Mac McClung's Three-Peat Has Big NBA Stars Contemplating The Dunk Contest

Published•Updated

Mac McClung became the first player in NBA history to three-peat in the NBA Slam Dunk Contest on Saturday night, and did so in absolutely outrageous fashion. His dunking abilities catch everyone's attention, including Ja Morant, who may just try to bring the once-must-watch event back into the spotlight.

Over the past handful of years, the Dunk Contest has lacked star power, to say the least. While McClung is known for being an elite dunker, he's a G League player, and joining him on Saturday night was San Antonio's Stephon Castle, Milwaukee's Andre Jackson Jr., and Mata Buzelis of Chicago.

Not exactly a group of players who the casual NBA fan recognizes.

Morant getting in on the action, and recruiting a couple of other superstars, would change the narrative.

While watching McClung make easy work of his competition, Morant jumped on X and posted that Mac may make him decide to participate in the Dunk Contest. Giannis Antetokounmpo, who was watching the contest courtside on Saturday night, saw Morant's post and said, if you're in, I'm in.

Morant went a step further and mentioned Zach LaVine and Aaron Gordon as well, which a contest involving himself, Giannis, Gordon, LaVine, and McClung would undoubtedly bring the event back to its glory days and potentially break the Internet.

It's wild to comprehend a six-foot-two white guy from Gate City, Virginia who plays in the G-League may be the savior of the NBA Slam Dunk Contest, but here we are.

While Morant and Giannis teasing the idea on social media should be exciting for NBA fans, this isn't anything new. Plenty of players, including LeBron James in years past, have claimed they would one day participate in the Dunk Contest only to never deliver.

If you're the NBA, you've got to do everything in your power to try and make this happen. The All-Star Game itself is already a lost cause that nobody cares about, but getting a handful of legitimate stars in the league to throw down some dunks for an hour seems like a relatively simple task to boost ratings and grab some of the attention back that the league once had during All-Star weekend.

Tags
Written by

Mark covers all sports at OutKick while keeping a close eye on the world of professional golf. He graduated from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga before earning his master's degree in journalism from the University of Tennessee, but wants it on the record that he does not bleed orange. Before joining OutKick, he wrote for various outlets, including BroBible, SB Nation, and The Spun. Mark also wrote for the Chicago Cubs' Double-A affiliate in 2016, the year the curse was broken. Follow him on Twitter @itismarkharris.