Raptors rookie Terrence Ross topped Jazz forward Jeremy Evans in the final round of Saturday’s NBA All-Star Slam Dunk Contest when he pulled a between-the-legs dunk while leapfrogging a child. Ross and Evans qualified for the finals over James White, Gerald Green, Kenneth Faried and Eric Bledsoe.
White, Green and Faried didn’t get a chance to throw down the best dunk in their arsenal, but all three shared what they had in store for the final round with Brett Pollakoff of Pro Basketball Talk.
White, who plays limited minutes with the Knicks, is a YouTube sensation, most notably for his performance in a dunk contest in Turkey in 2008. If he reached the finals Saturday night, he intended on using the same dunk he used five years ago overseas — between the legs from the foul line. He also considered jumping from the top of the key.
Faried, who was the MVP of the Rising Stars Challenge, wanted to jump over the six judges instead of a child. He would have thrown down the dunk and opened a Sprite — the event’s sponsor — adding to the always-present showmanship of the evening.
Green, the 2007 dunk champion, was filmed earlier this season at Pacers’ practice putting his head over the rim. He had an elaborate plan that involved teammates Paul George and Lance Stephenson.
“It was going to be to where, Lance was going to throw Paul an alley-oop off the glass, Paul was going to catch it, jump pretty high and throw it, and then I come out of nowhere and put it between my legs [before dunking],” Green told Pollakoff.
These proposed dunks were much-needed Saturday night, as the overall competition was largely viewed as a disappointment.
Photo via Facebook/Terrence Ross
