For the second year, Mac McClung has won the NBA All-Star Slam Dunk Contest. He becomes the fifth player after Michael Jordan, Jason Richardson, Nate Robinson, and Zach LaVine to win back-to-back contests.
He represented the Philadelphia 76ers in 2023 and then got the invite as part of the Osceola Magic.
Admittedly, he deserves the title.
With that said, he is still a G-Leaguer.
I am not discriminating here and most definitely, the NBA has a fault in this because they let their best dunkers sit on the sidelines and in some cases, have their stars lose interest in the annual shindig.
We still don't get why Aaron Gordon is not a two-time champion (he should been a co-winner during his showdown with LaVine) and for some reason, you don't even know the other winners unless you do a quick Google search.
The contest was instrumental in giving the league a worldwide following after the feats of awesomeness displayed by Jordan, Dominique Wilkins, and that awesome 10-year stretch that had the likes of Dee Brown, Harold Miner, Isaiah Rider, Brent Barry, Kobe Bryant, and Vince Carter. Except for Miner, these players elevated their game as either superstars or elite role players.
When McClung dunked on... the two fans, it felt like a halftime exhibition. When he dunked on Shaquille O'Neal, it felt like he had no business asking Shaq if he could jump with the potential of hitting him on the head after an unsuccessful attempt.
Again, Mac did well here. It's just that he's treated like a sideshow. When McClung won his first contest, Philadelphia played him in just two games. In fact, McClung played in just four games in two seasons. This is one fewer as compared to the other G-Leaguer in the contest, Jacob Toppin. I guess this is why in some screwy fashion, the judges were giving Jaylen Brown bonus points for his underwhelming jams.
While I am a Boston fan, I know the final should have been Mac versus Toppin. Before McClung won his first title, the defending champion of the contest was Jacob's brother and Indiana Pacers forward, Obi Toppin. A win would have given the Toppins the distinction of being the first brothers to win the event.
As mentioned, McClung deserved the award.
But what happens next? With the way McClung is bringing it and with how the NBA stars are letting them have it, it feels as if Mac is going to be a three-time Slam Dunk Contest winner. This is nice and all, but perhaps maybe McClung could just decline the offer. While yeah, the 15 minutes of fame is cool and all, I would rather see McClung blossom as a capable super sub a la Alex Caruso or Austin Reaves for that matter than just being an all-star side attraction.
In the PBA, Reuben Dela Rosa came out from obscurity to enter the Slam Dunk contest. He had a stellar NCAA campaign and was part of Stag's PBL grand slam team but got lost in the shuffle in Purefoods. Dela Rosa could have stayed on with the Hotdogs when they began to jump to the MBA but instead, he was the one who led the exodus. Not only did he win a couple of titles and all-star citations in the short-lived basketball league, but he was also able to show that he is more than a sideshow.
If this doesn't result in a call-up wherein he would double his career games, then he should just skip the contest next season. He has proven his skills but now they need to treat him better.