The 2025 NBA All-Star Weekend is here, with the NBA Celebrity Game and Rising Stars Challenge kicking off the action. From there, fans will enjoy a full day of action Saturday night and an all-new NBA All-Star Game mini-tournament format Sunday.
With the festivites upon us, there’s no better time to take a look at each field and make an attempt to predict how things will unfold. As always, there will be betting favorites, but that doesn’t mean those teams and players are most likely to win. A closer look at the fields — and narratives — can sometimes serve as a guide to who may come out on top.
As difficult as it may be to predict who will come out on top, we’ll try our hand at picking winners from the weekend.
With changes abound at this year’s All-Star Weekend, I’m forecasting how things will unfold, from the Celebrity Game through the all-new All-Star Game mini-tournament. Here are my predictions.
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NBA Celebrity Game MVP prediction
The NBA Celebrity Game tips off All-Star Weekend festivities on Friday, Feb. 14 at 7 p.m. ET.
| Team Bonds | Team Rice | |
| Coach | Barry Bonds | Jerry Rice |
| Coach | 2 Chainz | Khaby Lame |
| Kai Cenat | Matt Barnes | |
| Baron Davis | Bayley | |
| Rome Flynn | Chris Brickley | |
| Allisha Gray | AP Dhillon | |
| Mickey Guyton | Druski | |
| Tucker Halpern | Walker Hayes | |
| Noah Kahan | Shelby McEwen | |
| Danny Ramirez | Terrell Owens | |
| Masai Russell | Shaboozey | |
| Pablo Schreiber | Oliver Stark | |
| Dylan Wang | Kayla Thornton |
Prediction: Team Rice
MVP Prediction: Terrell Owens
When predicting the outcome of the Celebrity Game, you have to start with the MVP and work backwards. T.O. is back in the Bay and he’s got the personality to want to remind the masses that he once was a hooper and still has traces of elite athleticism at 51.
Owens will win MVP and attempt to steal the show in a way that only he can.
Rising Stars prediction
The NBA Rising Stars Game is a four-team mini-tournament that tips off at 9 p.m. ET on Friday, Feb. 14. The winning team advances to play in Sunday’s NBA All-Star Game.
| Team Tim | Team Mitch | Team Chris | Team Jeremy |
| Anthony Black | Toumani Camara | Stephon Castle | JD Davison |
| Tristan da Silva | Bub Carrington | Ryan Dunn | Mac McClung |
| Gradey Dick | Bilal Coulibaly | Zach Edey | Bryce McGowens |
| Jaime Jaquez Jr. | Scoot Henderson | Keyonte George | Leonard Miller |
| Zaccharie Risacher | Yves Missi | Trayce Jackson-Davis | Dink Pate |
| Alex Sarr | Amen Thompson | Dalton Knecht | Reed Sheppard |
| Cason Wallace | Ausar Thompson | Jaylen Wells | Pat Spencer |
In Amen Thompson, Team Mitch has the best player in the mini-tournament. Its defense is also scary good with Amen’s twin, Ausar, Toumani Camara, Bilal Coulibal and Yves Missi.
Team Mitch’s talent is through the roof, but I’m siding with Team Chris here.
It’s going to look a lot like the 2024 NCAA Tournament with Stephon Castle, Zach Edey and Dalton Knecht dominating. There are a few rookies on this team but they’re older and have a 7-4 center. Those advantages lead me to side with Team Chris, while Knecht will be motivated by the recent failed trade to make an MVP push.
Prediction: Team Chris
MVP prediction: Dalton Knecht
Skills Challenge prediction
All-Star Saturday Night begins with the NBA Skills Challenge on Saturday, Feb. 15 at 8 p.m. ET. This year’s challenge features four teams of two players.
| Team | Participants |
| Cavs | Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley |
| Rooks | Zaccharie Risacher and Alex Sarr |
| Spurs | Chris Paul and Victor Wembanyama |
| Warriors | Draymond Green and Moses Moody |
If there’s one thing Paul and Wembanyama have in common, it’s a disdain for losing. At anything.
This weekend will serve as a coronation for Wembanyama, and a win in the Skills Challenge will set that up.
Prediction: Team Spurs
3-Point Contest prediction
The 3-Point Contest is the second event of All-Star Saturday Night and will follow the Skills Challenge.
| Player | Team | 3P% |
| Jalen Brunson | Knicks | 39.8 |
| Cade Cunningham | Pistons | 35.2 |
| Darius Garland | Cavaliers | 43.8 |
| Tyler Herro | Heat | 38.8 |
| Buddy Hield | Warriors | 37.0 |
| Cam Johnson | Nets | 41.7 |
| Damian Lillard | Bucks | 38.2 |
| Norman Powell | Clippers | 42.9 |
Lillard’s back home in the Bay and looking to become the third player to get a three-peat in the 3-Point Contest.
I mean, come on, it’s too poetic to go against Dame Dolla.
Prediction: Damian Lillard
Dunk Contest prediction
The Slam Dunk Contest is the final event of NBA All-Star Saturday Night and begins once the 3-Point Contest wraps.
| Player | Team |
| Matas Buzelis | Bulls |
| Stephon Castle | Spurs |
| Andre Jackson Jr. | Bucks |
| Mac McClung | Magic |
We’ve never seen a three-peat in the Slam Dunk Contest, and that won’t change this year.
Matas Buzelis claims to have some unseen tricks up his sleeve. He also is a bit of a showman, which will help him dethrone Mac McClung.
Prediction: Matas Buzelis
All-Star Game winner and MVP prediction
The four-team NBA All-Star Game mini-tournament takes place on Sunday, Feb. 16 and tips off around 8 p.m. ET.
The tournament features three teams of NBA All-Stars drafted by Shaquille O’Neal (Team Shaq), Charles Barkley (Team Chuck) and Kenny Smith (Team Kenny). The fourth team is the winning team of the Rising Stars Challenge and will be named Team Candace for its honorary GM, Candace Parker.
The four-team tournament will feature three games — two semifinals and the championship. Each game will be played to a target score of 40 points and the winner will be the first team to reach or surpass 40 points.
| Team Shaq | Team Chuck | Team Kenny | Team Candace |
| LeBron James | Nikola Jokic | Anthony Edwards | TBD |
| Stephen Curry | Giannis Antetokounmpo* | Jalen Brunson | TBD |
| Anthony Davis* | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander | Jaren Jackson Jr. | TBD |
| Jayson Tatum | Victor Wembanyama | Jalen Williams | TBD |
| Kevin Durant | Pascal Siakam | Darius Garland | TBD |
| Damian Lillard | Alperen Sengun | Evan Mobley | TBD |
| James Harden | Karl-Anthony Towns | Cade Cunningham | TBD |
| Jaylen Brown | Donovan Mitchell | Tyler Herro | |
| Kyrie Irving* | Trae Young* |
Note: Players voted in as starters are listed in bold. Kyrie Irving and Trae Young are injury replacements for Anthony Davis and Giannis Antetokounmpo.
There was some intent behind the rosters being broken down into the old guard, international stars and (mostly) up-and-comers.
Team Shaq stands out in that its roster features Stephen Curry. He’s playing in the familiar confines of Chase Center and gets to run it back with LeBron James and Kevin Durant after doing so in Paris at the Olympics.
Curry’s no stranger to going off on the All-Star stage, doing so most recently in Cleveland, near his birthplace of Akron, Ohio. He’s been rejuvenated given the Warriors recent changes and has something special in store for when All-Star is in his NBA home of 16 years.
Prediction: Team Shaq
MVP prediction: Stephen Curry
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