Utah Jazz: Imagining a dream All-Star weekend for Jazz fans

3-Point Contest — Joe Ingles

It’s been a long time since the Utah Jazz have had anyone participate in the 3-Point Contest. And I mean a long time. The last Jazzman to do so was Bryon Russell back in 2001. Considering that he finished last in the contest, perhaps that has had something to do with Utah’s long hiatus.

Still, 18 years seems a long time without any Jazz players getting a chance to compete for the sharp-shooting crown. And if All-Star Weekend truly were to be a fun spectacle for the Utah faithful, it would be wildly entertaining to see Joe Ingles thrown into the mix.

Although the Aussie’s 3-point percentage is down somewhat this year – he’s converting at a rate of 36.8 percent, down over 7 percent from a season ago – he can still drain the deep-ball with the best of them. The two seasons prior, he went 44 percent or better from the perimeter and he’s at 40.5 percent for his career.

Throw in his trash-talking prowess, slow release (which may make getting through all the racks interesting) and his sky-high confidence in his shooting ability, and his mere presence at the 3-Point Contest would be an absolute joy to behold. And while he’d be hard-pressed to top the likes of Stephen Curry, he’d certainly be competitive and hilarious to watch.

Knowing how much of a competitor Joe is, I think there’s a part of him that would absolutely love to go into this event as an underdog and relative unknown only to shock everyone and take home the hardware. Then again, as he’s made quite clear, there’s another part of him that would prefer just to have the time off for All-Star Weekend to spend time with his wife and adorable children.

That’s the wish he’s been granted the past two seasons and such might always be the case for the sharp-shooter extraordinaire. Nevertheless, it’s still great fun to imagine an All-Star Weekend that included the incredible Slo-Mo Joe suiting up for the 3-Point Contest.