The mini-tournament format didn’t disappoint on All-Star Friday with Cade Cunningham and Team Barry beating Team Isiah in the title match.
Championship Final:
Team Barry 25, Team Isiah 20 | box score
Semi-finals:
#1: Team Isiah 50, Team Worthy 49 | box score
#2: Team Barry 50, Team Payton 48 | box score
Most Valuable Player: Cade Cunningham, Pistons
Rookies Cade Cunningham and Franz Wagner took home victory in the Clorox Rising Stars final at All-Star 2022, capping a 25-20 victory for Team Barry over Team Isiah. Cunningham dried a track 3 to give his side a 24-20 lead, and on next possession he found Wagner on a back door. Wagner fouled and sank his first free throw to cap off a closing, 13-2 run for Team Barry, who trailed 18-12.
Cunningham was named Rising Stars MVP, with a total of 18 points, seven rebounds, nine assists, two steals and two blocks in Team Barry’s two wins.
Rising Stars MVP Cade Cunningham scores 18 points over 2 games, opening Team Barry All-Star 2022 in style with some exciting wins.
This was the first year of a new Rising Stars format, with four teams of seven players—comprising 12 rookies, 12 sophomores, and four players from the NBA G League Ignite team—playing in a three-game tournament. The semi-finals were played to 50 points each, while the final was played to 25.
Team Isiah defeated Team Worthy, 50-49, in the first semifinal, with Memphis Grizzlies sophomore Desmond Bane winning the game at the free-throw line a few possessions after Orlando Magic rookie Jalen Suggs forfeited a chance to do the same for Team Worthy, which had come back from a 10-point deficit. Houston Rocket rookie Jalen Green led Team Worthy by 20 points, while Detroit Pistons Saddiq Bey and Isaiah Stewart combined gave Team Isiah 26 points.
Great mic moments from the Clorox Rising Stars games.
The second semifinal also went into a next-basket-wins situation, with Houston Rockets sophomore Jae’Sean Tate winning the game for Team Barry with a drive through traffic after Team Payton missed a pair of step-back 3s that would have left the game won. Cunningham led Team Barry with 13 points, five rebounds and six assists, while No. 3 pick Evan Mobley added 13 points and eight boards. Minnesota Timberwolves sophomore Jaden McDaniels led Team Payton by 12 points.
The 2022 Clorox Rising Stars rosters were announced following a pool of players drawn up by 75th Anniversary Team members and Rising Stars coaches Rick Barry† Gary Payton† Isia Thomas and James Worthy†
-John Schuhmann
Clorox Clutch Challenge
Tyrese Haliburton and Desmond Bane hit 5 historic NBA spots to win the Clorox Clutch Challenge.
Between the semifinals and the final of the Rising Stars, Tyrese Haliburton, guardian of Bane and Pacers, won the Clorox Clutch Challenge, taking the five different iconic shots of NBA playoff history in 39.1 seconds. With Bane missing his first three shots, Haliburton carried the two sophomores through the first four places. But Bane connected on the pair’s first try from Damian Lillard’s spot, beating the initial time of Mobley and Thunder rookie Josh Giddey by over 10 seconds.
Each team competed against each other with one shared ball, alternating shots so that no player fired twice in a row. Team 1 was given 1 minute and 30 seconds (1:30 countdown) to make a shot from each of the five locations in random order. Team 1’s time was then the marker for Team 2. If Team 1’s time was 1:15, Team 2 had a 1:15 countdown to complete the competition. Each team that sets a new standard sets the clock for the next team to compete, and the fastest finisher wins the Clorox Clutch Challenge.
-John Schuhmann
Clorox Rising Stars Grids
TEAM BARRY
Cade CunninghamDetroit Pistons
Dyson DanielsG League Ignite
Evan MobleyCleveland Cavaliers
Isaac OkorosCleveland Cavaliers
Alperen SengunHouston missiles
Jae’Sean TateHouston missiles
Franz WagnerOrlando Magic
TEAM ISIA
Precious AchiuwaToronto Raptors
Desmond BaneMemphis Grizzlies
Saddiq BeyDetroit Pistons
Anthony EdwardsMinnesota Timberwolves
Tyrese HaliburtonSacramento Kings
Jaden HardyG League Ignite
Isaiah StewartDetroit Pistons
TEAM PAYTON
LaMelo BallCharlotte Hornets
Scottie BarnesToronto Raptors
Ayo DosunmuChicago Bulls
Chris DuarteIndiana Pacers (Injury, won’t play)
Scoot HendersonG League Ignite
Bones HylandDenver Nuggets (Injury replacement for Mitchell)
Jonathan KumingaGolden State Warriors (Injury replacement for Duarte)
Jaden McDanielsMinnesota Timberwolves
Davion MitchellSacramento Kings (Injury, won’t play)
TEAM WORTHY
Cole AnthonyOrlando Magic
MarJon BeauchampG League Ignite
Josh GiddeyOklahoma City Thunder
Jalen GreenHouston missiles
Herbert JonesNew Orleans Pelicans
Tyrese MaxeyPhiladelphia 76ers
Jalen SuggsOrlando Magic