NBA Slam Dunk Contest Champions: Mac McClung’s Name Goes Down With Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant

Mac McClung. Dominique Wilkins. Vincent Carter. Kobe Bryant. Michael Jordan. For NBA history as a whole, these five names will be linked in a very specific way: All five were winners of the NBA Slam Dunk Contest along with several other players, from legends to journeymen. And almost any All-Star Saturday Night fan would say that the event has lost some of its luster since the era when legendary Hall of Famers competed against each other.

Enter McClung. The G-League player with a long history of viral internet dunks stole the show with one of the better dunk contest performances in recent history. Luminaries like Shaquille O’Neal and Magic Johnson are already saying McClung saved the event, and perhaps his example could help attract interest from high-profile players.

Aside from McClung, of course, we have no way of knowing who will compete in the years to come. What we do know is who McClung will join in the history books. Below is every slam dunk champion in the history of the event, starting with Julius Erving in the ABA in 1976 and ending with McClung in 2023.

You may notice some irregularities in this list. Originally an invention of the ABA, the competition was not adopted in its current format in the NBA until 1985. There was a brief two-year absence in the late 1990s, first in 1998 when the NBA attempted to replace him with the “WNBA-NBA 2Ball Competition” and then again in 1999 when the lockout canceled All-Star Weekend altogether.

The dunk contest has since continued as planned, although given its waning popularity in recent years, there have been some fears it could be in jeopardy if nothing changes. Well, McClung might be just the change this event needed. It created real excitement for a competition that had gone stale and will now be by far the most anticipated event at next season’s All-Star Weekend. At that point, he’ll be looking to become the first repeat champion since Nate Robinson in 2009 and 2010. I’ll see you in Indianapolis.