Our experts give their NBA 3-Point Contest betting preview, breaking down all the odds and two best bets for Saturday’s competition.
NBA All-Star Weekend is upon us and that means eight players will be launching from deep to become the NBA 3-Point Champion, two of them for the second time.
Last year’s winner Damian Lillard will be back to defend his title, while Karl-Anthony Towns will be looking to repeat his shocking win in Cleveland back in 2022.
Both players are vying to be the eigth multi-time champion of the contest, but it won’t be easy. There will be stiff competition from the other six players, including Tyrese Haliburton who will be looking to hoist the trophy in front of the Indianapolis crowd.
The NBA 3-Point Contest Odds
All odds are presented by FanDuel Sportsbook.
- +370 Damian Lillard
- +440 Tyrese Haliburton
- +550 Trae Young
- +650 Malik Beasley
- +700 Jalen Brunson
- +700 Karl-Anthony Towns
- +800 Lauri Markkanen
- +950 Donovan Mitchell
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Who is the Favorite for the NBA 3-Point Contest?
Heading into Indianapolis, Damian Lillard is pegged as the top contender for the three-point title at +370, thanks in part to his triumph in Salt Lake City last year. Also, the man that would be favored over him, Stephen Curry, is occupied with his own showdown on Saturday night against Sabrina Ionescu.
However, Lillard’s bid for back-to-back victories isn’t a sure thing. His final-round score last year was the lowest for a three-point champ in four years, and his current three-point shooting average with the Bucks is 34.4 percent, a slight dip from his 37.1 percent with the Portland Trail Blazers last season.
BetPreview Expert Analysis: While Lillard won last year, it isn’t easy to go back-to-back in this competition. At the lowest odds of the eight players, we will take a pass on him as the value just isn’t there.
Can Karl-Anthony Towns Repeat as 3-Point Champion?
The 2022 3-Point Champion Towns comes in tied with Jalen Brunson for the fifth-highest odds at +700.
Towns is hitting an impressive 43.6 percent from beyond the arc this season, marking the best three-point shooting performance of his career to date.
Among those competing on Saturday, his three-point accuracy ranks as the second highest, trailing only Malik Beasley, who currently stands as the seventh-best three-point shooter in the entire NBA.
BetPreview Expert Analysis: Towns has the second highest 3-point percentage out of the contenders and has won this competition before. At +700 he has some great value, but he’s not our top pick to win the 3-point contest this year.
Will Tyrese Haliburton Win the 3-Point Contest at Home?
No player has ever won the 3-point contest on their home court and Haliburton will be looking to become the first to do so in the Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
Haliburton made the finals last year after posting the highest first-round score of 31. However, he came up flat in the finals with just 17 compared to Buddy Hield’s 25 and Lillard’s 26.
Although it would be a great story to have the emerging superstar take the trophy in front of his fans, his performance in last year’s final shows that he may not have the legs to go all the way.
BetPreview Expert Analysis: Haliburton seems to be the hot pick to win the contest this year. A lot of people point to him being at home without realizing no home player has ever won it. At just +440, there are better options.
Our NBA 3-Point Contest Prediction
Our prediction for the NBA 3-Point Contest winner is Malik Beasley at +650 at FanDuel Sportsbook.
Beasley is our pick for the contest with great value at +650 odds.
He currently has the highest 3-point percentage of the field at 44.9% this season and more importantly, the highest corner percentage. Hitting 51% of his corner threes this year, Beasley should be able to start and finish strong, plus clear out his moneyball rack.
Getting +650 value for the best shooter of the bunch is too much to turn down, but we only recommend a small play as predicting the 3-point contest is not an exact science.
Our NBA 3-Point Contest Best Bet
Our best bet for the NBA 3-Point Contest is Malik Beasley over 20.5 Points in the First Round -105 FanDuel Sportsbook.
For the reasons mentioned above, Beasley should have a strong showing in the first round of the contest.
The Timberwolves player is clutch from the corner and can shoot from range, which should see him sink at least one of the 3-point balls from the Starry Range.
The average first-round total for the top six players from last year’s competition was 24, so we find the value with Beasley to get at least 21 points if you don’t want to bet on him to win the whole competition.
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