NBA All-Star Game 2022: Picks And Predictions For Slam Dunk ...

The 2022 NBA All-Star festivities tip-off on Friday, February 18 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland.

The showcase weekend of the NBA season celebrating the league's 75th anniversary is headlined by All-Star Saturday night's contests, including the Taco Bell Skills Challenge, MTN DEW 3-Point Contest and AT&T Slam Dunk Contest and the marquee game which will see Team LeBron vs Team Durant.

Ahead of the 2022 All-Star Game, our NBA.com Staff make their picks and predictions for each of the events. 

MORE: Watch the NBA All-Star Game live with Sling TV (3-day free trial; U.S. only)

Taco Bell Skills Challenge

Gilbert McGregor (@GMcGregor21): The Rooks

Where they lack in experience, they make up for in skill and this is the Skills challenge, after all. The fact that Scottie Barnes, Cade Cunningham and Josh Giddey are all gifted passers leads me to believe they'll cruise through that part of the challenge. And how about the fact that 20-year-old Barnes is the oldest of the three? They're going to have endless energy to  make the most of these timed competitions.

Carlan Gay (@TheCarlanGay): The Antetokounmpos

Every time I watch this event, it's the guy (or in this case, the team) that tries the hardest through the drills to win. Giannis only knows one speed so, he'll be going through the course like a bat out of hell — all the other two need to do is match his intensity. I think they will and they'll win it.

MTN DEW 3-point Contest

Gilbert McGregor (@GMcGregor21): Desmond Bane

Name a scarier 3-point contest threat than a 41.3 percent 3-point shooter with a chip on his shoulder? Bane's got the swagger and confidence of a dude that's ready to become a household name at All-Star Weekend. He'll have the Rising Stars game on Friday to warm up, too.

Scott Rafferty (@crabdribbles): Fred VanVleet

VanVleet is making 4.0 3-pointers per game this season, putting him behind only Stephen Curry (4.7) for most in the league. Not only that, but he's connected on almost half of his catch-and-shoot attempts from deep and leads the league in clutch 3s made. All of this is to say that he's an elite standstill 3-point shooter who lives for the big moments. He's got this in the bag.

Stephen Noh (@StephNoh): Patty Mills

Mills is the favorite to win in the betting markets, and for good reason. He's 11th in 3-point percentage (41.8%) and fourth in makes (179). Watch the right wing, where he's hitting 51.3% of his 3's this season. That should be his moneyball rack.

AT&T Slam Dunk  

Benyam Kidane (@BenyamKidane): Cole Anthony

The Orlando Magic don't get a ton of national attention and I think Anthony is going to take plenty by surprise with his elite athleticism and showmanship.

He's the shortest of the participants at 6-foot-3, but three of the past five dunk contests have been won by guards and when you combine his 40-inch vertical with his New York swagger, this is his event. 

Gilbert McGregor (@GMcGregor21): Jalen Green

Apparently Green plans to incorporate NBA Top Shot, which is the league's blockchain NFT highlight collectibles, into his contest showing. Part of me doesn't even know what that means but, hey, it's 2022 and I think Green's groundbreaking creativity will set him apart from the rest of the dunkers in the field.

All-Star Game Winner

Team LeBron gets the nod over Team Durant by vote, 5-2.

Kobe Bryant All-Star Game MVP

Benyam Kidane (@BenyamKidane): Ja Morant

Let the breakout season continue. 

Morant was built for the All-Star Game, with his dizzying combination of athletic dunks, blurring speed to the basket and playground playmaking. 

The Grizzlies point guard has been the most electrifying player in the league this season and in his first All-Star game, expect him to put on a show. 

Micah Adams (@MicahAdams13): LeBron James

This year's All-Star MVP carries more weight with the presence of the 75th anniversary team looming large.

Nobody understands legacy like LeBron James who can seize the opportunity to shift focus away from a turbulent season with the Lakers. In front of the game's biggest names both past and present AND back in Cleveland, LeBron can stake a claim that in Year 19, this is still HIS league.

Also worth noting? He can tie Kobe Bryant and Bob Pettit for the most All-Star Game MVPs. It’s not hard to imagine James accepting the Kobe Bryant All-Star MVP award in Lakers threads standing before Michael Jordan and Bill Russell while the Cleveland faithful shower him with a booming ovation in the arena he once starred. The story writes itself.

Kyle Irving (@KyleIrv_): Trae Young

Young was wrongfully left off of the All-Star team last year – not just as a starter... left off of the roster altogether. I believe Young takes these things personally.

He plays with a chip on his shoulder and it definitely bothered him he wasn't an All-Star last year despite averaging 26 points and nine assists per game at the break.

He's the perfect type of player for an All-Star Game – someone who can bury a flurry of 3s in a hurry but also dish out double-digit assists and create highlight plays for others, too. After being omitted from the game last year, I think he makes it a point to try and take home the MVP award that is now named after one of his childhood idols, Kobe Bryant.