To win a dunk contest staged amid a pandemic, Anfernee Simons saved a socially distanced kiss of the rim for last.
The 6-foot-3 guard put his eyes above the hoop and smooched his lips together while flushing the ball with his right hand on his third and final leap of Sunday’s competition to become the first Portland Trail Blazer to win the league’s dunk contest.
His mouth never met the rim as initially intended, pulling his head away inches from his target. Simons considered wearing a mouthpiece until a model custom designed for him in recent days didn’t fit his mouth.