Getty Jacob Toppin #00 of the New York Knicks jumps over Obi Toppin #1 of the Indiana Pacers during the AT&T Slam Dunk Contest.
Back-to-back NBA Slam Dunk champion Mac McClung praised New York Knicks rookie Jacob Toppin despite falling short in his bid to unseat him.
“I think Jacob Toppin had some incredible dunks and already had a crazy dunk for the last dunk but it’s hard for me to make an opinion about someone else’s opinion,” McClung said on “Run It Back” on FanDuel TV when three-time NBA 6th Man of the Year winner Lou Williams asked him if Boston Celtics’ Jaylen Brown deserved to be in the finals.
Lou Williams: “Alright, Mac, let’s be honest, Jaylen Brown wasn’t supposed to be in that final with you?”
Mac McClung: “I thought he had some good dunks to.”
LW: “Which one?” 😂
(via @FanDuel / YT)
Toppin’s second dunk — a 360-degree, between-the-legs dunk — which McClung was referring to as “a crazy dunk” only drew 47.2 from the five judges comprised of former NBA All-Stars Gary Payton, Mitch Richmond and ex-Slam Dunk champions Fred Jones, Darnell Hillman and Dominique Wilkins.
Still think Jacob Toppin had the dunk of the night 🤯
📽️: @BleacherReport | #NBAAllStar
Brown beat Toppin to make it to the finals against McClung in a controversial fashion which caused uproar from fans.
The Celtics All-Star’s underwhelming tribute to Dee Brown’s no-look dunk in 1991 drew flak online yet garnered 47.6 points from the judges to advance to the finals over Toppin.
Jaylen Brown got booed for his Dee Brown dunk 💀
Even Dee Brown wasn’t happy with Jaylen’s tribute dunk.
Dee Brown clowning Jaylen Brown for messing up his dunk lmaoooo
More fans, including Toppin’s teammate Jalen Brunson, aired their dissatisfaction about the judges’ decision to have Brown over Toppin in the finals.
I guess Jacob needed to jump over the shot clock to get higher than a 46
Jacob Toppin should have made the final round after this dunk.
Jaylen Brown just did a normal dunk and somehow received a better score than this.
Jacob Toppin got robbed. Justice for Jacob!
But McClung refused to join the mob who trashed Brown.
“Dunking and being on that stage is not easy,” McClung said. “So I wouldn’t give flak to anybody.”
Knicks Get 3 Rotation Players Back
Donte DiVincenzo (sore hamstring), Bojan Bogdanovic (sore left calf), and Isaiah Hartenstein (sore Achilles) will rejoin the Knicks lineup on Thursday when they face the Joel Embiid-less Philadelphia 76ers on the road.
All 3 players participated in the Knicks first two practices since the All-Star break. They all sat out the Knicks’ final game before the All-Star break — a 118-100 loss to the Orlando Magic, surrendering the regular season tie-breaker to the young, upstart Florida squad.
DiVincenzo was no longer in the Knicks’ injury report for their February 22 game in Philadelphia while Bogdanovic and Hartenstein are listed as probable, which means they are very likely to play.
Meanwhile, Julius Randle (shoulder), OG Anunoby (elbow) and Mitchell Robinson (ankle) remain out.
Kenny Smith Says Jalen Brunson is Top 5 MVP Candidate
The two-time NBA champion-turned-analyst Kenny Smith installed Brunson as a top-5 MVP candidate this season which is why he believes the Knicks will reach the Eastern Conference Finals opposite the current league’s best team, Boston Celtics.
“At the beginning of the year, I made a comment,” Smith said on the “Stephen A. Smith Show” on February 20. “I said I don’t know if the Knicks could win the Eastern Conference or be in it because they always walk on the floor having the second-best player right. … but Brunson has narrowed the gap.”
The Knicks fell short last season, losing to eventual Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat in the second round in six games. But with Brunson elevating his game to All-Star level and with a deeper and more versatile supporting cast, Smith pegs them as the second-best team in the East when they are healthy.