One of the biggest events of the season is getting a change! This time with a Klay Thompson punch. During the previous season’s All-Star weekend, Stephen Curry vs Sabrina Ionescu’s 3-point challenge became a show stealer. Following the success of the event, the NBA seems to have doubled it down for this season, which is coincidentally set at the Chase Center, the home of the greatest shooter of all time. However, fans who excitedly witnessed the duo go against each other feel a little different about this new development.

NBA Insider Shams Charania recently stated that the league could bring back Steph and Ionescu for the 3-point challenge, this time with a variation. The new ESPN analyst said, “They could potentially include Klay Thompson and Caitlin Clark in that competition this year.” Not only that, Charania added that the league might turn the All-Star game into a tournament format with four teams with 8 players each. Notably, one of the teams will be the winner of the Rising Stars game.

This sudden change in the format is the reaction to fans’ declining interest in the All-Star weekend over the last few years. While the number has been dropping since the start of the 2020s, the 2023 All-Star weekend garnered about 4.6 million viewers, a 20-year low.

However, it took a turn in the following season where the league witnessed a sharp rise in the viewership by 20%. The 2024 All-Star game garnered 5.5 million viewers. While there isn’t any concrete reason for the rise, there was only one change that the league made. They brought in the NBA vs WNBA 3-point shooting challenge with Steph and Ionescu. It undoubtedly turned into a massive success.

So, with only months left for the next edition, NBA commissioner Adam Silver gave his word, confirming the inclusion of the NBA vs WNBA challenge, saying, “They know they’re doing it.” Moreover, it didn’t just stop at that. We may have Klay Thompson joining the action.

“Klay would lose” – Fans fear embarrassment for the Splash Brother

Not many days ago, Klay Thompson visited Chase Center for the first time after joining the Mavs. While the fans emotionally welcomed him back, the story didn’t end well for the ace shooter. Stephen Curry brought out his A-game for the spectacular event and shut down the Mavs with his signature clutch play. Ironically, with the All-Star weekend scheduled at the Chase Center, fans fear that Captain Klay might face a similar ending, as a fan wrote, “Klay would lose.”

On the other hand, a fan didn’t even like the idea in the first place, as they wrote, “Caitlin will destroy klay stop this nonsense.” Caitlin Clark started her WNBA career this season and gained a reputation for her shooting skills in the very first season, shooting 34.4% from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, Klay recorded a career low of 38.7% behind the line. So, it’s a bit of a tough choice to make.

Above all, Klay Thompson‘s Play-In Tournament curse didn’t seem to have left him. The star went 0-10 from the field in the Warriors do-or-die game to fight for a spot in the playoffs last season. Since then, fans have bombarded him with embarrassing information every once in a while. And they didn’t forget it this time as well. A fan wrote, “Klay would go 0-10″. Building on that, another fan wrote, “0/10 vs 1/19 book it now.” 1-19 FG is the embarrassing stat line of Sabrina Ionescu in the 2024 WNBA Finals Game 5. Thompson sure does have company now.

Nevertheless, Ionescu’s performance last season earned a lot of praise. In fact, the Liberty guard holds the record for the highest score in a 3-point contest, which she set during the 2023 WNBA All-Star weekend. So it’ll surely be interesting.

However, the 2016 Three-point contest winner can turn up the heat when the time is right. So do you think Klay Thompson would prove his fans wrong in February? Let us know in the comments.