How Fred VanVleet fared in his first All-Star Game

Former+Shocker+Fred+VanVleet+looks+on+during+the+Aftershocks+game+on+Sunday%2C+July+18+inside+Charles+Koch+Arena.

Khánh Nguyễn/ The Sunflower

Former Shocker Fred VanVleet looks on during the Aftershocks game on Sunday, July 18 inside Charles Koch Arena.

Former Shocker guard Fred VanVleet continued his remarkable basketball journey, competing in the NBA All-Star Game in Cleveland. From undrafted to NBA champion, VanVleet became the first WSU guard since Xavier McDaniel to play in the game.

VanVleet’s weekend started by tallying 16 points in the Three-Point Contest on Saturday, falling short of the required total to advance. VanVleet struggled out of the gates, clanking his first shot off the side of the backboard.

VanVleet’s 16 points came six away from qualifying for the finals of the contest, with Karl-Anthony Towns, Trae Young and Luke Kennard all advancing. The Toronto Raptors guard went 12-of-27 and missed both of the Mountain Dew Zone shots, which counted for three points. His 16 points were seventh-best of the eight participants.

“If I do good, I win, if I do bad, I get talked about for a few hours and move on. I can handle both,” VanVleet said prior to the event.

During the game on Sunday, VanVleet scored six points on 2-of-4 shooting for Team LeBron, which defeated Team Durant 163-160. With Steph Curry’s record-breaking performance, which included 16 threes, VanVleet was held six minutes off the bench.

“I’m happy with the way the night went,” VanVleet said. “We won, I got out there and made a couple shots, got some cardio in. That’s it. I’m good.”

VanVleet became the eighth different Raptors player to be named an all-star and is just the fourth undrafted player selected. He’s averaging a career-high 21.6 points and seven assists per game while shooting 40.1% from three-point range.