Nobody was beating Mac McClung in his three-peat bid.
The Magic G Leaguer was once again the runaway slam dunk contest winner for his third-straight title Saturday night in a performance for the ages. He started things with a dunk worthy of a closer and continued to wow with each successive dunk. Each of McClung’s dunks earned a perfect 50 score.
In an homage to Blake Griffin, he leapt over a car for a powerful reverse dunk to start his night. And unlike Griffin, who jumped over the hood of a car, McClung cleared the roof.
The dunk secured the first of his four perfect scores, including a powerful reverse slam over another human being on his second effort
McClung then kicked off the the finals vs. Spurs rookie Stephon Castle with a dunk featuring multiple props and two balls.
Castle put up a strong effort as McClung’s clear-cut top challenger out of a field of four participants. He scored his own perfect 50 with his final dunk of the night.
But McClung would not be denied with a show-stopping dunk that took a second look to truly appreciate. But it was worth the perfect 50 that secured his three-peat.
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McClung leapt over 6-foot-11 Cavaliers center Evan Mobley, then kissed the rim with the front of the ball before throwing it down with a powerful two-handed slam.
If you didn’t catch it in real-time, it’s worth another look in the slow-motion replay above to fully appreciate it.
In a contest that’s criticized for stagnation and lack of star power, McClung continues to bring it with style, creativity and tremendous athleticism. He may not be an NBA player, but he’s a worthy slam dunk contest winner.
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McClung prevailed from a field that also featured rookie Bulls forward Matas Buzelis and Bucks guard Andre Jackson Jr, who were eliminated in the first round.
Mac McClung is a worthy three-peat dunk contest champion. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)
(ASSOCIATED PRESS)
There was no three-peat for two-time 3-point king Damian Lillard. The Milwaukee Bucks guard failed to make it out of the first round on Saturday as Buddy Hield, Tyler Herro and Darius Garland made it to the finals out of a field of eight participants.
There, Herro a Miami Heat guard, took home the crown, with a final-round score of 24 to edge fellow finalist Hield, who finished with 23 points in front of his hometown Golden State crowd.
Here are the final scores:
Finals
First Round
- Buddy Hield, Warriors: 31
- Jalen Brunson, Knicks: 18
- Damian Lillard, Bucks: 18
- Cade Cunningham, Pistons: 16
- Norman Powell, Clippers: 14
Tyler Herro is your new NBA 3-point champion. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)
(ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Cavaliers duo Evan Mobley and Donovan Mitchell topped the Warriors tandem of Draymond Green and Moses Moody to win the skills challenge
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But, perhaps more interesting, the Spurs duo of Victor Wembanyama and Chris Paul was disqualified for not exactly acting in the spirit of the contest. Instead of taking shots during the shooting portion, they just tossed balls off the rack in an effort to gain a time advantage. Officials did not appreciate this, and disqualified them from the contest.
Skills challenge participants:
- Team Cavs (Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley)
- Team Rooks (Zaccharie Risacher, Alex Sarr)
- Team Spurs (Chris Paul, Victor Wembanyama)
- Team Warriors (Draymond Green, Moses Moody)
