NBA
NBA Slam Dunk: Mac McClung rescues the contest and signs for the Philadelphia 76ers
Antonio is a life long sports enthusiast and professional journalist, who shares an obssesive urge to find and dig up the most interesting facts to guide gamblers towards more exciting, yet safe bets. In his own words, ''you can never really know enough about the things you love''.
All posts by Antonio KozlowUpdated19 Feb 2023
With a name like Mac McClung, he got to dunk, doesn’t he? Well, this weekend he will sure be remembered by it. Because the new Philadelphia 76ers guard sure slammed the NBA Dunk Contest this Saturday night in Salt Lake City!
The 24-year-old player got crowned the best of the contest despite not technically being an NBA player yet, as he hasn’t officially played for the Sixers. The guard signed a sponsorship deal with Puma, which allows him to sign for any NBA franchise but still be able to play for their affiliate team in the G-League, the official minor championship for the Basketball Association.
Once a kid who became famous for his dunks as a teenager on YouTube, now carries the trophy for conquering this year’s infamous NBA Slam Dunk. What a fairytale story for Mac McClung, as sometimes dreams do come true.
— mac mcclung (@McclungMac) February 15, 2023
Last night at the All-Stars in Utah, the scenes were nothing less than heroic, as the young athlete is now praised as the “savior” of the slam competition. The tournament had dropped in value during the past years, as participants failed their attempts without creativity and stars began to withdraw from the contest.
New Phoenix superstar Kevin Durant, who has participated in All-Star weekends for 13 years now, already labelled the scenes as “crazy”. Just the fact that Mac Clung became the first G-League player to compete in the contest and win it, is pretty nuts, yes.
Magic Johnson and Shaquille O’Neill agreed the player came to “save” the tournament that was losing its shine lately, as they saw the six-foot-two player produced three unbelievable slams in front of their eyes.
“Ever since the beginning, I was the underdog,” McClung said as he celebrated, because now he owns a trophy that only legends like Kobe Bryant or Michael Jordan possess. “Proving others right instead of others wrong, brings a little more satisfaction.”
Three out of his four dunks were considered perfect 50s by the judges. One of his highlights this Saturday was a 540-degree turn we’ve only seen before in gymnasts, acrobats or maybe snowboardes, but never in basketball!
Check out how Mac McClung impressed all the 20,000 spectators at the Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City:
After being Virginia High School’s all-time leading scorer, you probably first say Mac Mclung flying through the air in YouTube videos who nowadays share millions of views.
McClung will be Philadelphia’s No.9 jersey on a two-way contract
Once proclaimed as the “most exciting player in high school”, the 24-year-old still hasn’t managed to enjoy a spell as an NBA professional.
Despite his amazing talent, Mac McClung has only played twice in the NBA, first for the Bulls in December 2021 and then for the Lakers in their season finale in April 2022. This time last year’s NBA G-League Rookie of the Year will hope to find regularity in Philadelphia’s roster as he signed a two-way contract this past Tuesday.
“It’s definitely been an eventful week planning all the dunks and also being called up,” McClung said. “It’s funny how things really happen when you least expect it, but it’s all been a blessing.”
