Feb. 17 (UPI) -- NBA All-Star Weekend kicked off Friday night with the Celebrity Game and the Rising Stars Challenge, followed by the Skills Challenge, 3-Point Contest and Dunk Contest taking center stage Saturday.
The skills competition started off All-Star Weekend's main attractions Saturday at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte. Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum, using a half-court shot, defeated Atlanta Hawks rookie Trae Young to claim a thrilling win in the Skills Challenge.
Tatum topped Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, Memphis Grizzlies point guard Mike Conley and Young to seal his first victory in the event.
"I'm just here trying to have fun," Tatum said. "I threw it up and it went in."
Jayson Tatum from half-court for the #TacoBellSkills challenge WIN!#StateFarmSaturday on @NBAonTNT pic.twitter.com/3qbR2FTpMa
— NBA (@NBA) February 17, 2019
Tatum fell behind in the layup portion of the contest and gambled with a deep half-court shot. The Celtics' rising star launched the deep three and banked it in off the glass to defeat Young.
In the 3-Point Contest, Golden State warriors star Stephen Curry started hot but faltered late against Brooklyn Nets sharpshooter Joe Harris in the championship round.
Steph knocked down nine consecutive buckets to start, but it wasn't enough to knock off Joe Harris. #MtnDew3PT pic.twitter.com/oOjRZxH7KT
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) February 17, 2019
Curry drained 10 consecutive shots and finished with 27 points in the first round. The shooter sank his first nine shots in the final round, making 19 straight shots between the two rounds.
Harris had 25 points in the first round and drained all five balls on the money rack in the championship round to finish with 26 points and the 3-point shooting crown.
Joe Harris drains nine straight and posts another perfect money ball rack to finish with a championship round score of 26! 🔥🔥🔥#MtnDew3PT pic.twitter.com/abh9qlo6Ix
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) February 17, 2019
The night ended with Oklahoma City Thunder guard Hamidou Diallo winning the Slam Dunk contest against Dennis Smith Jr., Miles Bridges and John Collins.
Diallo had the event's most memorable dunk after flying over Basketball Hall of Fame center Shaquille O'Neal.
The Thunder guard ripped open his jersey and revealed a Superman logo before the dunk attempt. Diallo aligned Shaq under the basket and flew over the 7-foot-1 big man, putting his elbow inside the rim as a tribute to the "honey dip" dunk that Vince Carter created while competing in the 2000 NBA Dunk Contest.
The dunk earned a perfect 50 from the judges and set up Diallo's first slam dunk title.
Other memorable dunks included rapper J. Cole, a native of North Carolina, throwing a pass to Smith Jr., and Bridges' tribute to Hornets great Larry Johnson. Bridges, while wearing Johnson's jersey, performed a 360-degree dunk off a pass from Charlotte All-Star guard Kemba Walker.
The NBA's All-Star Weekend concludes with the annual All-Star Game on Sunday at 8 p.m. ET at Spectrum Center in Charlotte.
