Despite leading the NBA in 3-point percentage by nearly three percentage points, Phoenix Suns guard Grayson Allen said he will not be participating in the 3-point contest on Feb. 17 during NBA All-Star Weekend.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!There are eight contestants for the 3-point competition and seven have already been reported, so it was assumed Allen would not be one of those names as time went on. He confirmed he will not be participating at Suns’ shootaround this morning.
“I wasn’t strongly advocating for it,” Allen said. “I understand the process they go through with how the big guys get to go, so I’m okay on my end.”
Allen is shooting an incredible 49.1% from deep this season on 5.3 attempts per game in 44 contests. The next best qualified player is Indiana Pacers G/F Aaron Nesmith who is shooting 46.3% on 4.7 attempts per game.
As Allen pointed out, the contest is usually comprised of All-Star or borderline All-Star players. All of these players also have more attempts per game than Allen.
Here are the seven players who have reportedly committed to the contest and their 3-point attempts per game and percentages:
- IND Tyrese Haliburton (8.0 3PA, 39.8 3P%)
- MIL Damian Lillard (8.5 3PA, 34.7 3P%)
- MIL Malik Beasley (6.1 3PA, 45.1 3P%)
- NYK Jalen Brunson (6.6 3PA, 41.3 3P%)
- UTA Lauri Markkanen (8.1 3PA, 40.1 3P%)
- CLE Donovan Mitchell (9.2 3PA, 35.4 3P%)
- PHI Tyrese Maxey (8.2 3PA, 38.0 3P%)
Overall, Allen is not sweating not participating in the contest, despite previously saying he would consider it if he got invited.
“We’ve got a good break this year,” Allen said. “I’m gonna take advantage of it, get a nice vacation with my wife. Reset, get a little break for the body and come back feeling great.
“I just feel like that five days for me is pretty valuable to get that rest, but obviously the 3-point contest being invited is a great honor to go and compete and be recognized in the great 3-point shooters. I’ll be watching.”
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Brendan Mau is a senior writer covering the Phoenix Suns and more for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on X via @Brendan_Mau
