When it comes to All-Star Weekend, the event that people always flock to is the dunk contest. So, when the NBA D-League’s version was added to the festivities in 2008, the stage was set for the league’s most explosive dunkers. They were given their own competition for the fans to bear witness to the best high-flyers that the minor league has to offer.
This year’s proceedings were again worth the price of admission — and then some.
DJ Stephens started things off with a standing vertical like we have never seen before:
https://www.instagram.com/p/BBvSySrw3Lt/?taken-by=nbadleague
He followed that up with some pogo stick-like bounce:
Not to be outdone, J.P. Tokoto took to the skies with his own aerial assault on the rim. Captain J.P. had Air Tokoto fueled and ready for lift-off:
Standing at just 5-11, it was Keifer Sykes’ turn to show that good things really do come in small packages:
But the day belonged to little-known guard John Jordan. At 5-foot-10, he shouldn’t even be able to sniff the rim, but Jordan gave false hope to average-sized men everywhere with a array of dunks that assured his name would be on the championship trophy:
5'10 John Jordan Dominates #DLeagueDunk Contest!
Watch ALL the slams by @thacrowdstopper: https://t.co/hWNhGL67Co pic.twitter.com/0Sl3Ru8ylJ
— NBA D-League (@nbadleague) February 13, 2016
When the dust finally settled there was no doubt that Jordan was the deserving champ. His mixture of flair, stature and execution were exactly what the fans came to see:
https://www.instagram.com/p/BBvWlQAQ3Eq/?taken-by=nbadleague
Relive all of the action mixtape-style: