Mac McClung dunk

These dunks were spectacular at full speed, but watch them in slo-mo to really appreciate them.

This was crazy to pull off as your first dunk, on your first try, with all the hoopla surrounding McClung in this contest. To go from that spot to above his head, tapping it off the backboard and throwing down a flush reverse in one smooth motion was well deserving of the 50 he scored. And this wasn't a cheap windmill. This is one of those dunks you have to slow down and really contemplate the subtleties to really appreciate just how difficult it was to pull off. Kenny Smith called it a "hesi" dunk, but it was more than that. Kenny Smith wasn't sure if McClung tapped the glass before flushing his first dunk. The are jumpers and there are fliers. McClung was perfect, joining Spud Webb as the only players in history 6-foot-2 or shorter to card three 50s in a single contest. The people got up, and he didn't let them down. An absolutely nasty dunk, and perhaps just as important, again, it was on the first try. Some people were calling it a 720, which would be two full revolutions, but you can watch again and see that he finishes halfway through the second turn, as a reverse, then continues all the way around on his descent. [Mac McClung](/nba/players/3042526/mac-mcclung/), the only G League player in history to even enter the NBA Dunk Contest, let alone win it, put on a show for the ages on Saturday night in Salt Lake City, nailing all four of his attempts on the first try.

Mac McClung might have single-handedly restored the shine on a dunk contest that has been widely panned in recent years.

So being a part of it was great.” “It was really fun getting out there in front of the fans. “I had a lot of fun just doing that even though we took the L,” said Banchero, who was part of the winning squad in Friday’s Rising Stars games. I’m happy that I did it in my home, coming back here to Utah.” He was signed by Golden State last year but never played in a regular-season game for the Warriors, and spent a little time on USA Basketball’s World Cup qualifying team last year as well. “And I’m happy that it happened here. And when he got the trophy, he had a Blazers warmup shirt on for that moment. Philadelphia would become his third NBA team, and he hasn’t even played for the 76ers yet. No judge agreed, and his two-dunk score of 95.4 wasn’t good enough to make the final round. Weber State is his college; he performs music under the name Dame D.O.L.L.A. “Proving others right instead of others wrong brings a little more satisfaction.” By the time the judges’ scores came up it was already decided.

Mac McClung has saved the NBA Slam Dunk Contest. While the Sixers guard still couldn't believe it, the numbers are out to prove his feat.

It is said to be the most views ever for an All-Star Saturday night, which officially signifies that the interest in the competition is back. Out of the four dunks he made in the competition–all completing them in the first try–only one didn’t get a perfect score. While the [Philadelphia 76ers](/nba/philadelphia-76ers) guard and G Leaguer still couldn’t believe it, the numbers are now out to prove his heroic feat.

Mac McClung, who is on a two-way deal with the 76ers, was a viral sensation for his dunking ability before his triumph on Saturday. Read more on Boston.com.

My goal is to make an impact in the NBA, and I’m just going to keep working until that happens.” He had the final basket of the 2021-22 NBA season, breaking free for an uncontested reverse dunk to cap the Los Angeles Lakers’ overtime win over the Denver Nuggets last April. “One thing with this game is you have to learn how to adapt,” McClung told The Associated Press last year. Literally, if you manifest and put your mind to it, you can literally make your life and reinvent yourself every day.” Long before he won the dunk contest at NBA All-Star Saturday, he was a YouTube phenomenon. But an event that is designed to create unforgettable moments — Michael Jordan taking off from the foul line, Vince Carter saying “it’s over” after a dunk, Aaron Gordon jumping over the Orlando Magic mascot, Dwight Howard donning the Superman cape — got a massive shot in the arm from a guy who now has more dunks in the contest (four) than he does in actual NBA games (one).“It’s a cliche, but you can really do whatever you want to do,” said McClung, who is on a two-way contract with the Philadelphia 76ers and playing in the G League.

Steph Curry and NBA Twitter had a field day after Mac McClung's showing at the 2023 NBA Dunk Contest.

McClung — the 6-foot-2 Philadelphia guard — defeated New Orleans' Trey Murphy III in the finals of the dunk contest.

So being a part of it was great.” “It was really fun getting out there in front of the fans. “I had a lot of fun just doing that even though we took the L,” said Banchero, who was part of the winning squad in Friday’s Rising Stars games. He was signed by Golden State last year but never played in a regular-season game for the Warriors, and spent a little time on USA Basketball’s World Cup qualifying team last year as well. And when he got the trophy, he had a Blazers warmup shirt on for that moment. I’m happy that I did it in my home, coming back here to Utah.” “And I’m happy that it happened here. Philadelphia would become his third NBA team, and he hasn’t even played for the 76ers yet. No judge agreed, and his two-dunk score of 95.4 wasn’t good enough to make the final round. Weber State is his college; he performs music under the name Dame D.O.L.L.A. “Proving others right instead of others wrong brings a little more satisfaction.” By the time the judges’ scores came up it was already decided.