CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Jayson Tatum said he knew he couldn’t let 3-point specialist Trae Young get a clean look in the Skills Challenge, so he decided to launch a 50-footer with the hopes of perhaps knocking Young’s ball off the mark.
Instead, the ball went in.
The 20-year-old Tatum kept his promise of winning his first Skills Challenge by beating Atlanta’s Young in the final with that half-court shot, stunning the fans and completing a successful All-Star Weekend.
The Skills Challenge is a two-man competition where players dribble the length of the floor, pass through a target, run the court to attempt a layup, then race back to the other end of the court to attempt a 3-pointer.