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NBA Slam Dunk Contest

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The NBA Slam Dunk Contest was inaugurated by the American Basketball Association at their All-Star Game in 1976 in Denver, just as the slam dunk was legalized in the NCAA. It enabled players to showcase their dunking skills and try to out-dunk each other. However, this contest would be short-lived as the ABA merged the following year with the National Basketball Association. Realizing the popularity of slam dunks, the NBA soon created a contest of their own.

Contents

1980s

The NBA reintroduced the Slam Dunk Contest in 1984 at its birthplace in Denver. This paved the way for one of the most memorable slam dunks in NBA history. The 1985 Slam Dunk Contest came down to a showdown between Dominique Wilkins and Michael Jordan, with Wilkins emerging victorious. In 1986, with Jordan out with an injury, Wilkins was expected to defend his crown at the Slam Dunk Contest. It would be a teammate who would prevent Wilkins from repeating as champ. His Atlanta Hawks teammate, Spud Webb, made history when he upset Wilkins in the final. Webb became the shortest player ever to win the contest. Standing only five feet seven inches tall, Webb had to jump nearly all of his height just to slam on the ten foot tall basket.

Lean years

The Slam Dunk Contest had always been a big hit with fans but interest in the contest began to wane in the mid 1990s. Initially, it was some of the players who lost interest in competing. Most players cited concerns of injuries and others felt that all the different kinds of dunks had been exhausted. With most of the superstars choosing not to participate, lesser known players began to compete. This led to a watered-down competition with not much flash. Players would win contests with boring or completely unoriginal dunks. Because of the declining interest and ratings, the NBA decided to cancel the Slam Dunk Contest after a young Kobe Bryant won the 1997 contest. It was during the 1997 contest that Kobe Bryant did a between the legs dunk that won the contest. The rest of the competition (or lack thereof) had offered little variety to their dunks and this quickly led to fan criticism of it being "boring."

Return

After a two season layoff, the NBA decided to bring the contest back. The initial contest after this was in 2000. It featured a great showdown between Vince Carter, the eventual winner, his cousin, Tracy McGrady, and Steve Francis. However, the next four contests did not feature superstars and talks again began that maybe the contest should be eliminated. The main argument was that players could not really come up with any more dunks that people had never seen before. The lack of superstars willing to participate also hurt the appeal of the contest to fans.

In 2005, the Slam Dunk Contest returned to its birthplace in Denver and was reborn. With the spectacular dunks of that year's contest, there was buzz that the dunk competition could regain the popularity it had in the 1980s. Amare Stoudemire, J.R. Smith, and the new champion, Josh Smith, all wowed the crowd with their maneuvers. With the change in the rules requiring an additional teammate starting in the second round, they proved that there were indeed many dunks that people had not done before. Stoudemire and J.R. Smith showed off original dunks that they had spent much time working on. Josh Smith received rave reviews when he did a tribute dunk to Dominique Wilkins. Smith's top dunk, arguably one of the best in recent history, shows him hovering over a seated Kenyon Martin as he glides through the air to the basket.

Again in 2006, the Dunk Contest in Houston, Texas revitalized the interests of audiences as 5'9" Nate Robinson of the New York Knicks took the title and became the undisputed crowd favorite. One of his most exciting dunks was a high-flying dunk over former Slam Dunk Contest winner, 5'7" Spud Webb. The 2006 Slam Dunk Contest was also the first Dunk Contest in history to have a "Dunk Off", the equivalent to a Dunk Contest overtime, between Knicks point guard Robinson and shooting guard Andre Iguodala of the Philadelphia 76ers.

Past champions

Trivia

External links

 

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