The NBA Three-Point Shootout

One of the events during the NBA All-Star weekend is the Three-Point Shootout. Officially called the Foot Locker Three-Point Shootout, this is a contest held the Saturday before the All-Star Game. In this competition, different players try to make as may three-point shots as possible from five different angles beyond the three-point arc. They begin by shooting five basketballs from one corner, then move onto the next rack of basketballs. Although each rack has five basketballs, a player can be awarded up to six points. The first four balls count as one point each, as they are standard basketballs used in games. The fifth basketball is usually a colored one and is called the money ball. If a player makes this ball in the basket, they are awarded two points. They player gets a total of one minute to shoot all the shots. A maximum of thirty points can be achieved.

In a qualifying round, each player tries to score as much as possible. The three players with the highest scores advance to the final round. In the event of a tie, an additional round is played to determine who advances. There is a total of $86,000 given out for prize money. $35,000 is given out to the winner, $22,500 is given out to second place, and $15,000 is given out to third place. The rest of the participants receive $4,000. The field use to be eight participants, but in 2002, the field was cut down to only six participants. There was no Three-Point Shootout in 1999 due to the lockout.

Larry Bird won the first contest held. He and Craig Hodges have won three straight times, the only players to achieve this. Mark Price, Jeff Hornacek, Pedja Stojakovic, and Jason Kapono have each won it twice in a row. The record for most points scored in one round is 25, being held by Hodges and Kapono. Four players have scored twenty-four points in a round. They are Hodges in 1991, Mark Price in 1994, Hubert Davis in 1998, and Kapono in 2007. Hodges, who has participated a record seven times, also made nineteen consecutive shots, also a record. Michael Jordan only scored five points in the 1990 contest, which is the record for lowest total. There have been seven instances where the money ball was made all five times. The last time that happened was in 2004, performed by Voshon Lenard. Daequan Cook of the Miami Heat won the most recent Three-Point Shootout.

Wikipedia, NBA All-Star Weekend Three-Point Shootout