The 50 Best Dunks (40-31)

#40

Terence Stansbury
Height: 6'5"
Year: 1987
Round 1, Dunk 2
Score: 50



When most people hear Stansbury's name they think of one thing and one thing only: The Statue of Liberty.  Don't worry, it's coming.  But until then, don't forget that his other dunks were pretty good too.

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#39
Dominique Wilkins
Height: 6'8"
Year: 1988
Round 3, Dunk 3
Score: 45



I've argued it many times before: Dominique got absolutely robbed on this dunk.  Now, let me clarify.  MJ had a better dunk contest overall.  I'm not arguing that.  He deserved the win.  But to give 'Nique such a low score on this?  I'm not saying it wasn't a 45, because it was (maybe a 46 or 47 at most) but based on the other dunks that were being awarded 50's in '88, this should have easily been at least a 48.

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#38
Larry Johnson
Height: 6'7"
Year: 1992
Round 2, Dunk 2
Score: 48.4



LJ (sorry, I much prefer that nickname to 'Grandmama') was a heck of a player before he injured his back.  And a heck of a dunker too.  Need more proof?  How about an impressive double clutch 360º?

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#37
Kenny Smith
Height: 6'3"
Year: 1993
Round 1, Dunk 1
Score: 46.5



Mr. Smith makes him second appearance in the Top 50 with this alley oop, 360º. Decent power too.  And of course, as with most dunks, it always looks better when it's a little guy.  Not too shabby.

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#36
Amaré Stoudemire
Height: 6'10"
Year: 2005
Round 1, Dunk 2
Score: 50



Steve Nash in a dunk contest?  Yes, please.  Obviously with this one, the pass overshadows the dunk, but it's still actually pretty good, considering he does most of a 360º (probably more of a 270º) off the lob.  So while in the end it's mostly Nash, it's still a great dunk.

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#35
Fred Jones
Height: 6'2"
Year: 2004
Round 2, Dunk 1
Score: 50



This one doesn't look that impressive at first glance, until you watch the replay and see just how far back he had to reach to grab it.  I don't know if it was a bad pass, or if he wanted to go get it, but either way, it looks damn good from the side.

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#34
Dominique Wilkins
Height: 6'8"
Year: 1988
Round 3, Dunk 1
Score: 50



Speaking of going up and getting it, Dominique was so high up, and so far back on this one, that it couldn't help but be impressive.  Especially seeing the power he still was able to get on it.  It's nothing fancy on paper, but that side reply does it for me every time.

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#33
Michael Jordan
Height: 6'6"
Year: 1988
Round 3, Dunk 2
Score: 47



Alright, continuing our discussion on 1988.  If I'm going to give them crap for giving Dominique a 45 on the two-handed-windmill, then I have to do the same for them giving this dunk a 47.  On a night when they were handing out 50's like they were condoms at a college dorm orientation, to not give this dunk a 50 was basically highway robbery. 

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#32
Kenny Walker
Height: 6'8"
Year: 1989
Round 1, Dunk 2
Score: 48.8



Kenny Walker may have only really had one dunk, a 360º windmill, with alternating variations (one hand, two hand, etc…) but it was still a heck of a dunk.  One that he had obviously honed to perfection.  In fact, even though it's basically all he did to win each round and take the title in '89, it still felt fresh each time he did it, just because it was that good, and that much better than what everyone else was doing at the time.

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#31
Gerald Green
Height: 6'8"
Year: 2008
Round 2, Dunk 1
Score: n/a (fan voting)



Although a great dunk, by the time we saw Green do this one in '08, we'd already seen enough variations on the through-the-legs dunk that it had gotten kind of stale.  That said, judged on it's own merits, it's still pretty impressive.  Most alley oop East Bay dunks require a low bounce so that the ball is almost already through the legs when you grab it, but Gerald takes it off the high bounce here, making it pretty damn nice.

The 50 Best Dunks (50-41)

#50
Desmond Mason

Height: 6'5"

Year: 2003

Round 1, Dunk 2

Score: 44
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There's nothing about the description of this dunk that merits it's spot on this list.  There's no gimmick - it's not a 360º, or a windmill or even an alley oop - he just jumps as high as he can and dunks it.  On paper alone, it shouldn't be leading off the Top 50, and yet, when you watch it, it all makes sense.

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#49 
Dominique Wilkins

Height: 6'8"

Year: 1988

Round 2, Dunk 1

Score: 49

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No one can windmill like 'Nique.  Wilkins was in the Dunk Contest five different times (tied with Clyde Drexler for the most ever) and in each of those contests he brought out the dunk that he is probably most famous for: the aforementioned windmill.  This example, from his epic battle with Jordan in '88 is, in my opinion, the best of them all.

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#48

Dee Brown

Height: 6'1"

Year: 1991

Round 3, Dunk 3

Score: 49.6

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This is the one that won Dee Brown the contest in '91.  The infamous 'peek-a-boo' dunk.  Although a lot of people rank it higher than this, and while his dunks were all very impressive for a guy barely 6'1", I still think this ranking is just about right.

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#47
Orlando Woolridge

Height: 6'9"

Year: 1984

Round 1, Dunk 3

Score: 48

.While not the smoothest, or cleanest, this is still the earliest example I've ever seen of a through-the-legs dunk - nearly 10 full years before J.R. Rider is credited with having invented it in 1994.  Plus he puts it behind his back before going up with it.  Truly a lost gem that time has seemingly forgotten.

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#46
Anthony "Spud" Webb

Height: 5'7"

Year: 1986

Round 3, Dunk 1

Score: 50

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The ultimate underdog, and the quintessential little man dunker, Spud blew everyone away in '86.  And, while most of his dunks were made all-the-more impressive because of his small size, this 360º was especially so.

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#45
Scottie Pippen

Height: 6'8"

Year: 1990

Round 1, Dunk 1

Score: 47.2

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Scottie does little to break away from Jordan's shadow in this, his one and only dunk contest appearance, essentially doing the dunk that Mike won it with in '88.  But, even if he didn't do it as well as MJ, it's still pretty damn good.  Also, from what I could see, this is the closest anyone has been to having their toe behind the foul line in a dunk contest - most guys are half a foot over.

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#44
Jason Richardson

Height: 6'6"

Year: 2002

Round 2, Dunk 2

Score: 49

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J. Rich won it with this one in 2002.  And, while he would only get better in the next couple of years, this one is made all the sweeter by appearing as though he changed his mind at the last second and decided to make up the dunk while he was in the air.

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#43
Dwight Howard

Height: 6'11"

Year: 2009

Round 2, Dunk 1

Score: n/a (fan voting)

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While big men have not historically done well in the dunk contest, Dwight has been the exception to the rule.  There's an angle on the reply of this dunk that shows just how far back he had to reach to get this one, which is especially impressive, since he threw the lob off the side of the backboard.

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#42
Jerome Kersey

Height: 6'7"

Year: 1987

Round 2, Dunk 2

Score: 48

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Kersey came out of no where to surprise everyone as the runner up in '87.  And while he would enter the contest an additional three times, he never could quite recreate the dunks he was able to do that one impressive year.  This one is a prime example of his nice blend of style and power.

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#41
Kenny Smith

Height: 6'3"

Year: 1990

Round 1, Dunk 2

Score: 49.6

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Kenny Smith had some nice creative dunks right around the time that the contest was starting to get repetitive and boring. Creativity is always a welcome addition to a dunk contest, and combined with his smaller size and higher degree of difficulty, it's no wonder he was able to surprise everyone by finishing as runner-up to Dominique in this, his first appearance.

The 50 Best Dunks in NBA Slam Dunk Contest History

Although it was daunting to even begin undertaking such an endeavour, I knew this would be a fun list to put together.  I have a feeling that Sneep will be excited to see it as well.  Danica?  Not so much…

Ideally this will all culminate with the reveal of my Number 1 choice on the Friday right before the 2011 Dunk Contest this February 19th.  By revealing 10 Dunks per week, that math should just about work out perfectly.  So here's hoping.

But, before we dive in, a few points of interest:

1.  To compile this list, I watched all 25 Dunk Competitions from 1984 to 2010 (if my math seems off, that's because they didn't have a Dunk Contest in 1998 or 1999).  I gave all 593 dunks my own score out of 50.  I then took the 75 highest scores and compared each of them to one another to come up with this final list.  If it sounds like a lot of work, that's because it was.  But it's a small price to pay for my devoted blog readers.

2.  I didn't include the original ABA Dunk Contest in this list, as it's not technically an NBA Contest.  Doc had a couple nice dunks as did David Thompson, but none of them would have cracked the Top 50 anyways (although Doc's Foul Line Dunk would have been close), so I guess it's really a moot point.  I only mention it because there have been some great NCAA, City Slam and Sprite Slam Dunk Showdown contests over the years as well, with dunks that easily would have made the Top 50 (or even Top 10) but you shouldn't get your hopes up for any of them appearing on this list.  That's more work than even I was willing to do.

3.  Although I was able to find every Dunk Contest, a few of the mid-80's ones could only be found as edited down NBA TV broadcasts.  It was easy to figure out which dunks I missed, and based on the other dunks in the same contests by the same people, I'm pretty confident that nothing was cut out that could have possibly cracked this Top 50.  But, it is worth noting, as it technically makes this list slightly flawed.  Especially if you're a huge Terry Tyler fan.

Now, without further adieu...
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Lady Crush #1: Tegan Quin

Best Known For: Tegan and Sara

First off, let's get the obvious out of the way right now.  Yes, this was the least surprising reveal in the history of lists.  The only thing you could possibly have even been questioning is whether or not I was going to place Tegan and Sara as a single entry or as two separate ones.  Although, if you know me at all, chances are that you already knew the answer to that (I mean, come on, they're identical twins, not conjoined). But even if you weren't sure, any confusion was put to rest in the last entry, leaving this week's to be the most obvious number one that has ever (or will ever) grace these electronic pages.

But I have no problem with that.  Obviousness has it's place too.  Plus, I mean, any excuse to spend all night watching stage banter clips on YouTube two weeks in a row, right?  How's that different from any other night, you ask?  Well, it… um…

Shut up.

That said, this is still one of the hardest write ups that I've had to do.  Not just because I already covered most of Tegan's better qualities  in last week's post, but also - and yes, I know this is going to be nauseatingly cheesy - because words simply cannot express...  My writing style is very conversational.  Very stream of consciousness.  And right now I'm left wishing that it was far more poetic.

Let me count the ways… etc, etc…

But it's not.  And therefore, no matter what I write here, it's bound to leave me disappointed.  My love of Tegan is much stronger than my limited writing abilities.  Her greater qualities cannot be properly described by my minimal vocabulary.  No matter what I put here, it will be a failure.

So, I'm not going to bother.  I mean, it's not like I'm trying to convince you or anything.  You either already like her or you don't.  It's very doubtful that anything I say here is going to change that, and quite frankly, I could care less if it did.  That's not the purpose of this blog.  I knew from day one that Randy hated every single ounce that is Sarah Silverman.  I didn't spend that whole entry trying to convince him to look beyond her crude outer shell to find the comedic genius at her core.  I simply announced that she was on my list and explained why.  I suppose that's all I need to do here as well.

And yet, it leaves me feeling unfulfilled.  As if somehow this small, dark corner of the internet that I call my own is now my permanent public opinion on these subjects for all time.  That by leaving an entry so devoid of the overwrought hyperbole that Tegan so clearly deserves, I have done myself the disservice of letting the world think that my love of her is limited to a simple 'enjoyment of her music' or 'great sense of humour' or 'level-headed approach to fame'.

Enjoyment? Great? Level-headed? That's not exactly giving John Keats* a run for his money, is it?  Sure, I could dig out the old thesaurus and add all the propensity's and adulation's that I could find to make me seem much more smart than I actually am, but they wouldn't be words from the heart.  And Tegan deserves better.

But, before I hang my head and fully admit defeat, let me just say this: I think Tegan is swell.

Swell?  Really?  Forget it, I'm done.

Proof of Awesomeness:

*Sadly, I only know of John Keats because a character quoted him in White Men Can't Jump.  I fully admit and embrace how pathetic that is.  But at least I know who he is, right?  I didn't have to google him.  That has to count for something.

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Lady Crush #2: Sara Quin

Best Known For: Tegan and Sara

This decision was harder than you might think.

Sure, on paper, I'm much more of a Tegan man.  Her songs tend to be the ones that I gravitate towards, and her outgoing and more boisterous personality often has me agreeing with NOFX's claim that she is in fact the cooler one.  None of this will come as much of a surprise to those that know me.  And, as such, one would think that this ranking should be a no-brainer:  Tegan then Sara.  Easy-peasy.

Only it's not.

I mean, obviously based on whose entry you're currently reading, that is still the way it shook out in the end.  But, I assure you, making a decision between the two was way more of a struggle than I was expecting, and again it had me questioning what my definition of a Lady Crush actually is.  You see, if I'm basing this list on who I would actually get along with better in real life, despite my obvious love of Tegan, I think the answer would actually be Sara.

Let's put it this way, Tegan is like a Ferrari 458.  Unparalleled performance, a lot of fun, and you have no problem declaring it as your favourite.  Sara, however, is more like a BMW M5.  Also performs very well, is still a metric ton of fun, and can't be faulted if you declare it to be your favourite either.

That said, it's still no Ferrari.

But a Ferrari isn't a BMW either.  Particularly once you factor in that the BMW has a trunk, 4 doors, comfortable seats and every driver amenity that you can think of, whereas the Ferrari has ditched them all in order to save as much weight as possible and achieve that incredible speed that you enjoyed so much.  So, which is better?  The Ferrari is more fun than you'll ever have again, but if you had to drive one every day you'd absolutely take the BMW.  The Ferrari would still be your favourite, but the BMW would be considered the better car.

Of course, neither Sara or Tegan has a drivers license, and would probably be as thrilled by that unintentionally-innuendo-laden comparison as Sneep will be about having to read about T&S for the next 2 weeks.  But the point remains: on a list such as this, should preference be given to the best, or to the favourite?

The short answer is simple. At the end of the day, this list is, and always has been, all about favourites.  And, while it may be an undefinable trait - awesomeness - Tegan has just that.  She simply leaves me with a bigger grin on my face.  Even though in theory, Sara might be a bit better - she's still very funny, maybe even a little bit smarter, and from a pure technical and songwriting standpoint, probably a better musician - she's just not my favourite.

As with most things, my reluctance to admit this is all because of pride.  Everyone wishes that the best was also their favourite.  That way, when someone asks you what your favourite movie of all time is, you can look them right in the eye, puff out your chest, and proudly say 'Citizen Kane'.  And the other person will smile and nod, and commend you on your fine taste in cinema.  You can't exactly do the same thing if your favourite movie is Dumb & Dumber.  And yet, there's something charming about the guy that wouldn't hesitate, pride be damned, and say 'My favourite tv show? Cougar Town, all the way.'  Even if you don't agree with him, I guarantee you'd rather hang out at a party with that guy than the one that says 'Umm, I don't own a tv, that sort of thing is way beneath me.' 

But, we're not exactly comparing Cougar Town to The Sopranos when we talk about Tegan and Sara either.  It's more like The Office (the American version) and 30 Rock.  Neither is probably in the running for greatest of all time (tv show or musician), but I'm not ashamed to admit a fondness for either of them.  And, although 30 Rock (Sara) is probably the better show, I still like The Office (Tegan) just that little bit more.

Of course, in a post intended to honour them, I think I just compared Sara to an ugly german sports sedan, and suggested that Tegan is the musical equivalent of Dumb & Dumber.  Not exactly the flattering tribute that I had hoped for.  In fact, they would have every right to be down right insulted by this post, except that I think only 4 people read this blog, and somehow I doubt that 'Eric Hoff' is a actually Sara's secret online pseudonym.

Proof of Awesomeness:

I feel kind of bad, because this entry ended up being more about why I like Tegan and less about why I like Sara.  I assure you, my love of Sara is still very strong.  I mean, number 2 is nothing to sneeze at, right? I also wonder what I'm going to write about next week...

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