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![]() Obi Toppin in the 2022 dunk contest | |
Sport | Basketball |
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Competition | National Basketball Association |
Discipline | Dunking |
Sponsored by | AT&T |
History | |
First award | Julius Erving, 1976 |
Most wins | Nate Robinson: 3 times |
Most recent | Mac McClung, 2024 |
Website | NBA AT&T Slam Dunk |
The NBA Slam Dunk Contest (officially known as the AT&T Slam Dunk) is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) competition held during the NBA All-Star Weekend.[1] Sports Illustrated wrote "the dunk contest was the best halftime invention since the bathroom."[2][3]
The contest was conceived of and started by the American Basketball Association (ABA) for its 1976 ABA All-Star Game in Denver.[2] The winner was Julius Erving of the New York Nets.[2] As a result of the ABA–NBA merger later that year, the contest moved to the NBA for the 1976–77 season.[4]
There was not another slam dunk contest at the professional level until 1984.[5] The contest has adopted several formats over the years, including, until 2014, the use of fan voting, via text-messaging, to determine the winner of the final round. The current champion of the Slam Dunk Contest is Mac McClung of the Osceola Magic.[6]
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