LeBron is “directly responsible,” according to Stephen A.
After yet another uneventful NBA Slam Dunk Contest, Stephen A. Smith believes Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James is to blame.
James, who played in his 20th All-Star Game on Sunday, has never participated in a Slam Dunk Contest, and that is the problem, according to Smith, who aired his grievances on ESPN’s “First Take” on Monday.
“LeBron James is directly responsible for ruining the Slam Dunk Contest. … Every high jumper, every skywalker, every above-the-rim talent salivated for the opportunity to compete in the Slam Dunk Contest. It stopped when LeBron James said, ‘I’m not doing it.’ And from that point forward, the stars who followed didn’t feel compelled to prioritize a Slam Dunk Contest,” Smith said. “LeBron James refusing to participate in the Slam Dunk Contest was the beginning and the spark plug of its demise. Period! There is no one who can dispute that.”
Smith bolstered his argument by citing the number of times Hall of Famers such as Michael Jordan and Dominique Wilkins participated in the premier All-Star weekend event throughout their respective careers. Kendrick Perkins, James’ former teammate with the Cleveland Cavaliers, seemed to largely agree with Smith blaming James.
Despite being one of the best players and most explosive dunkers in NBA history, James has chosen not to enter himself into the Slam Dunk Contest at any point in his 21-season career. With his athleticism declining, the proverbial ship appears to have sailed as well.
James flirted with the idea of participating in the past, but in 2015, he told Dwyane Wade that he considered himself an “in-game dunker,” which is similar to what he said during his rookie season in the NBA. While in high school, James won the Powerade Jam Fest, although many fans felt his dunks left a lot to be desired.
Regardless of whether James is to blame for the decline of the dunk contest, the number of star players in the contest has certainly dwindled, although that decrease initially began during the 1990s, not during James’ career.
From 1984 to 1990, one or more All-Star competed in each edition of the event, with the number peaking at three (Jordan, Wilkins, and Clyde Drexler) in 1988. However, Shawn Kemp in 1994 was the only All-Star who participated in the dunk contest from 1991 to 1997. Jerry Stackhouse and Vince Carter, the latter of whom unleashed some of the most memorable dunks in competition history, entered themselves in 2000.
After an era in which Dwight Howard and Nate Robinson reigned supreme, the contest went into another drought. This past weekend, Jaylen Brown became the first NBA All-Star since Victor Oladipo in 2018 to compete in the dunk contest, but his performance drew more criticism than praise.
The lack of star power likely has some effect on how well-received the contests are, although the 2016 contest is considered one of the greatest events ever despite it being headlined by two non-All-Stars in Aaron Gordon and Zach LaVine.
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