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On Saturday, rookie guard Victor Oladipo became the first player in Orlando Magic history to take part in the Skills Challenge at All-Star Weekend. Teamed with Philadelphia 76ers point guard Michael Carter-Williams, the pair advanced to the championship round against Portland Trail Blazers point guard Damian Lillard and Utah Jazz point guard Trey Burke. The East's team of two rookies came up short by the narrowest of margins, however: Burke's layup to close the championship round gave his team the victory by one-tenth of a second.
Carter-Williams struggled in the final round, needing two attempts to complete the chest pass and three attempts to make the jumper. Oladipo needed two attempts on the pass as well, but made his first jumper attempt. They completed the course in 45.3 seconds, compared to the Burke and Lillard squad's 45.2-second time.
In the first round, Oladipo had no difficulty completing the pass portion of the redesigned Skills Challenge course, but needed three attempts to nail the top-of-the-key jumper and advance. However, the 43.3 second time Oladipo and Carter-Williams posted topped the 45-second mark Toronto Raptors swingman DeMar DeRozan and Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, the East's other team, did.
