Duke basketball star Jayson Tatum has tough challenge looming

Duke basketball standout Jayson Tatum has a tough challenge at All-Star Weekend. 

There’s no debate that this upcoming All-Star Weekend will be one that has never been seen before, and it won’t be easy for one former Duke basketball standout.

There is no Rising Stars Game, no All-Star Saturday Night, and everything just cramped into one afternoon and evening on Sunday, March 7.

However, there will be the typical Saturday night festivities held prior to and during the All-Star Game on Sunday.

Former Blue Devil Jayson Tatum will take part in the NBA’s 3-Point Shootout, which will be held prior to the tipoff of the All-Star Game.

The Slam Dunk Contest will be held at halftime of the All-Star Game.

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Tatum was named as an All-Star for the second consecutive season after averaging 24.9 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game.

The 23-year-old has only played 30 games for the Boston Celtics this season as he was out for two weeks after a battle with COVID-19.

Jayson Tatum is shooting 43.3-percent from the field and 36.4-percent from three-point range, the worst percentage of his young career.

Tough competition for former Duke basketball star

Steph Curry and Devin Booker headline the event as past champions while also in the field alongside Tatum is his Boston Celtics teammate Jaylen Brown as well as Zach Lavine and Donovan Mitchell.

This will mark the first time Jayson Tatum has participated in the Three-Point Contest as he is a past winner of the Skills Challenge.

Zach Lavine and Donovan Mitchell are also relatively new to the event as Lavine is competing for the second straight year and it’s Mitchell’s debut.

Both Lavine and Mitchell have previously won the NBA Slam Dunk Contest, and no player in the history of All-Star Weekend has won the Slam Dunk and Three-Point Contests in their careers.

NBA All-Star coverage begins at 6:30pm EST (TNT) on Sunday, March 7 from State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia.