Trans. Feb 16 10:49 ET (Feb 16 10:49 ET ) Toronto Raptors rookie Terrence Ross has been crowned the champion of the 2013 Sprite Slam Dunk , besting reigning champion Jeremy Evans and several other contestants who received heavy promotion and stoked fan interest.
Yet, while Ross took home the trophy, the dunk contest has always been more about singular moments of greatness than the night's body of work. The real test of a dunk contest performance is what people will remember five years from now. And while this particular contest was disappointing enough that it might not produce any such moments, the fact remains that the winner does not always make the greatest impression.
Ranking individual dunks is an inherently subjective task, and I don't mean these rankings to be definitive. My hope is that they help to explain what might have been disappointing or lacking in this contest, and also what made it intermittently exciting.
So, after the jump, check out a countdown of the top seven jams, with videos and photos, as well as some miscellaneous thoughts on the contest as a whole.
HOUSTON (Reuters) - Toronto Raptors guard Terrence Ross won the NBA's Slam Dunk Contest on Saturday with a one-handed, though-the-legs rim-rattler after leaping over a ballboy. The windmill slam earned the wild applause of the sold-out crowd at the Toyota Center and lifted the 22-year-old rookie to the title over Jeremy Evans of the Utah Jazz. "I feel blessed, but it's still overwhelming," he told reporters. "I'm just trying to soak it all in." Ross garnered 58 percent of the votes from the public in the two-dunk championship round to claim the title. ...
HOUSTON, Feb 16 (Reuters) - Toronto Raptors guard Terrence Ross won the NBA's Slam Dunk Contest on Saturday with a one-handed, though-the-legs rim-rattler after leaping over a ballboy. The windmill slam earned the wild applause of the sold-out crowd at the Toyota Center and lifted the 22-year-old rookie to the title over Jeremy Evans of the Utah Jazz. "I feel blessed, but it's still overwhelming," he told reporters. "I'm just trying to soak it all in." Ross garnered 58 percent of the votes from the public in the two-dunk championship round to claim the title. ...
HOUSTON — Earlier this week, Terrence Ross told Ball Don't Lie that he thought he had a chance to surprise some people on All-Star Saturday Night, because he didn't think many people knew what he was capable of . Well, they sure do now, after the Toronto Raptors rookie won the 2013 Sprite Slam Dunk Contest in a stunning display at the Toyota Center on Saturday.
"This feels unbelievable," Ross said as he held the competition trophy over his head after defeating 2012 contest champion Jeremy Evans of the Utah Jazz in the championship round.
Ross received 58 percent of the fan vote for the final round, compared to 42 percent for Evans.
Ross outlasted the heavily favored duo of 2007 champion/2008 runner-up Gerald Green of the Indiana Pacers and legendary dunker James White of the New York Knicks to earn the Eastern Conference's slot in the final round. Evans, who said Friday he felt he wasn't getting the respect he deserved as the defending champion in this event, outshined Los Angeles Clippers guard Eric Bledsoe and Denver Nuggets power forward Kenneth Faried to represent the West in the finals before finishing as the runner-up.
Defending champion Jeremy Evans of the Utah Jazz will again compete in the Slam Dunk competition during the All-Star Saturday Night festivities, the NBA announced Thursday.
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