a classic KD reply
- You vs. Wemby: Step into Donovan Mitchell’s shoes through his bodycam and see what it’s like to guard Wemby
- Behind The Shot: Steph Curry reveals the origins of his iconic pregame tunnel shot at Oracle Arena – thanks to Monte Ellis
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