This Year's Dunk Contest May Not Have Big Time Names So Far, But It Does Have Some Big Time Dunkers And That's What Truly Matters

There are a number of topics you'll never get NBA fans to agree on where it's MVP, team power rankings, contenders, player rankings etc. One of the few things that I think basketball fans everywhere will agree on is the fact that the Dunk Contest stinks. It feels like its been forever since we got to watch Vince Carter, Zach LaVine, and Aaron Gordon do absolutely ridiculous shit in a dunk contest. Year after year we all say the same thing

"The Dunk Contest is dead"

"The Dunk Contest is boring"

"We've seen all these dunks a million times"

At this point, I think we should accept that the biggest names in the game are never going to participate in this thing like they used to in the old days. Guys like Ja, Zion, LeBron, LaVine, Gordon etc are all set. Nobody really wants to risk any sort of injury and frankly who could blame them.

To me, it's never really about the name of the dunker. I don't care who the player is, I just want to see cool ass dunks. Show me some insane hops and some ideas that I've either never seen before or haven't seen in a long ass time. And you better make sure you can execute it on your first try. If you do that, the entire narrative around the dunk contest will change.

You may see the names Mac McClung, Shaedon Sharpe, and KJ Martin and think this dunk contest is going to stink because none of those guys are "stars". I couldn't disagree more. These dudes can JUMP. 

For starters, I'm pretty sure Mac McClung was put on this planet for Dunk Contests

Things may not be working out for him at the NBA level, but in terms of dunks? Mac McClung is elite.

With Shaedon Sharpe, the rookie may not be a household name outside of Portland, but this is another dude who can absolutely fly. Same shit with KJ Martin. 

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Maybe I'm just being optimistic, but based on what the internet shows me and then watching these guys during the year, I think this could finally be a pretty entertaining Dunk Contest. Again, I don't give a shit about how big a star you are, I just want to see cool shit. Show me dunks that my brain didn't think were possible and I'm happy. Give me a reason to get mad online when the judges rob someone of a 10.

With these 3 guys committed, that leaves 1 more spot to figure out. Maybe Obi Toppin comes back to defend his title? He's not really playing for the Knicks right now so his legs are probably fresh. Someone like Anthony Edwards shut that dream down last year, so he's out in my opinion. My guess is it won't be a big name, but that's fine. As long as he has some legit dunks up his sleeve that's all that matters.

Given this is All Star Weekend's biggest event on Saturday, the league can't have this competition continue to stink. At some point they're going to have to address it, so who knows maybe having these young, super bouncy guys is the way to go. At least that's what we can hope for.

All I want is to go back to this

is that too much to ask?