Monday, January 18, 2010

Has the dunk contest lost its luster ?


What happened to the dunk contest? What happened to all the hype surrounding it? How could you let the dunk contest just fall off? Well it has to the point that people don't even watch it anymore. I wonder why that is.

The Slam Dunk contest used to be the highlight of All-Star weekend. It was the sign of ultimate creativity and it got you out of your seat watching dunks that you had never seen before. I remember watching the dunk contest as a kid on TBS on Sat and then the All-Star game on Sun. In my backyard I had a basketball hoop that was a little lower than regulation so I could do all the dunks that I saw the players do in the dunk contest. For the longest Dr. J was known as the best dunker. In the mid 80's a new wave of young high risers emerged highlighted by Dominique and Jordan. Till this day the battles that they had in the 3 years they competed were the best the dunk contest has ever seen. Dominique was more power! He made the wind mill dunk famous as he rocked the rim with one or two hands. He had the sickest double pump reverse dunk I had ever seen. Jordan was more finesse! He would kiss the rim and lean on his dunks. His hang time was unreal. Then he would take off from the Free Throw line which he always saved for last, as his rabbit in the hat. He just looked sweet when he dunked.

After Jordan and Dominique the dunk contest began to lose its popularity. Every once in while we got flashes from guys like Kobe, Vince Carter and Jason Richardson who all won the dunk contest but for the most part it was the same ole, same ole.
One of the reasons why Dominique and Jordan had so much interest was because both guys were 2 of the best players and scorers in the league at the time. They also both dunked alot in games. It was like a built in competition to see them in the dunk contest. Today our best best players pass on being in the contest and give way to younger unproven players to move the crowd with their dunks. Lebron James told the media last Feb during All-Star weekend that he would be in the dunk contest. Now he is is pulling out. Guys Dwayne Wade would rather do the skills challenge. Kobe is saying "1 dunk title is enough".

Nate Robinson is the defending dunk champion. Yeah you heard me, Nate Robinson. Don't get me wrong he can jump and has alot of creativity. We need superstars to compete for the dunk title to bring the buzz back. Robinson's competitors consist of Gerald Wallace, Shannon Brown and the winner of a dunk off between Demar Derozen and Eric Gordon. This is far from the eye popping list that the fans truly want to see. The Dunk contest also is becoming more predictable because we have seen just about every dunk that can be done. As fans and judges we are our own worst enemy. Hopefully one of the participants can pull the unthinkable and give us something never seen before. My guess is probably not, but as a true fan I will still be watching and tweeting in between dunks. Cowboys Stadium is the ultimate venue for any sport and the city of Dallas should be crazy on All-Star weekend. Predictions. I like Derozen to win it all with Shannon Brown a close second. Trust me, the dunk contest on Sat will take a backseat to the game on Sun. We gotta get things back to the way they were

RP

2 comments:

  1. Yeah...I was VERY disappointed when I read that Lebron was backing out of the dunk contest. I've always felt it would take one superstar to set the trend of entering themselves in the contest. My question for you as a player....why don't the superstars was to compete in this contest...is it a fear of failure thing?

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  2. yeah. If your considered a top 3 player in the world you should be able to win the dunk contest. but if you dont your reputation is i guess in a way tarnished. that wasnt the case with jordan and dominique. they just wanted to put on a show for the fans. truth be told Lebron aint all that creative anyway. He probably would of lost.

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