All-Star Notes: Richardson, Curry, Brown, Johnson

Jase Richardson says that he’s okay after suffering a bad fall while representing the Magic for the 2026 Dunk Contest.

“I’m good,” he said, per Jason Beede of the Orlando Sentinel. “I tried to go do a little 360 off the side of the glass, (but) my arm got caught on the side of the backboard.”

Richardson was eliminated in the first round after his backup dunk was given a 43.4 composite score.

“After taking a fall like that, I just had to move on from that dunk,” Richardson said. “It is what it is.”

Richardson took to social media after the contest to share a clip of how he intended the uncompleted dunk to look (Twitter video link).

Richardson had turned to his father, two-time Dunk Contest champion Jason Richardson, to help with his preparation for the event, Kurt Helin writes for NBC Sports, though Jase resisted wearing his father’s jersey during the event, wanting to forge his own path, according to Beede.

“I just wanted to do the contest and try to make it my own thing instead of everything having to do with my father,” the younger Richardson said.

We have more from around the All-Star festivities:

• Stephen Curry would like to return to the three-point contest next season, writes Taylor Wirth for NBC Sports, especially with Damian Lillard winning his third contest this year, while the Warriors star only has two three-point championships to his name. “I already scheduled it,” Curry said. “We’re going to bring some people: Me, Dame, I’m going to try and get Klay [Thompson].”
• Jaylen Brown is one player in favor of bringing a 1-on-1 competition to All-Star weekend, ESPN’s Vincent Goodwill writes (via Twitter). “I’m actually a big fan,” the Celtics’ All-Star said. “It’s the purity of the game. I would love to challenge some people here. Like Luka [Doncic], Shai [Gilgeous-Alexander], Donovan [Mitchell]. We could donate to charity. Set it up.” The topic has been relevant this weekend with the success of the women’s league Unrivaled’s 1-on-1 tournament this weekend, which was won by Ace’s guard Chelsea Gray.
• Keshad Johnson‘s journey from undrafted player to Slam Dunk champion for the Heat has given him a sense of gratitude, writes Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. “I beat the odds. I made it. I made it into the NBA,” he said. “I dreamed of every year I was watching the NBA dunk contest, I dreamed of being out there, putting on a show for everybody… I learned from all the people that came before me, paying homage to them, and now I’m here.” Johnson said he was just excited to be able to introduce himself to the wider basketball world, both as a dunker and as a person. “Now they know who I am,” he said.