It’s best to go ahead and admit this up front: Saturday’s Slam Dunk Contest will have its hands full matching the excitement generated by last year’s event in Toronto.
While the 2016 Slam Dunk Contest can’t match Michael Jordan vs. Dominique Wilkins in 1988 when it comes to star power and it falls slightly short of Vince Carter’s 2000 performance in terms of influential breakthroughs, Zach LaVine and Aaron Gordon combined to deliver an all-time classic. The two 2014 lottery picks needed two tie-breaking overtime rounds to determine a winner, with LaVine finally besting Gordon 299-291 out of a possible 300 total points.