Opinion | Please fix the Dunk Contest
Joe Perrino
Sports Writer
Aaron Gordon of the National Basketball Association (NBA)’s Orlando Magic has objectively out-dunked his competitors in the past two dunk contests and been robbed twice of the trophy. Back-to-back.
It got so bad that in a post-contest press conference, Gordon told the media he would never participate in the popular All-Star Weekend festivity again.
On Feb. 15, in the final round of this year’s Dunk Contest, Gordon and the Miami Heat’s Derrick Jones Jr. competed in an epic dunk-off. Yet, after Gordon’s final dunk in which he literally jumped over the 7’6” Tacko Fall, everyone seemed to conclude that he had won. Until the judges showed their cards, awarding him one point less than Jones Jr.
There was some speculation amongst the judges panel. One of them, rapper Common, said after the event the panel had agreed to end it in a tie.
Another judge, former NBA All-Star Dwyane Wade, had different ideas.
He decided to give Gordon’s final dunk a nine rather than a 10, which would have tied the two scores. Wade took out his microphone and turned away from the camera while the rest of the panel looked at him with a mix of laughter and disgust. Onlookers Giannis Antetokounmpo and Donovan Mitchell’s faces said it all. Even the winner, Jones Jr., looked surprised.
And as previously mentioned, this isn’t the first time Gordon’s been robbed. His first loss came at the hands of Zach LaVine, a high-flying shooting guard for the Chicago Bulls, in the Slam Dunk Competition in 2016.
At the end of the day, this is just the Dunk Contest. Something that carries such a small weight in the outcome of the season shouldn’t get me this upset. But it does. In the midst of midseason basketball, with the Clippers benching Paul George and Kawhi Leonard and other star players like Damian Lillard, Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant out with injuries, NBA fans need something to get their spirits up to stay entertained. That, for most people, is All-Star Weekend. So when something isn’t judged fairly or taken seriously by the people running it, fans like myself suffer.
Wade literally played for the Miami Heat after last season. Derrick Jones Jr. played for the Miami Heat last season.
The NBA should recognize the potential bias that could come from placing a former teammate of a contestant in a panel of judges.
So basketball, please fix the dunk competition.