The NBA's All-Star Saturday night concluded with another iteration of the NBA Slam Dunk Contest. After a slow start to the contest, two-way Orlando Magic guard Mac McClung woke NBA fans up by outdoing Blake Griffin's dunk over Kia from the 2011 contest.
Following his impressive beginning of what ended as a three-peat Slam Dunk championship for McClung was a tweet from Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant. He followed his original tweet with a nod toward the players who electrified the 2016 NBA Slam Dunk Contest in Zach LaVine and Aaron Gordon.
zach & AG wassup 👀
— Ja Morant (@JaMorant) February 16, 2025
It appeared all hope was lost when the current Denver Nuggets forward was robbed of winning the 2020 NBA Slam Dunk Contest when he was with the Orlando Magic. After Gordon had six straight perfect 50s, he was only awarded a 47 after dunking with two hands over the tallest player in the league at the time, 7-foot-6 Boston Celtics center Tacko Fall.
He eventually lost that contest to then-Miami Heat forward Derrick Jones Jr. (now with the Los Angeles Clippers) who scored a 48 on his final attempt. The contest that many called a robbery was followed by a tweet from a then-rookie Ja Morant who all but said that he wouldn't enter the contest due to that.
y’all just made my decision easier 🤝💯 https://t.co/RNV80N0cIY
— Ja Morant (@JaMorant) February 16, 2020
The 2016 NBA Slam Dunk Contest that featured Aaron Gordon and Zach LaVine dueling it out was considered possibly the greatest dunk contest in the history of the NBA. That contest ended with LaVine winning his second consecutive and had many believing that Gordon was robbed in that contest as well.
LaVine's collective dunk package was just as incredible that night so he wasn't nearly as vilified as Derrick Jones Jr. was in his 2020 dunk contest victory over Aaron Gordon. While many fans have envisioned the likes of Anthony Edwards and Zion Williamson as opponents in the contest for Ja Morant, it makes sense why he mentioned LaVine and Gordon in his tweet.
Those two along with Mac McClung have been the best dunkers in the contest in the last decade so seeing Ja matchup against the best the NBA Slam Dunk Contest has to offer makes for an intriguing event. Ja Morant made headlines earlier this season after mentioning he wasn't trying to dunk at all after returning from a hip injury that occurred on a dunk attempt.
However, even he knows how important an appearance in the dunk contest would be for his brand and the league's popularity. An NBA Slam Dunk Contest consisting of Ja Morant, Mac McClung, Zach LaVine, and Aaron Gordon would be a must-watch TV.