Desmond Bane sinks free throw for two wins | Rising Star Challenge
This NBA All-Star weekend's Rising Star Challenge saw Cade Cunningham named MVP, but Desmond Bane got two wins before losiong the title game loss.
Though Team Isiah lost in the final, Grizzlies guard Desmond Bane had a night to remember on Saturday during the Rising Stars Challenge as part of the NBA All-Star weekend.
The Rising Stars Challenge features the top first-and-second-year NBA players. This year, after a format change, there were four seven-man rosters, coached by Hall-of-Famers Isiah Thomas, Rick Barry, James Worthy, and Gary Payton. Three games were played - two semifinals with a goal of 50 points, and then the championship game to reach 25. The total of 75 points is a nod to the league's 75th anniversary celebration.
Desmond Bane, in his second year with the Memphis Grizzlies, was part of Team Isiah, who won their first game in the challenge. He then teamed up with Indiana Pacers' Tyrese Haliburton to win the Clorox Clutch Scoring title. He was on a roll, but in the third game, Team Isiah faltered in a 25-20 loss to Team Barry, with Cade Cunninggam of the Detroit Pistons being named MVP.
Although Bane's team lost the championship game, he had been dominating with three-pointers for the majority of the first game. Trying to make it to 50 points and down by one, Team Isiah still had a chance when Bane drew a foul and proceeded to sink both free throws and seal the win. He scored 10 points on three-for-eight shooting and seven of those attempts were three-pointers.
In the Clorox Shooting Challenge, Bane and Haliburton won with a time of 39.1 seconds. Bane had missed some shots in the corner but then made a 35-footer to win the game.
In the final championship game, Bane scored three points on one of five shooting, but didn't get the chance to make a shot that could have won it. Toronto Raptors' Precious Ezinna Achiuwa had the ball with a defender closing in on him and could have passed it to a wide-open Bane, but chose to take his shot. He missed a three-pointer with Team Isiah trailing 21-20.