In light of the dunk contest last weekend, here are my top 10 dunkers of all time.
10. Jason Richardson — He threw down regularly via alley-oops from Baron Davis. He’s best known for his between-the-legs hammers that won him the 2002 and 2003 dunk contests.
9. Spud Webb — He has the most fitting nickname of any dunker on the list. Watching videos of this 5-foot-7-inch guard throw dunks down in the 1980s is a little like watching a character someone created on NBA 2K16.
8. Zach LaVine — He’s won two dunk contests in a row — something only three players had ever done before him. He’s a freak athletically, but he needs to do it consistently in real games.
7. Darryl Dawkins — The dude’s nickname was “Chocolate Thunder,” and he broke backboards regularly in the 1970s. YouTube him.
6. Shawn Kemp — “The Rainman” made a career in the 1990s out of throwing down on people. He’s best known for dunking on Alton Lister, squatting in front of him and pointing his fingers straight at him for three full seconds (a definite technical in today’s NBA, sadly).
5. Kobe Bryant — Sure, Kobe is old and terrible now, but never forget that there was a time when Kobe would put anyone in the league on a poster. Before there was the “Black Mamba,” there was “dunks-on-everyone” Kobe.
4. Dominique Wilkins — He’s known simply as “The Human Highlight Reel,” and I doubt there’s much more I can do to explain him to you outside of what the nickname suggests. He put down contest-worthy dunks in real games all the time.
3. Julius Erving — Dr. J is the godfather of the modern NBA, and any dunking list without him and his immaculate 1970s afro is certified garbage. Also, he’s on the original cover of NBA Street, so there.
2. Michael Jordan — It feels blasphemous to not have MJ in the top slot on any ranking that has to do with basketball, but I’m doing it. The nickname “His Airness” speaks for itself, as does his incredible highlight reel of both contest and in-game tomahawks.
1. Vince Carter — God put Vince Carter on this earth to dunk basketballs in ludicrous fashion. He has the best in-game dunk of all-time (jumping completely over a 7-foot French guy in the 2000 Olympics) and also one of the best contest dunks ever (that windmill thing in 2000 where he makes the rim look like a Nerf hoop). If you could synthesize the perfect dunker with a test tube in a lab, it would be Vince Carter.
