Joe Harris played the upsetter as the Curry brother's dream of a hometown duel in the final crashed to the floor. The NBA was really keen on a Seth Curry vs. Steph Curry showdown in Charlotte; they even arranged for a little segment where the eldest of the clan, former Hornets' sharpshooter Dell Curry challenged his sons to donate a rack for every 3-pointer he, Ray Allen, Mark Price, and Glen Rice managed in a special shootaround. But in the end, only Steph Curry looked to be in the zone.
During the actual 3-Point contest, Steph Curry managed the highest point total in the opening round, by going leaving the Moneyball rack for last: the bottom right corner of the circuit. Joe Harris, representing the surging Brooklyn Nets held the dubious honor of shooting first, which saw him strike for 25 points, just under Curry's 27 and Buddy Hield's score of 26.
"I think I was lucky to be the first guy to shoot," Harris admitted. "Because I was able to get kind of warm beforehand, and you don't really have a ton of anxiety because you can't have time to think about it."
Curry, Hield, and Harris would then take their momentum to the final round where a late-run from the pre-eminent "Splash Brother" wasn't enough to prevent a fateful run from the positively unheralded Brooklyn Nets sharpshooter. For those who don't know, Harris has been 3rd in NBA 3-Pointing since about November.
3-Point Contest Results
First Round (Top 3 Advance)
Stephen Curry, Golden State, 27 points
Buddy Hield, Sacramento, 26
Joe Harris, Brooklyn, 25
Danny Green, Toronto, 23
Devin Booker, Phoenix, 23
Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas, 17
Damian Lillard, Portland, 17
Seth Curry, Portland, 16
Kemba Walker, Charlotte, 15
Khris Middleton, Milwaukee, 11
Finals
Joe Harris, Brooklyn, 26 points
Stephen Curry, Golden State, 24
Buddy Hield, Sacramento, 19