NBA All-Star Weekend: Betting Odds & Picks for 2021 Skills Challenge, 3-Point Contest
The NBA regular-season is taking a break, but you can still get action down at sportsbooks and DFS sites during the 2021 All-Star Weekend. Here’s everything you need to know for betting on Sunday’s 2021 NBA All-Star Skills Challenge, Three-Point Contest, and Dunk Contest.
Slam Dunk Contest odds won’t be available at legal US sportsbooks due to NBA integrity issues. Luckily bettors will still be able to bet on Sunday’s Three-Point Contest and Skills Challenge leading up to the All-Star Game later that night.
[Read More: NBA All-Star Game Rosters, Odds, Picks]
2021 NBA Skills Challenge Betting Odds
The NBA All-Star Skills Challenge usually plays third-wheel to the Slam Dunk Contest and Three-Point Contest, but that’s nothing betting can’t fix.
The Skills Challenge is what its name suggests: an all-in-one contest that tests players’ speed, agility, passing, shooting, and ball-handling skills as players make their way through what I call a basketball obstacle court. In 2015, a bracket-style tournament was introduced, with competitors battling head-to-head to advance to the next round. 2015 also brought the addition of a three-point shot and another lay-up at the end of the challenge. The single-elimination tournament format has made sweating bets on the Skills Challenge a bit more exciting.
Since odds vary from one sportsbook to the next, we collected the best odds for each player between PointsBet and BetMGM.
All odds are accurate as of 2 pm ET Sunday, March 6, 2021.
| Player | Odds | Sportsbook |
|---|---|---|
| Chris Paul | +240 | PointsBet |
| Luka Doncic | +250 | BetMGM |
| Nikola Vucevic | +500 | PointsBet |
| Julius Randle | +600 | PointsBet |
| Domantas Sabonis | +750 | BetMGM |
| Robert Covington | +750 | BetMGM |
2021 NBA Skills Challenge Betting Picks
While guards won the first 14 NBA All-Star Skills Challenges, big men have found success since the inception of the split bracket. In fact, with Tatum’s recent victory, bigs are 3-1 since 2015. Karl-Anthony Towns (+1000) beat Isaiah Thomas in 2016, making him the first big man winner. Big men repeated in 2017 when Kristaps Porzingis (+1000) defeated Gordon Hayward, and Bam Adebayo won in 2020.
The big men’s reign is likely to end Sunday night, as Chris Paul and Luka Doncic will be tough to beat. I have a tough time betting on anyone other than Paul, who is competing in the Skills Challenge for a sixth—and likely his last—time.
If you’re looking for someone with longer odds, then it’s worth noting that Sabonis finished runner-up in 2020, so we know he has some upside in this contest — however, the field last year wasn’t quite as dicey.
2021 NBA Three-Point Contest Betting Odds
The NBA three-point contest, which is sponsored by Mountain Dew, made some changes last year. There are now two new “DEW Zones” located six feet beyond the arc, allowing players to add six points to their score. You can even bet on whether players will make a DEW Zone shot at DraftKings sportsbook.
Steph Curry returns to the field, and sportsbooks make him a short favorite to win his second three-point contest. The Slash Bro previously won the crown in 2015. With Booker withdrawing from the contest and Conley stepping up to fill his shoes, Curry is the only former winner of the six contestants.
It’s a shame we don’t get to see Booker and Curry battle. In 2018, Booker scored 28 points to break Curry and Klay Thompson’s single-round record of 27 points. It marked the second time in three years that the new single-round record had been set. Craig Hodges previously held the record, scoring 25 points in 1986. Hodges’ record went unmatched until Jason Kapono tied it 2008.
Here we have a chart of the best prices along with each participant’s 2020 3-point percentage.
All odds are accurate as of 2:30 pm ET Saturday, March 6, 2021.
| Player | 3-point % | Odds | Sportsbook |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stephen Curry | 41.4% | +150 | BetMGM |
| Zach LaVine | 43.5% | +400 | PointsBet |
| Donovan Mitchell | 38.2% | +550 | BetMGM |
| Mike Conley | 42.2% | +550 | BetMGM |
| Jayson Tatum | 36.4% | +700 | BetMGM |
| Jaylen Brown | 38.9% | +750 | PointsBet |
2021 NBA Three-Point Contest Betting Picks
Sorry guys, but I’m not making any bold predictions when Curry is in the mix. I’m hoping for a chalky Sunday night.
[Bet Steph Curry +150 at BetMGM]
Make sure to check out DFS tips for the NBA Rising Stars & All-Star Game, and if you’re a college basketball fan, you don’t want to miss our 2020 March Madness betting update.
Image Credit: Imagn