PHILADELPHIA — Hawks guard Trae Young will have a busy weekend when he heads to Indianapolis next week. On Thursday, the NBA announced the participants in its Saturday night festivities during All-Star Weekend, and Young will take part in two of the three marquee events.
He’s set to compete in the Skills Challenge and as the 3-point contest. It’s the second time Young has participated in the Skills Challenge, with his first appearance coming in 2019, when he lost to Jayson Tatum in the final round. This will be the third time he’s appeared in the 3-point contest, having competed in 2020 and 2022.
Young will face off in the Skills Challenge on Team All-Star with 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey and Raptors forward Scottie Barnes.
They will compete against Team Top Picks, which includes the league’s top picks in three of the past four drafts. It includes 2020 No. 1 overall pick Anthony Edwards, 2022 No. 1 pick and reigning Rookie of the Year Paolo Banchero and last year’s first overall pick Victor Wembanyama.
They also will face Team Pacers, who will host this year’s All-Star festivities. The team consists of Tyrese Haliburton, Myles Turner and Bennedict Mathurin.
Young will then compete in the 3-point contest with Haliburton, Bucks guards Malik Beasley and Damian Lillard, who won the contest last year, Knicks guard Jalen Brunson, Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen, Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell and Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns, who won in 2022.
The NBA named Young, along with Barnes, to the All-Star game as injury replacements Tuesday to replace 76ers center Joel Embiid and Knicks forward Julius Randle. This is Young’s third All-Star nod, and it comes during a strong season in which he has averaged 27.1 points, 2.8 rebounds and 10.9 assists per game. He’s shooting the ball well from 3-point range, making 38% of his 8.9 attempts per game.
Both contests will take place starting at 8 p.m. Feb. 17, with Skills Challenge taking place first, then the 3-point contest. While the All-Star game will take place at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Sunday night, the Saturday night events will take place at Lucas Oil Stadium.
