LaVine-Gordon Slam Dunk duel caps off entertaining All-Star Saturday Night
TNT's Kenny "The Jet" Smith called Saturday night's competition the greatest Slam Dunk contest of all time. Reggie Miller went one step further, saying the entire evening at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto would go down as the most entertaining All-Star Saturday Night in the history of the event.
They may both have a point.
Slam Dunk contest
Fans and commentators alike were calling for two trophies to be awarded to Aaron Gordon and defending Slam Dunk contest champion Zach LaVine after they put on a performance that will stand the test of time.
Related: Zach LaVine beats Aaron Gordon in instant classic Slam Dunk contest
You'd think there would only be a handful of 50s to go around from the judges, but Gordon and LaVine proved that with the right mix of originality, power, and hang time, racking up one perfect dunks after another is very much possible.
Player | RD 1, Dunk 1 | RD 2, Dunk 2 | RD 2, Dunk 1 | RD Dunk 2 | Tiebreaker Dunk 1 | Tiebreaker Dunk 2 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Zach LaVine | 50 | 49 | 50 | 50 | 50 | 50 |
Aaron Gordon | 45 | 49 | 50 | 50 | 50 | 47 |
Will Barton | 44 | 30 | ||||
Andre Drummond | 36 | 39 |
After scoring 50s on their pair of dunks in the final round, the two youngsters put one more on the board before LaVine ultimately pulled away, putting the ball between his legs while taking off from the charity stripe to seal the win.
"Zach's an incredible dunker," Gordon said, according to the Associated Press. "He went through the legs from the free-throw line. That is insane. So off that dunk, you've got to give it to him. That's why the trophy's with him and not with me."
The most memorable throwdowns of the evening came from the Orlando Magic's 20-year-old forward, though, who utilized the assistance of Stuff the Magic Dragon and a hoverboard to show off his out-of-this-world hops.
Take a seat, sir.
With the win, LaVine becomes just sixth player to win multiple Slam Dunk titles, joining Michael Jordan, Dominique Wilkins, Harold Miner, Nate Robinson, and Jason Richardson. He's also the first back-to-back winner since Robinson repeated in 2009-10.
Three-Point Contest
It was only fitting that this year's Three-Point Contest came down to the two strongest shooters on the best team in basketball, with the "Splash Brothers" of the Golden State Warriors, along with 19-year-old rookie Devin Booker of the Phoenix Suns, putting on a clinic in the final round.
Player | RD 1 | Finals |
---|---|---|
Klay Thompson | 22 | 27 |
Stephen Curry | 21 | 23 |
Devin Booker | 20 (12) | 16 |
J.J. Redick | 20 (9) | - |
James Harden | 20 (8) | - |
Kyle Lowry | 15 | - |
C.J. McCollum | 14 | - |
Khris Middleton | 13 | - |
Related: Full highlights of 2016 Three-Point Contest
Stephen Curry left the Barclays Center in 2015 hoisting the Three-Point Contest trophy above his head, having convincingly thwarted the efforts of teammate Klay Thompson and Cleveland Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving. Fast forward one year later, and both Curry and Thompson were back in the finals - only this time, it was Thompson soaking in all the glory with a commanding finale north of the border.
Placing the money-ball rack in the appropriate spot can mean the difference between glorious victory or a humble defeat. Knowing what he had to tally by going last after Curry, Thompson drilled eight consecutive buckets, including all five money balls, to avenge his previous loss and reign supreme over his backcourt mate.
Skills Challenge
Among a field of guards, elite ball-handlers, and All-Stars, 7-foot rookie Karl-Anthony Towns was an afterthought when it came to favorites in this year's Skills Challenge.
Well, that apparent afterthought represented the NBA's big men to the fullest, upsetting Draymond Green in the first round, beating "Boogie" Cousins, and shocking Isaiah Thomas - who had little trouble eliminating Emmanuel Mudiay and C.J. McCollum en route to the finals - to become Skills Challenge champion.
The tallest previous winner(s) were Dwyane Wade and Jason Kidd, both 6-foot-4, with this year's competition being the first to invite frontcourt talent to participate.
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