2022 NBA All Star Skills Challenge Betting Preview & Picks

The NBA All-Star Weekend is coming up and one of the events I look most forward to each year is the skills competition. This year, they are having three teams of three players compete against each other, compared to the single player version of years past. Today we are going to dive in and decide who we should bet on. 

The three teams competing in the NBA All Star Skills Challenge are the Rookies (Cade Cunningham, Scottie Barnes, Josh Giddey), the Cavaliers (Jarrett Allen, Darius Garland, Evan Mobley), and the Antetokounmpos (Alex Antetokounmpo, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Thanasis Antetokounmpo).

According to the top sportsbooks, the Rookies are the favorites at -155, and then the Cavs are +225, and the Antetokounmpos are sitting at +375. 

This event is a four-round competition that will test passing, shooting, and dribbling ability and will compete for “Challenge Points” with the team awarded the fewest points eliminated as the other two facing off against one another in the Final Round. Below is how the event will run:

Round 1

Round 1 is a team shooting round where all players from a team will have 30 seconds to shoot from five different spots on the court from 10 to 30 feet.

Each shot has a different value depending on distance and cannot shoot in the same spot consecutively. The combined points will be added up for each team, and the winning team receives 100 Challenge Points. 

Round 2

Round 2 is a team passing where they participate together and have 30 seconds to complete passes into three moving targets.

The individual player cannot pass at the same target consecutively, and the winning team will be awarded 100 Challenge Points. 

Round 3

Round 3 is a team relay, similar to the old event. Each player must complete the course with an outlet pass into a moving target from the baseline, dribbling down the court through three moving pylons, making a shot in the lane, hitting a three-pointer, and dribbling across the court and making a basket of any distance.

The team that completes this the fastest will be awarded 200 Challenge Points. 

Round 4

The fourth and final round will consist of the two teams in the finals and participating in a half-court challenge. The first team will shoot, and once a player hits a shot, they will finish.

The second team has to hit their shot in less time to win the event. If they tie, they repeat until there is a winner.

Okay, So What’s the Play Here?

I think the odds and the value is on the Team Cavaliers. They have the home cooking as it’s being played in Cleveland and have the combination of shooting and passing with Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen, and Evan Mobley.

Team Antetokounmpo does not have a shooter, so they are most likely going to not make the finals, and Team Rookie is going to struggle making a half-court shot while I can picture Garland doing so relatively quickly.

All in all, go with the plus odds and select Team Cavs to win the 2022 NBA All Star Skills Challenge.

Be sure to follow betJACK on Instagram for all the latest during NBA All Star Weekend in The Land!