Mac McClung posted videos of the four dunks he would have done if he was in this year’s Dunk Contest
The one where he touched his feet with the ball was NASTY
That’s my favorite one on the bunch. So insanely impressive.
And if people are honest, he is the one everyone wanted to see because he always delivers . He seems like an all around nice guy too.
For whatever reason he’s not going to get a real shot in the NBA. Should have went to Europe I’m sure he could have made good money there.
i think defense unfortunately, dude is pretty undersized for a pg bc his height & more importantly wingspan are both 6’2. that being said he’s obviously insanely talented & i hope he goes to europe & balls tf out / gets a bag. i remember watching his high school highlights as they were coming out & being amazed.
I know this is a SUPER unpopular opinion, but I actually think he belongs in the NBA, and could be a real contributor at the back end of a roster.
I’ve been following Mac since he spent training camp with the Warriors a couple years back. Watched his play in the G league and in limited NBA action. And I’ve actually been really impressed with what I’ve seen.
He’s a legitimately great 3 level scorer (can drive into the paint and finish at the rim / draw fouls, shoot well from the 3 and midrange, etc.), is a good passer/playmaker and can run an offense well, and is a good ball handler and shot creator. On defense, his size is a big issue, but he puts in a lot of effort – which means he’s not a total sieve.
I don’t think he’s a surefire NBA player or anything like that (right on the bubble), but I think he could be a legit contributor at the back of a roster. Many teams are in need of a 3rd string ball handler / shot creator off the bench, and I feel he could fill that role well. I get why he’s not gotten more chances, bc his archetype (small guard) is a dying breed – but I believe he’s deserved more chances than he’s gotten.
i mostly agree with you, like i mentioned he’s definitely a very talented scorer & he’s a decent playmaker, with defense being a big issue. but the primary issue to me (and i’m vaguely assuming to nba gms as well), is that you’d rather take a flyer on a more athletic / bigger / younger prospect even if they’re more raw, just due to the higher potential of what they might be versus mac who has likely reached his ceiling as to what he can contribute at an nba level. i’m not saying it’s fair, & ive loved watching him play since his high school days, but im guessing that’s what the people in charge are thinking (i could totally be wrong lol).
I don’t know positions in basketball a whole lot. My team is the t wolves and we’re using M Conley as our PG.
Wouldn’t this guy be at least as good as that?
People are complimenting him above, but the answer is no, no he wouldn’t.
He’s shot 49/27/70 while at the NBA level. His assist rate is garbage, and his defensive numbers look even worse.
I would say most telling is that he’s never had a 10-day contract renewed, and he’s only even appeared in a few of the games he’s been eligible for via those contracts.
At this point a bunch of NBA teams have seen him in practice and in games and says “nah”.
He should probably go to Europe.
His player type works against him. 100th best 3 and D type player is in the league. A team could have a few of them on the roster. For a lead ball handler got to be better ranked than that. At one level lower he might be a better player in that league, than a 3 and D player he cannot beat out for a roster spot in the NBA.
He’s not gonna get a real shot in the NBA because his only NBA level skill is dunking. He’s not a good defender, or a good shooter, or a good distributor, and he can’t create his own shot.
He’s spent tons of time in the G League and 5 teams have given him a shot in the NBA. The truth is that he’s just plain not good enough. The problem is that his game only works with him controlling the ball, but he’s not a good enough scorer or passer so he would at best be a guy that averages 10ppg in 15mpg off the bench except he’d be the only one scoring during that time and he’d be giving up a lot more on defense because he’s terrible on that side of the ball. The only reasons to bother having him on a roster is if you’re actively trying to tank or you’re hoping that his dunking might sell tickets. There’s just not a spot in the league for guys like him anymore. If he came around 15 years earlier then he could have gotten a spot, but guys who do the same thing as him but much better are already starting to find themselves getting cut.
not going to get a real shot in the NBA
The Pacers went though about eight guards this year before Thanksgiving; there were hardship contracts and everything.
Shit was hard for everybody… but McClung came and went without even a ripple.
That was the shot
Compare it to Harold Miner’s win way back
https://youtu.be/R6pey7TYjQE?si=lPNYw43LRsMPJGo4
Miner? I hardly know her.
never seen anything at all like that.
everyone reading this stand up and try to touch your toes
mid dunk is nuts
My only worry is that at full speed I don’t know if I would trust the judges to see how impressive it was.
I think there was an Aaron Gordon dunk where he cocked it mid-air behind his head , brought it back down between his legs, and then finished the dunk, all with two hands and he didn’t get a 50. One of the most athletic dunks I’ve ever seen. Just running and jumping and trying to mimic it without a basketball is pretty difficult; never mind the dunking part.
They would see the replay.
One of the great things about the Vince Carter elbow dunk is the delayed/shocked reaction about what we just saw and then watching the replay to confirm what actually happened.
Those WTF faces are hilarious!
That AG dunk was a fail because the judges couldn’t see it. If he had done it sideways to give them a better angle, he would have gotten a 50. This one is so obvious that Mac would instantly get a 50.
Tapping your shoe with the ball is pretty clear even at full speed. McClung’s had some subtle dunks (like the gentle toss-up and recatch before dunking), but the shoe dunk is very clear.
That’s the one he lost the 2016 dunk contest on which was ridiculous
even crazier that beanie stayed on. incredible
Thanks, now my back is gonna be fucked for the next 3 days
obviously I couldn’t do that dunk even in my dreams but do people really have a difficult time touching their toes while standing?
was thinking that, that is athletic af
Adreian Payne did a 360 pump where touched his feet in the college dunk contest in like 2014. Legs weren’t straight out like Mac here, but still really nasty
Scrolled looking for this. Payne was also 6’10” which made it even crazier to me
He touched both feet
Yeah, that was definitely my favorite one (#2), but I liked #3 as well.
I wish they’d just get rid of using other people/props.
Blake jumping over that car was the death of the dunk contest for me. At least the car didn’t have a sports gambling sponsor tagged on it like it would today …
Mostly downhill since then, but Lavine/Gordon showed us what a real dunk contest can still be like.
This is why the “we’ve already seen all the dunks” argument for why the contests sucks is a weak argument
Yea this is the 4th year of mac giving new stuff. The nba guys that do it like this year are so lame
His social media relevance and I assume a decent chunk of income comes from being “the dunk guy” this post itself with all these dunks was part of a footwear company ad. So I’d guess he’s training and coming up with ideas for these year round vs NBA players who don’t have the same incentive to do all that lol
I mean it’s a reasonable argument if we’re not seeing these dunks in the actual contest though
The NBA needs to start going outside of the league to bring their fans good basketball showcases if they want to keep doing the all star game/skills competitions. Most of the stars in the NBA are money hungry weirdos who don’t have anything interesting to say and won’t risk “looking bad” to mess up their image and marketability. I wanna see people who care play.
your solution is just getting players who aren’t good enough to play in the league, to be the all star weekend participants?
I mean, the professional players have made it very clear that they don’t really give a shit about the weekend.
why not. players who participate in the dunk contest are usually end of bench guys anyways
We’ve seen all the dunks for most realistic NBA elite dunkers. There is some creative shit from guys who specialize in dunk contests, and can train specifically for that. McClung is in that category
Nobody has dunked it from the three point line. It might take thousands and thousands of years. But the first time somebody does it, it’ll probably be pretty epic.
Michael Jordan dunking from half court (1996, colorized)
He was over the line, monstars head was on the floor, and Jordan used it to launch. At best, it’s a logo dunk.
Wasn’t even a dunk. He threw it in.
Yeh but they also only scored it a 2 which is some bullshit. clearly a 3
Another fair point
You know what’s wild? I legitimately remember hearing the “we’ve already seen all the dunks” even back in ‘97, which is partly what led to the contest being cancelled for a couple years.
In fact, even when it returned in 2000, I remember being very excited to see Vince Carter, but I also imagined he would just do cool versions of dunks we’d already seen before. That’s partly why we all freaked out that night. It was like he was evolving the dunk right there on the spot.
Tbh there’s a reason these dunks are recorded. Some of these dunks probably took several minutes if not longer to do. McClung had 3 years to do some of these dunks at the dunk contest.
Have you not seen the dunks he did in the last 3 contest in which he won every one of them?
and nailed on the first try
what
dude did insane dunks all three of those years in the first attempt and won every year. why is anyone upvoting you
It’s always the most nonsensical comments on here that get so many upvotes lol
I just said this earlier, but he just changed my mind.
We got nothing even close to this level of creativity.
The worst of these 4 dunks is better than the best dunk we saw tonight.
The worst of these 4 still gets a 50 in the goat 2016 one
Tbf they were just handing out 50s and that’s why it went to OT and Gordon lost. LaVine was impressive but not as much as AG in terms of creativity and execution to start out. Then AG goes down to LaVines level for one dunk in OT and all of a sudden they weren’t handing out 50s.
Gordon was clearly better but the judges were having fun and didn’t want to pick a winner and he ran out of ideas first. I think the judges colluding is part of the reason why players don’t want to do it any more, it’s less about proving you’re the best and more about entertaining the judges
Not if DWade is a judge
NBA players when they have to spend more than 5 mins creating their dunk for the contest
Just a lot of dancing after dunks that were only ok
the first one was more of a tip in than a dunk but 10⁄10 creativity
Won it without even being in it. That first one is insane.
He knew he had to stay off the dunk contest. Literally he would’ve won no sweat lol Adam Silver would probably have an aneurysm
He saved the dunk contest for three years, Adam Silver should be eternally grateful.
dude got the jokic treatment
He wins easily, which is why it’s for the best nba didn’t bring him back. Having a guy not even in the nba win 4 times in a row is low-key embarrassing. Not to mention there’s rumours he wasn’t included because other players didn’t want to compete with him
“Rumors” he literally said last here he’s retiring from it
Isn’t the first one just extending your arms backwards and tapping ball in?
I’d call it an actual insane dunk if he had the ball and did that backward arm extension and dunked it, but I don’t know if that’s even physically possible.
Exactly how I feel lol. It’s still impressive but having someone literally hold the ball on the rim for you to tap in is not a dunk I don’t care what contortion or gymnastics you do beforehand lol
Yeah! Everyone knows it is a dunk when you are 5’ away from the basket and then you just throw it in as hard as possible so it looks cool AF.
r/dwighthoward
Maybe he’s on here?
Yeah, it’s physically impressive feat, but not a dunk.
My thoughts exactly.
It’s barely a dunk and doesn’t even look cool. It’s just contorting your arm in a dorky way.
The second and fourth dunks are amazing though.
They’re all nice dunks, but I’d rather see stars like Wemby, Giannis, or Ant doing less impressive dunks. This year they got the worst of all worlds, which is G-league/end of bench guys doing less impressive dunks.
Nah, I’d rather the Dunk Contest showcase insane dunks, even if it’s from lesser known players
If I want to see an unimpressive dunk from a superstar, I can tune into the All Star game the next day
In an ideal world, you get impressive dunks from superstars
Wemby, Giannis, or Ant doing less impressive dunks
Sorry but what? Im quite sure majority of the people would not want to see less impressive dunks. It’s actually worse watching a “star” nba player just doing boring dunks. Unless we bring back 2016 Toronto All-Star games w/ Gordon and Lavine style dunkers, give us guys who will actually do some impressive dunks
why would u rather watch worse dunks
none of those people are creative dunkers. They’re just power dunks. There’s nothing from them you haven’t seen
That first one is a putback at best. Looks nice but I would disqualify that one in a contest if I could make the rules lol.
It’s not even a dunk.
But did he dance?
LMAO this was the most annoying part. When he started dancing, I felt like Dame felt with Booker: Praying for his downfall.
I think he may have overdid it a bit but I liked where his heart was at. Sometimes the audience can taste the vibes you’re bringing to the table in a contest like this and it can influence the performance.
What audience? That arena was emptier than my love life
This is why Dwight game him a 50
I became a certified hater at that moment cause of him
nah he was the best part of the dunk contest. the dude at least showed that he cared enough to attempt entertaining people. he also was the best dunker so well deserved relative to his competition
It was the pulling the shirt up over and over over and over and over and over and over and over again
It’s an Oakland thing
Let’s see them abs again
If I had abs like that I would be doing the same thing.
Every five seconds, whoops my shirt got caught with my fingers again. Oops sorry to flash you
If I had abs I wouldn’t own a shirt
Some inspired by Jordan Kilganon I’m assuming. I don’t understand why we don’t see creative dunks like this. They can’t be that difficult with some practice. Stop doing shit we’ve seen for 50 years if you want to make all-star weekend good again
The 1st is a Kilganon original
The scorpion dunk.
I know it’s semantics but what Mcclung did in the first dunk is called “Upside down dunk”. Here’s explanation by Kilganon himself.
calling that a dunk is extremely generous
Ball is sitting on the rim lol
From the post interview, apparently Johnson got the invite only 5 days ago and only 2 days to practice. NBA needs to invite these dudes earlier if the end result is this because 2 days of dunk practice on top of already doing practices for actual games is not enough time to come up with something and perfect it as well as people who aren’t in the league.
“Can’t be that difficult” respectfully, what the hell?? Kilganon and Rivera and those guys practice their dunks as a full time gig, and McClung is a freak too haha
Even in the context of nba players dunking it was a wild statement lol.
Feel like Jay Huff would have been a good add this year. He just does weird shit.
They can’t be that difficult with some practice
I assume it’s actually pretty hard. I also assume they get short notice for the contest and there’s probably some injury risk if you try something to hard and fuck up.
Tbf Kilganon only practices this. The NBA guys have a lot of other things they have to practice year round whether it’s team mandated or not. I don’t these guys would spend more than a week practicing a few dunks
Tbf dunk contest participants collaborates with dunk exhibitionist like Jordan Kilganpn.
He needs to be a slam dunk contest consultant or something. Give the guys some ideas
You’d think the nba guys would have access to basically every sort of creative idea and person for their dunks.
It’s almost as if guys making tens of millions of dollars don’t care…
This. These guys don’t care about being one of the slam dunk contest legends. Win there is just a bonus for them, but is not a goal.
All they need to do is watch some YouTube videos. The level of creativity that dunkers like Kilganon utilizes is insane.
Why the fuck is the Dunk contest limited to just NBA players, when we know they want to play it safe to avoid injuries.
Getting amateurs and street ballers only gets more eyes on the game. It’s such a self inflicted wound.
There already is one – Chuck Millan from Team Flight Brothers. He’s coached Mac and like 8 of the last 9 winners.
Pair each NBA player with a professional dunker and have them compete as a team.
I don’t want my players practicing dunks, I want them practicing corner 3s.
At this point I wouldn’t be mad if the dunk contest was just mascots with trampolines.
RIP Thunder.
Went to a game where they had random fans try the trampoline dunks, now that was entertainment
With Jaxson Hayes running around and trying to push them.
and mfers be excusing the lame ass dunk contest saying theres no more dunks for guys to come up with
The last one is disgusting af so creative 🔥🔥
That was my favorite.
His head is at the rim before he even touches the ball.
50s all around
That’s the problem with giving every great dunk a 50. That’s why Aaron Gordon got robbed (and D-Wade). It leaves no room to differentiate between a great dunk and an amazing one.
God damn that dude can dunk. Glad he posted these
While it looks cool i am not really sure the first one should count as dunk
I’d honestly call it a dunk tbh. It’s like getting an assisted lob dunk in a real match, which is still a dunk at the end of the day. It’s still really cool, and although it might not seem like a real dunk, maybe it’s just because people haven’t really thought of ever doing it in the competition. I’m curious to see if he could ever do it with someone lobbing it up for him but I imagine that’d be hella difficult
this dude was born to dunk.
It is all about the creativity
All 50s, but somehow one of those old head judges would give him a 9 or even an 8.
Dwayne Wade has entered the chat.
I don’t know about #1. It’s athletic as fuck, but is it a dunk when you tap a ball forward while it’s resting on the rim?
Insane to tap the ball the way he did, I’m just not sure it is a dunk.
No way any of these would’ve beaten Jaxson Hayes’ one handed dunk where he put the ball in one hand and then dunked it.
Shit was so sick.
I think we’re at a point where the dunks needed to provide the wow factor the NBA is looking for this event requires so much practice that the regular NBA player isn’t incentivized to practice them, if they even have the time to bother trying.
If they wanna keep this event they just gotta sell out and advertise super dunkers or something, I can’t see a star player doing anything close to this and it’s not for a lack of skill
50 50 50 50
Just give it to him. That first thing, I don’t even know it’s possible and I saw all the angles. What the fuck
This dude would win every time for the next ten years if we kept inviting him
These are individually better than any dunk we see in the contest
Then why did he turn it down this year? Clearly he was practicing
Considering he prepared, I’m assuming the NBA didn’t invite him
https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/47910957/slam-dunk-champ-g-league-nba
He turned it down.
He took himself out of consideration. Wanted to be more than a party trick.
Which, idk. That’s what he is. He’s not a NBA caliber player so he should make hay while the sun is shining..
At this point they should really just open it up worldwide and get the best amateurs who specialize in dunking. Would be way more fun and weird than just NBA reserves throwing up 40s
Ya I’m not really sure what can be done. That would be neat but without NBA players…kinda misses the point IMO.
Baseball is one thing with the way that sport is played, but I don’t really fault any of the players not really trying to bust their shit mid season for a meaningless exhibition match.
he literally played in the NBA. that means he is nba caliber.
At this point it’s not a party trick it’s heading toward the consensus greatest dunker of all time.
What’s the point tho? He’s gonna win every contest he enters. No other nba player would compete with him because they’d get embarrassed
Respect the athleticism, but does that first one even count as a dunk?
He should’ve kept dunking. It’s making him NBA relevant
I don’t get why he posted this when he’s making it a big deal he doesn’t want to be know as just a dunker.
Damn.
Another reminder of how complete trash tonight’s “contest” was.
Just pay him a million dollars to show up to this event every year. Just to make it watchable.
I mean if we put McClung in the contest , dude is going to win his 4th straight slam dunk title
You know what fuck it. Bring him back. This shit this year was disgusting
Very creative but best to focus on your dream
Insert Kenny’s Let’s Go Home moment
I would rather have 30min of Mac just busting out cool dunks than the dunk contest tbh.
Pshh whatever, atleast we put the focus on real talent like Druski
Yeah too bad the contestants only have 2 mins and 4 attempts.
MM would have pulled all of these off under the same conditions.
He should have been in it.
It’s stupid and embarrassing that players didnt want to be in the contest if he was in it.
he would have won again if he participated lol
Here’s an idea: They should have the stars participate in the dunk contest, but get guys like Mac to be the Dunk Coach/Coordinator and design their routine. That way you get the star power but we also get some creativity.
Can’t they pay him to be a consultant? I’m sure some of these dunks can be pulled off by super athletic NBA players with a little practice.
I get the degree of difficulty on that first one, but it doesn’t display the power and snap of a really satisfying dunk.
I wanna see a guy yam it, not tap it in like that one.
This guy is top 5 best dunker in NBA history.
Should still send him the trophy
Its kinda lame to show up your league like this with recorded video.
You retired. I don’t need to see what you would have done in a format that isnt with a timer and three attempts.
I dunno, the first dunk is kinda lame, like it’s a tip in and not a dunk.
If I Did It by Mac McClung
Just crown him the dunk champ again.
Can we pay him to create dunks for the contestants.
2nd to last was nice
Insane
Bring in Jordan Kilgannon
Is the one where he just taps the ball in from behind really a dunk?
For some reason I don’t like the first one but the second one was amazing
No wonder players would drop out if he return.
His worst dunk in this video will easily win the dunk contest this year.
We should make this the highest voted post ever
He could’ve easily won this year too with those dunks.
This guy can dunk, no doubt about it.
And he would’ve won again
These are insanely creative
The GOAT
Credit to Mac for being so creative. Forever the dunk champion.
So this is why they didnt want him there
he’s genuinely ridiculous
Too many props.
1st one was crazy, i used to do the touch the toes reverse on my 7 foot hoop 30 years ago
Send him the trophy. 🏆
Why are most of these better than what was offered by 2 or 3 of the players tonight
They need to replace NBA players with professional dunkers. All-Star weekend should be about celebrating basketball in general, and not just nba players.
This is a good idea
He would have won easily. My only gripe is he doesn’t dunk with power. Hammer that thing and hang on the rim a little.
You don’t need any of this Mac. Just run to the other end of the arena and pretend like you’re going to dunk from the freethrow line but actually just take off from the restricted area, and make sure to hit a digit Dougie or maybe a soldier boy after and you’ll be solid.
I wish he put this effort into playing defense and shooting a 3.
This dude is crazy good
Middle finger to the NBA because he can’t even get a guaranteed contract as a 10th or 11th man nowadays.
Mac isn’t that bad of a player for him to still be chasing g league dreams.
Why post this if you declined to compete??
He would of won
As good as he is, it’s so silly we focus on him. Just use like TikTok dunkers or street dunkers too if we want to focus on non-NBA players. IMO just follow Jason Concepcion’s fixes for the dunk contest.