Two Knicks competed in the ancillary NBA All-Star events but both came up short, with Julius Randle tying for fifth in the Skills Challenge and Obi Toppin the runner-up in the Slam Dunk Contest.
The Skills Competition was held prior to the All-Star Game, and Randle was matched up with eventual champion Domantas Sabonis in the first round. This year’s format featured a weaving obstacle course, a pass through a circular target, a layup, and a three-pointer, and Randle fell behind Sabonis after missing his first pass, while the Indiana big man was perfect.
Sabonis went on to defeat Luka Doncic and Nikola Vucevic to win the competition, and after Steph Curry won the 3-Point Contest in dramatic fashion and Team LeBron won both quarters in the first half and led 100-80 in the game itself, it was time for three dunkers to shine: Toppin, Indiana’s Cassius Stanley, and Portland’s Anfernee Simons.
In the first round, contestants got two dunks, with the two highest combined scores moving on to a one-dunk finale. Toppin’s first dunk scored a 49, as he performed a reverse tomahawk, bouncing the ball through his legs in flight:
The second dunk brought in both Randle and Toppin’s father, Obadiah Sr. aka AND1 star “Dunkers’ Delight,” and saw Toppin need two attempts to complete a windmill dunk while jumping over both:
That dunk moved Toppin into the finals against Simons, and with the lower combined score, Toppin went first. He executed a dunk where he took off from just inside the foul line, put the ball between his legs with his left hand, and slammed it home with the right:
Simons, however, topped that; after bouncing the ball in the air, he took off from just outside the restricted area, grabbed the ball with his right hand above the rim, and dunked it home, making a kissing motion as his lips were at rim-level:
On the panel of five former dunk champs, Spud Webb and Josh Smith gave Toppin the nod, but Dominique Wilkins, Jason Richardson, and Dee Brown gave Simons the victory.
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