NBA 3-Point Contest: Betting Favorite, Odds & Lines
The night before the All-Star Game has several exciting competitions between the league’s biggest stars, including the Skills Challenge, the 3-Point and the Slam Dunk Contests.
This year’s NBA 3-Point Contest features an added wrinkle.
In addition to the standard competition between the NBA’s top shooters, there will be a one-on-one contest between the Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry and the New York Liberty’s Sabrina Ionesco in the first-ever NBA vs. WNBA 3-Point Challenge.
The night will kick off at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday, Feb. 17, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. This marks Indianapolis’ first time hosting the All-Star Game since 1985 and the first time hosting the 3-Point Contest, which debuted the following year.
NBA betting sites have odds for both competitions, which you can find below.
NBA 3-Point Contest Odds
- Damian Lillard: +490
- Malik Beasley: +550
- Tyrese Haliburton: +550
- Jalen Brunson: +600
- Karl-Anthony Towns: +600
- Trae Young: +600
- Lauri Markkanen: +700
- Donovan Mitchell: +700
Odds from FanDuel Sportsbook. Subject to change.
Milwaukee Bucks guard Damian Lillard has the shortest odds after winning last year’s event in Utah. Lillard ranks third among active players and fifth all-time in made 3-pointers.
This will be his fourth time competing in the event – the most of anyone in the field.
Lillard’s teammate Malik Beasley is tied with Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton for the second-shortest odds. He’s been the group’s most accurate distance shooter this season at 44.7% (fifth in NBA) but has never appeared in the contest.
Since the first official NBA 3-Point Contest in 1986, no player has ever won the contest on their home court. The closest anyone came was when Dallas Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki won the 2006 competition in Houston, a different city in Texas. Haliburton will try to buck that trend and become the first after falling short in last year’s competition.
The other previous winner on this list is Minnesota Timberwolves star Karl-Anthony Towns, who won the 2022 event in Cleveland. At seven feet tall, Towns is easily the field’s tallest player. He also has the group’s second-highest 3-point percentage at 43.8%.
Towns is tied with New York Knicks star Jalen Brunson and Atlanta Hawks star Trae Young on the oddsboard. Towns and Brunson have never appeared in the contest before, while Young is making his third appearance. He’s an injury replacement for Philadelphia 76ers point guard Tyrese Maxey, who’s unable to participate due to a broken foot.
Young ranks third in made 3-pointers this season behind Stephen Curry and Luka Doncic, neither of whom are participating.
Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell and Utah Jazz guard Lauri Markkanen round out the list. Both are competing in the contest for the second time.
In addition to the winner odds, bettors can also wager on prop bets like how many 3-pointers a player will make in a specific round.
NBA vs. WNBA 3-Point Shootout
- Stephen Curry: -265
- Sabrina Ionescu: +200
Curry is favored to beat Ionescu in the first-ever NBA versus WNBA shootout.
Curry is the NBA’s all-time leader in 3-pointers and is widely considered the greatest shooter. The Golden State Warriors star won the traditional 3-point contest in 2015 and 2021.
He also leads the NBA in made 3-pointers this season – which would be his eighth time leading the league in the category.
Ionescu is the reigning WNBA 3-point league leader and 3-Point Contest champion. Last summer, she scored 37 out of a possible 40 points in the WNBA 3-Point Contest – the most in NBA/WNBA combined history.
The New York Liberty star broke Curry’s previous record of 31, making 25 of her final 27 attempts.
After shattering Curry’s record, Ionescu challenged him to a one-on-one 3-point contest. The winner doesn’t receive anything beyond bragging rights, but money will go to their charities for every 3-pointer they make.
Curry will shoot with NBA balls from the NBA 3-point line, while Ionescu will use smaller WNBA balls from the shorter WNBA 3-point line.
Since Ionescu’s shots are easier, she could have good betting value at plus odds.
Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images
