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The NBA's brightest and youngest stars were featured on Friday night to put on a show in Indianapolis at the Grainbridge Fieldhouse for NBA All-Star Weekend.
The NBA All-Star Rising Stars Challenge continued for the third consecutive year with players like Victor Wembanyama, Chet Holmgren, Mac McClung, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Brandin Podziemski, Jabari Smith, Brandon Miller and Cason Wallace among the few notable names partaking in it.
Indiana Pacers Bennedict Mathurin, the home crowd favorite, put on a show and was rewarded the MVP honors for the NBA All-Star Rising Stars Challenge.
Team Jalen emerged victorious in the Rising Stars Challenge, with standout performances leading them to championship glory.
The team was spearheaded by MVP Bennedict Mathurin, alongside the Oklahoma City Thunder duo of Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams.
Williams clinched the victory with a decisive game-winning shot, highlighting the collective talent and effort that propelled Team Jalen to triumph.
In an unexpected turn of events during the Rising Stars Challenge, the G-League squad Team Detlef secured a victory over Team Pau, despite the latter team's inclusion of phenom Victor Wembanyama.
Team Detleft was the biggest underdogs at +600, while Team Pau was the favorite at +175.
Additionally, Team Jalen's journey to the championship included a notable win against Team Tamika, which boasted 2024 All-Star Paolo Banchero.
Bennedict Mathurin shines with MVP glory, propelling Team Jalen to NBA Rising Star game at Indiana
Bennedict Mathurin was arguably the best player throughout the tournament. In the first game against the Team Tamika Catchings, Mathurin played the most minutes, logging 13:20 with a game-high 18 points and two rebounds.
He boasted a +5 net rating, including efficient shooting going 7 of 13 from the field 53.8%, including 2 of 4 from the 3-point line.
Mathurin followed his strong performance in the finals against Team Detlef with four points, two assists and a steal on 1-of-3 shooting, boasting a team-high +13 net rating to reach the score of 25 before the opposition.
The night's highlight came in the finals when Mathurin made an extraordinary pass with his high-flying athleticism at full display, faking two defenders with a layup until he dropped it off to Walker Kessler under the rim.
He averaged 11 points on 43.5% shooting with a rebound, an assist and 0.5 steals in the two games.
