When is NBA All-Star Weekend 2020?
Starting off as a tradition in 1951 with the annual All-Star Game, the NBA All-Star Weekend has come a long way with its 2020 iteration just around the corner. The weekend now marks the midway point of the regular NBA season and includes a host of festivities including the fan favorites Three-Point Contest and the Slam Dunk Contest.
With fan voting now in full flow, we are less than two weeks away from learning the names of the first set of players who will be featuring in the flagship All-Star Game. With that in mind, let us now look at the key dates surrounding the NBA All-Star Weekend including the announcement of participating teams and the actual weekend dates.
Key dates prior to NBA All-Star Weekend
January 16th - Final fan vote returns to be revealed
January 20th - Fan voting comes to a close
January 23rd - All-Star starters along with team captains to be revealed
January 30th - All-Star reserves to be revealed
NBA All-Star Weekend Dates
When: 14th to 16th February, 2020
Where: United Center, Chicago, IL
TV: TNT
Live Stream: NBA League Pass
NBA All-Star Weekend events rundown
Day 1 - All-Star Celebrity Game and Rising Stars Challenge (Friday, 14th Feb)
The All-Star Weekend festivities begin with the All-Star Celebrity Game on Friday evening with the tip-off slated to be at 7:00 PM ET. While the lineups aren't set yet, you can expect comedian Kevin Hart to a part of the game in some form or the other.
Following the celebrity game, we'll have the Rising Stars Challenge wherein rookies and sophomores are divided into Team USA and Team World based on their ethnicity or nationality and the two teams then fight it out in a 40-minute game. Expect the likes of Ja Morant, Kendrick Nunn, and Eric Paschall to shine among other young talents.
Day 2 - Skills Challenge, Three-Point Contest, and Slam Dunk Contest (Saturday, 15th Feb)
The second night of the All-Star Weekend sees players compete in individual events that are scheduled to take place from 8:00 PM ET onwards. First up is the Skills Challenge wherein players are tested on their ability to dribble, pass and score. Next in line is the Three-Point Contest which tests the ability of NBA sharpshooters from downtown. Finally, we have the Slam Dunk Contest where the rim-rattlers try to awe the audience with incredible jams.
In 2019, Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics won the Skills Challenge, Joe Harris of the Brooklyn Nets won the Three-Point Contest, while Hamidou Diallo of the Oklahoma City Thunder won the Slam Dunk Contest.
Day 3 - 69th NBA All-Star Game (Sunday, 16th Feb)
The marquee event of the weekend, the NBA All-Star Game will tip-off on Sunday 8:00 PM ET and will see the best players from both conferences tussle it out for supremacy. Last year saw Team LeBron come back from behind to thwart Team Giannis 178-164. Given the latest fan voting returns, it's likely that the two will become team captains once again.
The starters for both the conferences are decides based on a mix of fan, player and media voting. Head coaches from either conference vote for the reserves of the said conference with the catch that they cannot vote for players from their own team.
Once the 12 All-Stars from each conference is revealed, a player draft takes place where the team captains build their respective teams by selecting from the pool of nominated All-Stars.
Also read - How much do the 2020 NBA All-Star Game tickets cost?