LaVine eliminated in first round of 3-point contest originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
CLEVELAND — Zach LaVine had a chance to become the first player in NBA history to win both a dunk and 3-point contest Saturday night.
Alas, third time was not the charm for the Chicago Bulls’ All-Star guard, who tallied 14 points and was eliminated in the first round of the shootout for the third consecutive season.
His postgame demeanor, though, was upbeat.
"I just wanted to touch the ball," a smiling LaVine said. "It's all in fun. I had fun."
As of Saturday morning, LaVine was undecided on where he would place his moneyball rack, in which each made shot counts for two points instead of one. He eventually selected the left corner — the last station in the competition, and a zone from which he is shooting 57.7 percent (15-for-26) this season — after going with the right corner in Atlanta in 2021, and the top of the key in Chicago in 2020.
But he went 0-for-4 from there on Saturday. The buzzer sounded before he could get the final attempt up.
"I probably should have started with the money rack like I did last year," LaVine said. "But it's OK. I had fun."
In all, LaVine shot 11-for-26 in the competition (with two MTN Dew Ball misses, which count for three points, included). He made seven of his first 10 3s, but after the second station, went 4-for-16 down the stretch.
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"I just lost a little bit of a rhythm," he said. "That's what happens when you go out there, it's tough. You miss a couple, you out there on your own, you just gotta stay with that rhythm."
On the bright side, LaVine's good friend Karl-Anthony Towns not only broke the final-round record with 29 points to beat out Luke Kennard and Trae Young, he also became the first center to ever win the competition.
"I'm happy for him," LaVine said. "If anybody was gonna win other than me, I wanted it be him. I'm very happy for him. I didn't have my best performance, but I'm really happy he won. He shot the hell out the ball."
Towns, with a smile, returned the favor by continuing the friendly banter the two exchanged in the run-up to the contest.
"I told him in Chicago when we played (on Feb. 11) I was gonna win. I told him earlier today I was gonna win. I told him before I shot my first round I was gonna win. I told him in the final round I was gonna win," Towns said with an ear-to-ear grin. "And then, after, I told him I won."
For LaVine, there's always next year. Maybe.
"I don't know," he said when asked if he'll participate in the contest again. "I always live for the competition, and the event. But we'll see what happens. As long as I shoot the ball well in the regular-season games, it's all good."
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