Irving, Ma. Plumlee, Redick to Participate in 2015 NBA All-Star Competitions
By Chris Brown
UPDATE (2/2): Kyrie Irving will also be joining the Three-Point Shooting Contest with Redick as well as participating in the NBA All-Star game.
Several former Blue Devils will be participating in activities during the 2015 National Basketball Association All-Star weekend, where the top basketball players in the league take a break from the season and gather together to compete in various events and challenges. This year, the All-Star Weekend will be held February 13-15 in New York City hosted by the Brooklyn Nets and the New York Knicks of the NBA.
Cleveland Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving will be participating in the NBA All-Star Game as a reserve player competing with the Eastern Conference team. Irving, the reigning 2014 NBA All-Star MVP who finished last year’s game with with 31 points, 14 assists, and five rebounds, will be making his 3rd straight appearance in the annual All-Star game in 4 years. Irving is averaging 22.1 points, 5.2 assists, and 3.1 rebounds per game with the Cavs, and also recently scored a career-high and season-high point total for any player with 55 points against the Portland Trailblazers Jan 28th.
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Former Duke center Mason Plumlee, who currently plays with the Brooklyn Nets, will be participating in multiple events during the NBA All-Star weekend. Plumlee will compete in the Sprite Slam Dunk Contest as well as the BBVA Rising Stars Challenge. This will be Plumlee’s first year competing in the dunk contest, after participating in several dunk competitions at Duke during his time there for the annual Countdown to Craziness event held before the beginning of each NCAA season for the Blue Devils.
The Rising Stars Challenge rosters are made up of the top 10 first and second-year players in the National Basketball Association to showcase the top young talent in the league. This will be Mason Plumlee’s second consecutive year competing in this event, after playing in his rookie season last year. The format this year will be USA vs. the World, where Mason Plumlee and the top American players will face off against the best young international players in the NBA. Plumlee is averaging 10.5 points and 6.7 rebounds with the Nets this season and become a solid contributor after being added to the starting lineup due to injuries.
Former Duke guard J.J. Redick of the Los Angeles Clippers recently announced that he will be participating in the 2015 Foot Locker Three-Point Contest, featuring the best shooters in the NBA. Known for his shooting ability coming out of Duke, this will be Redick’s first year participating in the 3-point contest against some of the top shooters in the world. For this season, Redick is currently averaging about 15 points per game with the Clippers and he’s ranked top 10 in the league in 3-point percentage (44.5) and 3-pointers made (113). Be sure to check out these former Blue Devils competing in their respective events Feb. 13-15 on TNT. We’ll also be sure to keep you updated with the results here.