NEW YORK – This year’s NBA All-Star Weekend will feature a pair of former Duke men’s basketball standouts, as Luke Kennard is set to participate in the MTN DEW 3-Point Contest on Saturday, Feb. 19 before Jayson Tatum starts for Team Durant in the 71st NBA All-Star Game on Sunday, Feb. 20.
Tatum will make his third straight All-Star Game appearance and first start, as the Boston Celtics forward was selected by team captain Kevin Durant in the NBA All-Star Draft on Feb. 10. Duke has now boasted 30 all-time NBA All-Star selections since 1969, including 25 from players coached by Mike Krzyzewski. A Blue Devil has been in an All-Star starting lineup in five of the last six seasons.
The All-Star Game will be played at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, Ohio, on Sunday at 8 p.m. ET. Coverage begins at 6 p.m. on TNT.
Now in his fifth season with the Celtics, Tatum is averaging 25.7 points per game on .434 shooting with a career-high 8.4 rebounds and 4.2 assists. The third overall pick in the 2017 draft is currently 11th in the league in scoring average. He has 17 games with 30-plus points this season, including a 51-point performance against the Washington Wizards on Jan. 23.
Kennard, who will return to his home state as a native of Franklin, Ohio, is set to compete in his first 3-Point Contest. The sharpshooter is in his fifth NBA season and second year with the L.A. Clippers, averaging 11.8 points on .446 shooting while ranking second in the league in three-point efficiency (.448). He has knocked down five or more shots from deep in nine contests.
The MTN Dew 3-Point Contest is the second event during State Farm All-Star Saturday Night, which begins at 8 p.m. on TNT.
Kennard and Tatum were Duke’s top two scorers on the 2016-17 team that posted a 28-9 record and won the program’s 20th ACC Tournament championship.
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