The Skills Challenge has been a staple of the All-Star weekend for 21 years. However, retired NBA star Gilbert Arenas is not a fan of the event. On Saturday, Indiana Pacers trio Tyrese Haliburton, Bennedict Mathurin, and Myles Turner won the NBA Skills Challenge and continued the three-year streak of the home team winning the event. They beat Team Top Picks, featuring Paolo Banchero, Anthony Edwards, and Victor Wembanyama, and Team All-Stars, consisting of Scottie Barnes, Tyrese Maxey, and Trae Young, to take home the trophy.
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On the latest episode of the Gil’s Arena podcast, Arenas advocated to outlaw the Skills Challenge.
He said,
“F**k that Skills Challenge. What is the Skills Challenge? ‘Oh, I can dribble around the court! Pass between this little ball! Oo, gotta throw the ball! Missed it! And now I gotta hit the shot, run down the court, and dunk!’ F**k that.”
Arenas suggested that the NBA should introduce 1-on-1 and 2-on-2 games instead of the Skills Challenge. He added that an entry fee of $50,000 and a prize pool of $1 million would prompt players to participate in the event. Arenas explained that players who love playing iso ball and can score buckets, like Cam Thomas, Jimmy Butler, Kyle Kuzma, Anthony Edwards, and Spencer Dinwiddie, would jump at the opportunity to compete in the event. He claimed that it would also showcase which players aren’t afraid of testing themselves 1-on-1 against their peers.
Arenas’ idea is flawed but has some merit. A 1-on-1 contest pitting players against each other would end individual player debates. However, participation would be an issue, as the NBA’s finest players would refrain from exposing themselves to an embarrassing loss.
Stephen A. Smith calls out LeBron James, wants to gut All-Star weekend
Gilbert Arenas wasn’t alone in demanding the NBA do away with the Skills Challenge. ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith also joined the retired star in criticizing the event. However, he went one step further and demanded that the entire All-Star weekend should be gutted to a handful of events. He said,
“[The NBA] need to do away with All-Star Weekend. Just get rid of it…. I’m talking about the Skills Competition, I’m talking about the Slam Dunk competition and I’m talking about the All-Star Game… Ladies and gentleman, what transpired last night was an absolute travesty.”
Smith also called out the players for their lack of effort in the All-Star game, which was played at a walking pace and yielded 397 points, as the East won 211-186. The analyst claimed he wasn’t expecting the players to compete hard, but their lack of desire to play any defense was frustrating to watch.
Smith proceeded to attack LeBron James for ruining the NBA’s Dunk Contest. Mac McClung won the event for the second straight year, but the event wasn’t intriguing, and the analyst believes the Los Angeles Lakers superstar is at fault. He said,
“LeBron James is directly responsible for ruining the Slam Dunk Contest… Every high jumper, every skywalker, every above-the-rim talent salivated for the opportunity to compete in the Slam Dunk Contest. It stopped when LeBron James said, ‘I’m not doing it.’ And from that point forward, the stars who followed didn’t feel compelled” to enter the competition.”
The Slam Dunk contest used to be the marquee event of the All-Star weekend but has taken a backseat to the 3-Point Shooting Challenge. Overall, the weekend was a dud and the NBA needs to make significant changes to make it more interesting for the fans.
