Next year — LetLeBrondunk.com. Please.
Nate Robinson has won his third dunk contest — more than Dominique Wilkins or Michael Jordan — but he was able to do it Saturday without near the flair it would have taken to beat those other legends. There was one inspired dunk all night — a pass of the side of the backboard bring it around the front of the rim beauty from DeMar DeRozan — but after that it was all things we’ve seen before. Or never really cared to see.
With it all on the line, Robinson did a pass-off-the-backboard to himself, two-handed throw down. It was nice. To counter it, DeRozan (the other finalist) tried the classic “leap from the free throw line” dunk made famous by Michael Jordan and Dr. J. Impressive dunk — if you leave from the free throw line. DeRozan left from a step inside the line, which is impressive anywhere else but not in this contest.
So in the end, Robinson wins because it’s still impressive he can dunk.
Shannon Brown may be the best in-game dunker in the league but even his ally-oop from Kobe Bryant was not that thrilling. Let Shannon Dunk didn’t live up to the marketing efforts. Sadly.
Gerald Wallace, he needed to go Dominique. Be so physically strong people are stunned He didn’t, and the result was the Chinese food of dunks — you won’t remember any of them an hour later.
On the under card: Paul Pierce won the three point contest, Steve Nash the skills contest and Durant has won the H-O-R-S-E two years in a row now. All of those, about as thrilling as the dunk contest, by the way.
