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History of the NBA Skills Challenge
The NBA Skills Challenge debuted during All-Star Weekend in 2003, adding a competition designed to test more than shooting or dunking ability. The event combines dribbling, passing, shooting and speed, rewarding players who can complete a series of basketball-related tasks accurately and efficiently.
Originally designed primarily for guards, the competition expanded over time to include forwards and centers. The change reflected the NBA's growing emphasis on versatile players capable of handling the basketball, creating offense and shooting from the perimeter.
In 2016, Karl-Anthony Towns became the first center to win the Skills Challenge, defeating Isaiah Thomas in the championship round. The result illustrated the changing skill sets expected of modern NBA big men.
From 2022 through 2024, the NBA used a team-based format with three-player groups competing in multiple events. In 2025, the format shifted to two-player teams, with Cleveland Cavaliers stars Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley capturing the championship.
The event was not held during the 2026 All-Star Weekend. The most recent champion remains Team Cavaliers from 2025.
Individual Skills Challenge Winners (2003-2021)
The original Skills Challenge was a timed obstacle course. The times below are the winning championship-round performances, where recorded. Later versions of the competition used different formats, making direct time comparisons less meaningful.
| Season | Year | Champion | Team | Winning Time |
|---|
| 2002-03 | 2003 | Jason Kidd | New Jersey Nets | 35.1 seconds |
| 2003-04 | 2004 | Baron Davis | New Orleans Hornets | 31.6 seconds |
| 2004-05 | 2005 | Steve Nash | Phoenix Suns | 25.8 seconds |
| 2005-06 | 2006 | Dwyane Wade | Miami Heat | 26.1 seconds |
| 2006-07 | 2007 | Dwyane Wade | Miami Heat | 26.4 seconds |
| 2007-08 | 2008 | Deron Williams | Utah Jazz | 25.5 seconds |
| 2008-09 | 2009 | Derrick Rose | Chicago Bulls | 35.3 seconds |
| 2009-10 | 2010 | Steve Nash | Phoenix Suns | 29.9 seconds |
| 2010-11 | 2011 | Stephen Curry | Golden State Warriors | 28.2 seconds |
| 2011-12 | 2012 | Tony Parker | San Antonio Spurs | 32.8 seconds |
| 2012-13 | 2013 | Damian Lillard | Portland Trail Blazers | 29.8 seconds |
| 2013-14 | 2014 | Damian Lillard and Trey Burke | Portland Trail Blazers / Utah Jazz | 45.2 seconds |
| 2014-15 | 2015 | Patrick Beverley | Houston Rockets | Bracket format |
| 2015-16 | 2016 | Karl-Anthony Towns | Minnesota Timberwolves | Bracket format |
| 2016-17 | 2017 | Kristaps Porzingis | New York Knicks | Bracket format |
| 2017-18 | 2018 | Spencer Dinwiddie | Brooklyn Nets | Bracket format |
| 2018-19 | 2019 | Jayson Tatum | Boston Celtics | Bracket format |
| 2019-20 | 2020 | Bam Adebayo | Miami Heat | Bracket format |
| 2020-21 | 2021 | Domantas Sabonis | Indiana Pacers | Bracket format |
Team Skills Challenge Champions (2022-2025)
| Year | Winning Team | Winning Players | Host City |
|---|
| 2022 |
Team Cavaliers |
Darius Garland, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen |
Cleveland, Ohio |
| 2023 |
Team Jazz |
Jordan Clarkson, Walker Kessler, Collin Sexton |
Salt Lake City, Utah |
| 2024 |
Team Pacers |
Tyrese Haliburton, Bennedict Mathurin, Myles Turner |
Indianapolis, Indiana |
| 2025 |
Team Cavaliers |
Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley |
San Francisco, California |
How the Skills Challenge Format Changed
2003-2013: Players competed individually in timed courses involving dribbling, passing and shooting. The fastest successful competitor advanced or won, depending on the year's format.
2014: Players competed in pairs, with Damian Lillard and Trey Burke winning together.
2015-2021: The event featured a head-to-head elimination bracket. The format eventually placed guards and big men in separate sides of the bracket, producing championship matchups between different player types.
2022-2024: Three-player teams competed in relay, passing and shooting challenges. Team Cavaliers, Team Jazz and Team Pacers won consecutive editions in their respective home cities.
2025: The event used two-player teams in a relay-style competition. Team Cavaliers defeated Team Warriors in the final.
NBA Skills Challenge Participants by Year
The following archive lists the players selected for the Skills Challenge each year. The earlier seasons retain the original participant records, with corrected spelling and clearer formatting. Some years included replacements, withdrawals or bracket changes.
| Year | Participants |
|---|
| 2003 | Jason Kidd, Stephon Marbury, Tony Parker, Gary Payton |
| 2004 | Earl Boykins, Baron Davis, Derek Fisher, Stephon Marbury |
| 2005 | Gilbert Arenas, Earl Boykins, Steve Nash, Luke Ridnour |
| 2006 | LeBron James, Steve Nash, Chris Paul, Dwyane Wade |
| 2007 | Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Chris Paul, Dwyane Wade |
| 2008 | Jason Kidd, Chris Paul, Dwyane Wade, Deron Williams |
| 2009 | Devin Harris, Jameer Nelson, Tony Parker, Derrick Rose, Mo Williams |
| 2010 | Brandon Jennings, Steve Nash, Derrick Rose, Deron Williams, Russell Westbrook |
| 2011 | Stephen Curry, Chris Paul, Derrick Rose, John Wall, Russell Westbrook |
| 2012 | Stephen Curry, Kyrie Irving, Tony Parker, Rajon Rondo, John Wall, Russell Westbrook, Deron Williams |
| 2013 | Jrue Holiday, Brandon Knight, Damian Lillard, Jeremy Lin, Tony Parker, Jeff Teague |
| 2014 | DeMar DeRozan, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Michael Carter-Williams, Victor Oladipo, Reggie Jackson, Goran Dragic, Damian Lillard, Trey Burke |
| 2015 | Isaiah Thomas, John Wall, Patrick Beverley, Michael Carter-Williams, Robert Covington, Elfrid Payton, Jeff Teague, Trey Burke, Brandon Knight, Jimmy Butler, Dennis Schroder, Kyle Lowry |
| 2016 | Jordan Clarkson, CJ McCollum, Isaiah Thomas, Patrick Beverley, Emmanuel Mudiay, Draymond Green, Karl-Anthony Towns, DeMarcus Cousins, Anthony Davis |
| 2017 | Joel Embiid, Nikola Jokic, Anthony Davis, Kristaps Porzingis, DeMarcus Cousins, Gordon Hayward, Devin Booker, John Wall, Isaiah Thomas |
| 2018 | Lou Williams, Jamal Murray, Spencer Dinwiddie, Lauri Markkanen, Joel Embiid, Al Horford, Buddy Hield, Andre Drummond |
| 2019 | Nikola Jokic, Nikola Vucevic, Mike Conley Jr., Jayson Tatum, De'Aaron Fox, Trae Young, Luka Doncic, Kyle Kuzma |
| 2020 | Spencer Dinwiddie, Bam Adebayo, Patrick Beverley, Pascal Siakam, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Khris Middleton, Jayson Tatum, Domantas Sabonis |
| 2021 | Domantas Sabonis, Julius Randle, Luka Doncic, Nikola Vucevic, Robert Covington, Chris Paul |
Team Skills Challenge Participants (2022-2025)
| Year | Team | Players | Result |
|---|
| 2022 | Team Cavaliers | Darius Garland, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen | Champion |
| 2022 | Team Rookies | Cade Cunningham, Josh Giddey, Scottie Barnes | Participant |
| 2022 | Team Antetokounmpo | Giannis Antetokounmpo, Thanasis Antetokounmpo, Alex Antetokounmpo | Participant |
| 2023 | Team Jazz | Jordan Clarkson, Walker Kessler, Collin Sexton | Champion |
| 2023 | Team Rookies | Paolo Banchero, Jaden Ivey, Jabari Smith Jr. | Participant |
| 2023 | Team Antetokounmpo | Jrue Holiday, Thanasis Antetokounmpo, Alex Antetokounmpo | Participant |
| 2024 | Team Pacers | Tyrese Haliburton, Bennedict Mathurin, Myles Turner | Champion |
| 2024 | Team Top Picks | Paolo Banchero, Anthony Edwards, Victor Wembanyama | Participant |
| 2024 | Team All-Stars | Scottie Barnes, Tyrese Maxey, Trae Young | Participant |
| 2025 | Team Cavaliers | Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley | Champion |
| 2025 | Team Warriors | Draymond Green, Moses Moody | Runner-up |
| 2025 | Team Rookies | Zaccharie Risacher, Alex Sarr | Participant |
| 2025 | Team Spurs | Chris Paul, Victor Wembanyama | Disqualified |
In 2023, Giannis Antetokounmpo was originally selected for Team Antetokounmpo but did not compete because of injury. Jrue Holiday took his place. In 2025, Team Spurs was disqualified during the opening round.
NBA Skills Challenge Records and Notable Facts
First Skills Challenge champion: Jason Kidd of the New Jersey Nets won the inaugural event in 2003.
First two-time champion: Dwyane Wade won consecutive titles in 2006 and 2007.
Other two-time individual champions: Steve Nash won in 2005 and 2010, while Damian Lillard won in 2013 and shared the 2014 title with Trey Burke.
First center to win: Karl-Anthony Towns defeated Isaiah Thomas in 2016.
First team champion: Team Cavaliers, consisting of Darius Garland, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen, won the inaugural three-player team competition in 2022.
First two-time winner across team formats: Evan Mobley won with Cleveland in 2022 and again with Donovan Mitchell in 2025.
Consecutive hometown team champions: Cleveland in 2022, Utah in 2023 and Indiana in 2024 each won the Skills Challenge while hosting All-Star Weekend.
Most appearances listed in the original archive: Tony Parker and John Wall were each credited with four appearances. John Wall was also listed with four appearances without a championship. These figures reflect the original archive's counts and should be independently checked before being presented as definitive all-time records.
Memorable Skills Challenge Moments
2008 — Deron Williams: Williams completed the championship course in 25.5 seconds, producing one of the fastest winning performances under the early format.
2014 — Damian Lillard and Trey Burke: The Portland and Utah guards won together during the event's temporary two-player format.
2016 — Karl-Anthony Towns: Towns defeated Isaiah Thomas, marking an important moment in the competition's evolution from a guard-focused event to one featuring skilled big men.
2022 — Team Cavaliers: Cleveland's Garland, Mobley and Allen won the first three-player team competition during All-Star Weekend in their home city.
2023 — Team Jazz: Jordan Clarkson, Collin Sexton and Walker Kessler captured the title in Salt Lake City, continuing the success of hometown teams.
2024 — Team Pacers: Tyrese Haliburton, Bennedict Mathurin and Myles Turner won in Indianapolis. Haliburton made a half-court shot in the deciding tiebreaker.
2025 — Team Cavaliers: Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley defeated Golden State's Draymond Green and Moses Moody in San Francisco, giving Cleveland its second team championship.
Historical Sources
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