NBA All-Star Saturday Night heated up with the NBA All-Star 3-Point Contest, which turned out to be one of the best in recent history.
2023 winner Damian Lillard successfully defended his crown but it wasn't without resistance. Each of the eight contestants finished with at least 20 points in the first round and the three finalists needed to be decided by a tiebreaker between Lillard, Tyrese Haliburton, Karl-Anthony Towns and Trae Young.
MORE: Watch the 2024 NBA All-Star Weekend events live with Sling TV
With his victory, Lillard rewrites the history book as the contest's first back-to-back winner in 16 years. Things came down to the wire as Lillard's final shot is what put him over the top.
If you missed any of the action, The Sporting News tracked live scoring updates from throughout this year's 3-Point Contest.
MORE: Everything you need to know about NBA All-Star 2024
NBA 3-Point Contest final scores
| Player | Round 1 (Tiebreaker) | Finals |
| Damian Lillard | 26 (16) | 26 |
| Trae Young | 26 (15) | 24 |
| Karl-Anthony Towns | 26 (16) | 22 |
| Tyrese Haliburton (Eliminated) | 26 (12) | — |
| Lauri Markkanen (Eliminated) | 25 | — |
| Jalen Brunson (Eliminated) | 24 | — |
| Donovan Mitchell (Eliminated) | 21 | — |
| Malik Beasley (Eliminated) | 20 | — |
NBA 3-Point Contest updates, results, highlights from 2024 All-Star Weekend
(All times Eastern.)
Finals
9:47 p.m.: Back-to-back! Damian Lillard defends his 3-Point Contest title with 26 points in the final round, defeating Trae Young (24) and Karl-Anthony Towns (22).
Lillard is the first back-to-back winner since Jason Kapono won the 3-Point Contest in 2007 and 2008.
DAME TIME ⌚️
— NBA (@NBA) February 18, 2024
Dame Lillard scores 26 points to take home the 2024 #Starry3PT ‼️
Back-to-back champion. pic.twitter.com/ckKB4FAsiC
9:43 p.m.: Karl-Anthony Towns goes first and finishes with 22.
The bar is set and he will now be followed by Trae Young, with defending champion Damian Lillard going last.
Round 1
9:36 p.m.: The Finals are set.
Tyrese Haliburton is eliminated in the tiebreaker round, meaning 2023 champion Damian Lillard, 2022 champion Karl-Anthony Towns and Trae Young will advance to the Finals.
The shooting has been next-level in this one.
9:29 p.m.: We've got a four-way tie!
Defending champion Damian Lillard joins Tyrese Haliburton, Karl-Anthony Towns and Trae Young as participants with 26 points in the first round. Only three shooters can advance.
The three participants to advance to the Finals will be decided with a shootout.
9:25 p.m.: Karl-Anthony Towns has now tied the two leaders with 26 points in Round 1.
Jalen Brunson (24), Donovan Mitchel (21) and Malik Beasley (20) have now all been eliminated and cannot advance to the Finals.
9:20 p.m.: Midway through the first round, it's All-Star point guards Tyrese Haliburton and Trae Young who have set the bar with 26 points apiece.
Donovan Mitchell, who is sporting a Sam Merrill Jersey, is in third with 21 points and Malik Beasley is currently last with 20 points.
Pre-contest
9:10 p.m.: All eight contestants have been introduced and the 3-Point Contest is set to get underway.
Will Damian Lillard defend his crown? Will Karl-Anthony Towns reclaim it? Or will Tyrese Haliburton build on his momentum from winning the Skills Challenge?
It's all set to unfold in a matter of minutes.
7:10 p.m.: New team, same Dame. Damian Lillard is on the scene and ready to defend his 3-point crown from 2023.
The defending 3-point champ has arrived. pic.twitter.com/eN7uqmGYjy
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) February 18, 2024
Who won the NBA All-Star Skills Challenge?
| Team | Players | Challenge Points |
| Team Pacers | Tyrese Haliburton, Bennedict Mathurin, Myles Turner | 200 |
| Team All-Stars | Scottie Barnes, Tyrese Maxey, Trae Young | 200 |
| Team Top Picks | Paolo Banchero, Anthony Edwards, Victor Wembanyama | — |
What time does the NBA All-Star 3-Point Contest start?
- Date: Saturday, Feb. 17
- Time: 8 p.m. ET | 5 p.m. PT
The 3-Point Contest is the second event of All-Star Saturday Night from Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The 3-Point Contest will begin after the conclusion of the Skills Challenge, which will start around 8 p.m. ET.
NBA All-Star 3-Point Contest format
The eight 3-Point Contest participants will shoot at the typical five locations along the arc with four racks of four regular balls (one point) and one money ball (two points), plus one special rack of five money balls. Players can choose their favorite spots for the money ball racks.
Two "Starry Range" spots will sit well beyond the 3-point line. Each spot holds one white ball worth three points.
The contest is separated into two rounds with the three highest-scoring players from the first round advancing to the final round. The player with the highest score in the final round will be crowned the winner.
NBA All-Star schedule 2024
Here is the schedule of events for NBA All-Star Weekend, which takes place from Feb. 16-18:
Friday, Feb. 16
- 11:30 a.m. ET — NBA All-Star Rising Stars Practice
- 7 p.m. ET — NBA All-Star Celebrity Game
- 9 p.m. ET — NBA All-Star Rising Stars Game
Saturday, Feb. 17
- 11 a.m. ET — NBA All-Star Practice
- 2 p.m. ET — NBA HBCU Classic (Virginia Union vs. Winston-Salem State)
- 8 p.m. ET — All-Star Saturday Night
- Skills Challenge
- 3-Point Contest
- Stephen Curry vs. Sabrina Ionescu 3-Point Contest
- Slam Dunk Contest
Sunday, Feb. 18
- 1:30 p.m. ET — NBA G League Next Up Game
- 8 p.m. ET — NBA All-Star Game
