The annual NBA All-Star Weekend, one of the most anticipated events of the year, is finally here. While the All-Star Game itself has been around for ages, the NBA has added various side events to help keep the event fresh. One of the most successful of said side events has to be the Skills Challenge, first introduced in 2003.

Much like similarly-named events in other leagues, the Skills Challenge tests players' proficiency in specific aspects of the game. While not a full basketball game, the event has still become very popular over the years because of its strong entertainment value. The event has undergone various format changes, but the core of it has still remained intact.

Without further ado, here's the rundown on the 2023 Kia Skills Challenge.

Date, time, location and how to watch

The 2023 Skills challenge will take place on Saturday, Feb. 18, and begin at 8 p.m. ET. Like most of All-Star Weekend, the event will take place in Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City Utah, home of the Utah Jazz. The event will air on TNT.

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Format

Last year, the NBA introduced an entirely new format for the Skills Challenge. Rather than players competing against each other individually, players will now compete in three teams of three. There are also three separate rounds of the event, a relay challenge, a passing challenge, and a shooting challenge, plus a tiebreaker round if necessary. In 2022, the shooting challenge was first and the relay challenge was last, whereas the opposite is true this year.

Below is a brief description of each stage of the event. For more specific details, visit the NBA's official website.

Round 1: Team Relay

The first part of the Skills Challenge, the team relay section acts as an obstacle course of sorts. There are five different parts of this event, an outlet pass, dribbling through pylons, a short shot in the lane, a three-point shot from the left corner, and dribbling to score a basket. Once one player completes all five parts, the next player on the team begins.

Team 1 sets the target time for the event while Teams 2 and 3 try to best that time. The team who completes the relay the fastest will earn 100 “Challenge Points” in the overall Skills Challenge. If there is a tie, each team picks one player to repeat the course and whoever completes it fastest wins.

Round 2: Team Passing

Unlike the first round, all three players on a given team compete at once in the second round. In the passing challenge, each team has 30 seconds to rack up points by performing various types of passes at moving targets. A 35-foot outlet pass on a back-and-forth target is worth two points, a 20-foot bounce pass on a side-to-side target is worth four points, and a 25-foot chest pass on a back-and-forth target is worth six points.

The team that amasses the most points wins 100 “Challenge Points” in the overall event. If two teams score the same amount of points, the win goes to the team that made the most total passes, then the most chest passes, and finally, the most outlet passes.

Round 3: Team Shooting

Again, all three members of a team will compete at once in the third round. In the shooting challenge, all three players share one ball while attempting to make shots from five designated spots. The five spots are as follows.

  • Spot 1: Right side 10-foot shot outside the lane (1 point).
  • Spot 2: Left elbow extended (2 points).
  • Spot 3: Top of the key 3-pointer (3 points).
  • Spot 4: Left corner 3-pointer (4 points).
  • Spot 5: Right slot 30-foot deep 3-pointer (5 points).

Each team must take the first shot from Spot 5, and teams cannot shoot from the same shot consecutively. The team who scores the most points in a minute wins 200 “Challenge Points.” If there is a tie, each team will choose one player to shoot from Spot 5, and the last player to make a shot wins the event.

Tiebreaker: Half-Court Shot

If two teams are tied at 200 after round three, then there will be a special tiebreaker round. All three players on a team compete at once and attempt to hit a half-court shot in the fastest time. Team 1 sets the target time, while Team 2 attempts to best that time. Whichever team makes the shot in the shortest time wins the Skills Challenge as a whole. If the two teams tie, they will repeat the final round until there is a winner.

Rosters

Much like last year, the three teams consist of rookies, the Antetokounmpo brothers, and players from the host city. As All-Star Weekend is in Utah this year instead of Cleveland, Jazz players make up the host city team instead of Cavaliers players. Each team's rosters are as follows.

Team Rookies

  • Paolo Banchero, Orlando Magic
  • Jaden Ivey, Detroit Pistons
  • Jabari Smith Jr., Houston Rockets

Team Antetokoumpo

  • Giannis Antetokoumpo, Milwaukee Bucks
  • Thanasis Antetokoumpo, Milwaukee Bucks
  • Alex Antetokoumpo, Wisconsin Herd (G League)

Team Jazz

  • Jordan Clarkson, Utah Jazz
  • Walker Kessler, Utah Jazz
  • Collin Sexton, Utah Jazz

Be sure to tune into the 2023 Kia Skills Challenge on Saturday night.