Victor Wembanyama and Chris Paul found out that you can be DQed in the Skills Challenge

NBA All-Star Weekend is the league's annual multi-day talent exhibition. It's fun and flashy, with a mix of competitiveness, though the latter has been questioned over the years. However, the San Antonio Spurs duo of Victor Wembanyama and Chris Paul's will to win the 2025 Kia Skills Challenge can't be disputed. They went to great lengths to think of a loophole that gave them a distinctive edge but were caught in the act.

Knowing the Skills Challenge is a time-based contest, Wembanyama and Paul devised a tactic to breeze through the shooting drills as quickly as possible. But they weren't making legitimate attempts at the basket, which was grounds for disqualification.

Rather than wasting several seconds grabbing each ball, setting their feet, squaring up and releasing, Wembanyama and Paul blindly rapid-fired the shot racks. They finished the course in 47.9 seconds, so the idea worked. However, the aimless barrage was against the rules, deeming their score null and void.

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Victor Wembanyama and Chris Paul found out that you can be DQed in the Skills Challenge

Per ESPN's Michael C. Wright, Wembanyama and Paul were eliminated "for failing to complete their sequence with three valid shot attempts." And the proof is in the pudding, as you can see, it's hard to argue that any of those were genuine scoring efforts. Nonetheless, it wasn't received well by the Chase Center crowd, who showered the Spurs tandem with boos.

Moreover, other challengers were displeased or stunned, with Cleveland Cavaliers All-Star and Skills Challenge representative Donovan Mitchell giving it two thumbs down. Afterward, Wembanyama and Paul weren't celebrating, seemingly knowing they had done something wrong.

Meanwhile, play-by-play announcer Kevin Harlan and color commentator Reggie Miller were amazed by Wembanyama and Paul's creative approach in real-time.

"This has Chris Paul's fingerprints all over it," Harlan stated, knowing the Spurs point guard is one of the Association's savviest players.

Albeit clever, Wembanyama and Paul crossed the line and were caught red-handed.