NBA Slam Dunk Contest 2024: Top Contenders, Predictions for Exciting Event

NBA Slam Dunk Contest 2024: Top Contenders, Predictions for Exciting Event0 of 3

Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images

The NBA world is about to test the limits of gravity.

That’s right, folks, it’s Slam Dunk Contest time, and this year’s event should be a good one.

Defending champion Mac McClung is back after a dazzling dunking display last year, and this time he’s joined by a bona fide All-Star, plus a pair of other high-flyers capable of some jaw-dropping aerial antics.

Let’s dig deeper into this event by laying out the scheduling particulars and spotlighting the four participants before deciding on a dunking champ.

Participants2 of 3

Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images

Jaylen Brown, Boston Celtics

Who says All-Stars don’t dig the dunk contest? OK, a lot of them bypass the event, but not Brown, who’s the first All-Star to participate in this event since DeAndre Jordan in 2017.

Brown’s name recognition alone should add some extra weight to this year’s contest, but he’s a certified high-flyer with a real chance of winning. He routinely punishes the rim with impressive force during games, but it will be interesting to see what he can pull out of his creativity bag.

Jaime Jaquez Jr., Miami Heat

Jaquez has been among the most productive rookies in this class, as evidenced by the fact that he snared the first two Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month awards handed out this season. While his on-court game often revolves around mastery of the sport’s subtleties, he still has plenty to his rim-rocking arsenal.

He may not always play the flashiest game, but he can have some fun with this. It sounds like he may have something special cooked up for this event, and we can’t wait to see it.

Mac McClung, Osceola Magic (G League)

McClung may not be on an NBA roster at the moment, but credit the league for recognizing he needed to be involved. He was too dynamic at last year’s event not to include him.

McClung has incredible bounce, and he clearly knows how to perform under this spotlight. Last year, three of his four dunks earned perfect scores, and all of them were completed on his first attempt.

Jacob Toppin, New York Knicks

The younger brother of 2020 lottery pick, Obi Toppin, Jacob Toppin is the least recognizable name in this field. He technically has a two-way contract with the Knicks, but he’s logged just 15 minutes over four big league outings to this point.

Obi won this event in 2022, and Jacob has a chance to follow in his footsteps. He has the kind of effortless bounce that lets him show off in games, so the imagination runs wild with what he might do in this setting.

Prediction3 of 3

Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images

All four participants were invited to this event for a reason. Each has a not-impossible path to victory.

With all due respect to Jaquez and Toppin, though, this feels like it’s coming down to a battle between the reigning champ and the All-Star.

Brown could put on a show. He has already upped the anticipation for this event by simply being involved, and he has everything needed to put on the kind of show we’re all waiting to see.

This is McClung’s environment, though. Long before he was wowing NBA fans with his dunk contest exploits, he was routinely setting viral wildfires with his high school hammers.

Brown will put up a fight, and Jaquez and Toppin won’t go down easily. But in the end, this trophy won’t change hands. McClung will be crowned victorious again, joining Michael Jordan, Jason Richardson, Nate Robinson and Zach LaVine as the contest’s only back-to-back winners.