Portland Trail Blazers guard C.J. McCollum can't go on vacation, so he found a back-up plan: participating in the 3-point shootout at All-Star Weekend.

"I wanted to go on vacation," McCollum said Saturday. "If I'm not going to play in the game, I would rather be on vacation. But I can't be on vacation since my girl's got a test. So I figured I could go for 48 hours and get out there and still get some rest and relaxation."

McCollum participated in the All-Star Saturday night competition last year but was eliminated in the first round. He said he wasn't sure he was going to make a return appearance this year until his vacation plans were scuttled.

"I will [compete],'' McCollum said. "At first, I was against it. I didn't really want to go, but seeing as how I performed last year and my girl can't go on vacation because she has a test on Monday, it kind of changed my view on it.''

C.J. McCollum looks to avenge his first-round exit in last season's 3-point competition. Ron Turenne/NBAE/Getty Images

McCollum, who is tied for 14th in the league in 3-point shooting percentage (.415), said his first-round exit in last year's contest was partially due to his being a late replacement for Chris Bosh.

"I'll take it seriously this year,'' he said. "Last year, I was a throw-in. They called me the night before, so I tried to get to a gym and did a round [using] the [ball] racks. This year I will prepare more and give it a shot."

Golden State Warriors stars Klay Thompson (2016) and Stephen Curry (2015) won the past two competitions. McCollum is the first player to confirm his participation in this year's contest, which will be held Feb. 18 in New Orleans.