Billups, Pierce try to dethrone Cook in Three-Point Contest | NBA | USA

Sportando is looking for new basketball writers for the English section. If you are interested, write an email to info@sportando.net

NBA 05.02.2010, 23:35 - Redazione Sportando - 0 Comments
Billups, Pierce try to dethrone Cook in Three-Point Contest NBA made official the names 2010 All-Stars Chauncey Billups of the Denver Nuggets and Paul Pierce of the Boston Celtics headline a field of six in this year's Foot Locker Three-Point Shootout, which will be held on Saturday, Feb. 13, at American Airlines Center in Dallas as part of NBA All-Star Saturday Night. Reigning champion Daequan Cook of the Miami Heat returns in an attempt to become the sixth player to capture consecutive titles. Rounding out the field are T-Mobile Rookie Challenge & Youth Jam invitees Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors and Danilo Gallinari of the New York Knicks, and the Phoenix Suns' Channing Frye. Cook bested the Orlando Magic's Rashard Lewis in last year's contest, scoring 19 points in an overtime round to walk away with the title. Mark Price, Jeff Hornacek, Jason Kapono and Peja Stojakovic each won two titles; Larry Bird and Craig Hodges captured three straight. Dallas hosted the inaugural Three-Point event in 1986, which was held in Reunion Arena, with Bird defeating Hodges in the final round. The players will compete in the two-round competition with the top three finishers from the first round advancing to the finals. Five shooting stations will be set up around the three-point line, with four Official Spalding NBA game balls worth one point each and one Spalding NBA All-Star 2010 commemorative blue and silver "money ball" worth two points at each location. Each player will have one minute to shoot as many balls as he can. In the final round, players will shoot in ascending order of first-round scores. At the discretion of the referee, television instant replay may be consulted for clarification of rules compliance. The Foot Locker Three-Point Shootout will be televised live nationally as part of the NBA All-Star Saturday Night, which will also feature the Sprite Slam Dunk; Taco Bell Skills Challenge; and Haier Shooting Stars. TNT and ESPN Radio's national coverage will begin at 8 p.m. EST from American Airlines Center. The NBA All-Star Game on Sunday, Feb. 14, will air live on TNT, ESPN Radio and in more than 200 countries and will be broadcast in more than 40 languages. Foot Locker, in its seventh year as the sponsor of the three-point shootout, is part of Foot Locker, Inc., a specialty athletic retailer that operates approximately 3,600 stores in 21 countries in North America, Europe and Australia. Through its Foot Locker, Footaction, Lady Foot Locker, Kids Foot Locker and Champs Sports retail stores, as well as its direct-to-customer channel Footlocker.com/Eastbay, the Company is the leading provider of athletic footwear and apparel. Following is a list of the year-by-year winners and the 2010 Foot Locker Three-Point Shootout roster: FOOT LOCKER THREE-POINT SHOOTOUT YEAR-BY-YEAR WINNERS 1986 - Larry Bird, Boston 1987 - Larry Bird, Boston 1988 - Larry Bird, Boston 1989 - Dale Ellis, Seattle 1990 - Craig Hodges, Chicago 1991 - Craig Hodges, Chicago 1992 - Craig Hodges, Chicago 1993 - Mark Price, Cleveland 1994 - Mark Price, Cleveland 1995 - Glen Rice, Miami 1996 - Tim Legler, Washington 1997 - Steve Kerr, Chicago 1998 - Jeff Hornacek, Utah 2000 - Jeff Hornacek, Utah 2001 - Ray Allen, Milwaukee 2002 - Peja Stojakovic, Sacramento 2003 - Peja Stojakovic, Sacramento 2004 - Voshon Lenard, Denver 2005 - Quentin Richardson, Phoenix 2006 - Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas 2007 - Jason Kapono, Miami 2008 - Jason Kapono, Toronto 2009 - Daequan Cook, Miami TAG Danilo Gallinari, Three-Point Contest, All-Star Game 2010, Daequan Cook
SOURCE www.nba.com