NBA All-Star Weekend left a lot to be desired in the minds of several people, with nothing more disappointing then the Sprite Slam Dunk Contest. With a group of dismal players, some of whom are not even starters on their own teams, the prestige and excitement of the contest is no more.
The contest had several dunks that would be considered easy for this day and age. The best dunk by far was a windmill off the side of the backboard by Toronto Raptors star player DeMar DeRozan in the second round.
The finals were between two-time champ from the New York Knicks Nate Robinson and DeRozan. Many people felt that it wasn't the final round because there was nothing really spectacular. When Robinson attempted to use the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders he didn't use them in an interesting way. He should have created a buzz by jumping over one of them or using them in a more major role then just in the background shaking pom-poms. DeRozen also made it easy for Robinson to win with a basic dunk after a failed attempt of something more difficult.
In order to bring back the nostalgic value that the dunk contest once had, the NBA needs to do several things, the first being to encourage star players like Lebron James, Kobe Bryant and Dwayne Wade to participate. Second, they need to make use of more props because this gives the players more options and makes it more entertaining for the crowd. The NBA also needs to open up the contest to the players from the developmental league. NBA TV analyst and former player Kenny "The Jet" Smith made a comment that there was someone in the developmental league that could do a 720. This would be way more electrifying then the dunks displayed and would also give the public the opportunity to see a so-called "rising star" come up through the ranks as someone to watch out for in the future.
Making these necessary changes will enable the slam dunk contest to continue for years to come; without this it's just going to be a major disappointment.
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