With the dunk contest’s demise I’m calling on the NBA stars to revitalize the contest
Remember when the dunk contest was actually the main event of the NBA’s All-Star weekend? Yeah, me neither.
Some of us either weren’t born or were too young to remember the event’s heyday. It’s been a while since we’ve seen actual stars in the competition and not just up-and-coming young players competing for exposure.
Unfortunately, this year’s contest will be just that. The event, which will take place Feb. 14 at the Barclays Center in New York, features Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks, Zach LaVine of the Minnesota Timberwolves, Victor Oladipo of the Orlando Magic and Mason Plumlee of the Brooklyn Nets. Although this could still be an exciting competition, it’s safe to say that it won’t go down as one of the classics like in the 1980s and ‘90s.
That was the golden age of the dunk contest that many fell in love with. A few of the most memorable include the 1985 competition with Dominique Wilkins, Michael Jordan, Julius Erving and Clyde Drexler, the 1988 spectacle of Jordan, Wilkins, Drexler and Spud Webb, the 1990 event with Wilkins, Shawn Kemp and Scottie Pippen and the 1997 showdown with Kobe Bryant and Ray Allen.
The 2000 dunk contest with Vince Carter, Tracy McGrady and Steve Francis was the most recent we’ve seen in matching the star power of those jaw-dropping, YouTube worthy performances of the past.
That is the problem with the dunk contest today. None of the stars are willing to participate for various reasons ranging from fear of an injury to fear of being defeated by a player with lesser star-power.
To bring the dunk contest back to what it once was, all of the current NBA stars should agree to compete against each other and give the fans a true look at what a dunk contest is capable of in this day and age.
That is much easier said than done; however, all it would take is one superstar to announce he would participate and the dominos would fall. It’s easy for fans to say that the league’s top players should enter the contest because they don’t face any of the injury risk that comes with the event, but the All-Star weekend is for the fans in the end.
If the players really care about the fans like they say they do, having a real dunk contest would be a great way to show appreciation. The NBA could hold a fan vote to select the top four or six players fans want to see.
Even a twist such as the winner gets money donated to his charity could help entice the league’s top acrobats into giving us a show.
At the end of the day, All-Star weekend is for the fans and the stars of the NBA know that. All we are asking for is a dunk contest with contestants that we have heard of or whose names we can pronounce.
Matt Fout is a freshman studying journalism and a sportswriter for The Post. Let him know your thoughts about the dunk contest @Matt_Fout or mf056713@ohio.edu.
