:quality(85)//cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/infobae/UBRAOL424JFZNK4DJS2OU62WII "He only played two NBA games and dazzled everyone with his skills in the air: Mac McClung won the All Star Game dunk tournament")
When it seemed that the attraction generated by the dunk contest in the NBA All Star Game was in the past, a 1.88 meter player dazzled everyone in action Saturday in Salt Lake City. In the 2023 edition of the weekend of the stars which takes place in Utah, Mac McClung took all the flashes of the evening after a fantastic performance which revived an old contest in which they knew how to shine Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Vince Carter and Dominic Wilkinsamong others.
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The cast led by LeBron James will face the leader of Giannis Antetokounmpo in the traditional All-Star Games of the best basketball league in the world.
The 24-year-old point guard, who was chosen last season as the Rookie of the Year in the G-League – the expansion competition the NBA has to train youngsters who haven’t found their place in the best league in the world -, achieves the four dunks in his first attempts and becomes champion of the trophy Julius Ervingin honor of the historic Doctor J, the player who led the way with his spectacular dunks in the 70s.
McClung received three perfect marks (50 points) and in the rest he took an average of 49.8 to have a close to ideal night. Under the watchful eyes of the judges (Jamal Crawford, Lisa Leslie, Karl Malone, Dominique Wilkins and Harold Miner), the Virginia-born youngster has already marked his way to victory with the first dunk when he placed two people – a on top. on the other with a ball – then jumped over them. In the air, the player who has just signed a contract with the Philadelphia 76ers touched the backboard before plunging the ball back into the hoop.
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Already on his second attempt, he made a 360 degree turn in which he showed his ability to jump (he also lowered the ball between his legs), which allowed him to secure his classification in the definition of the tournament against Trey Murphy 3 (New Orleans Pelicans). In the first round, they stayed Sims of Jericho (New York Knicks) y Kenyon Martin Jr. (Houston Rockets), son of the famous New Jersey Nets player.
In the final, McClung again showed that in addition to his power, his dunks had the creativity to spice up the competition. He received a 50 from the judges for jumping over a person after going over the baseline. Once in the air he faked it and the second time he finished with his back. And to crown the night, under the watchful eye of legend Shaquille O’Neal and current NBA stars, he almost made a 720° turn, but flipped her on her back to the delirium of all present.
“It’s awesome. I feel really blessed and grateful to the NBA for giving me this opportunity,” said McClung, who became the first G-League development league player to compete and win. the dunk contest.
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What is special in the story of this young man is that until this weekend, He only played two games in the NBA. They were in the 2021-2022 season, one with the jersey of Chicago Bulls and the rest with that of Los Angeles Lakers. During that campaign, he was chosen as League G Rookie of the Year (averaged 21.6 points, 7.6 assists, 6.6 rebounds and 1.4 steals in 27 games) after playing for the South Bay Lakers and the Windy City Bulls. Currently, until he signed this contract with the 76ers, McClung was playing for Philadelphia’s affiliate team, the Delaware Blue Coats.
In the other attractions of the day, the figure of the Portland Trail Blazers Damian Lillard won the triple championship. The leader, who participated in the competition for the third time, exceeded in the definition Boyfriend Hield there Tyrese HaliburtonIndiana Pacers players.
After overcoming the first round, in which Tyler Herro (Heat), Kevin Huerter (Kings), Julius Randle (Knicks), Jayson Tatum (Celtics) and Lauri Markkanen (Jazz) were knocked out, Lillard repeated the same scoreline from 26 points to beat Held by a unit. “The best shooters in history have one and I wanted to win it at least once before I retired,” said the Blazers’ No. 0, who is also the first contest winner in league history. franchise.
In Saturday’s other round of the NBA All Star Game, players from Utah Jazz, Jordan Clarkson, Walker Kessler and Collin Sexton, stayed with the skills tournament after having disputed in three stages the rookie team and another made up of the Antetokounmpo brothers but without Giannis, who, following an inconvenience, gave up his place to Jrue Holiday, his teammate with the Milwaukee Bucks.
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