Watch: NBA Slam Dunk Contest is revived, but no rematch between Zach LaVine and Aaron Gordon

Slam Dunk is revived!

The Slam Dunk contest at the All-Star weekend in 2000 was one for the ages. The then Toronto Raptors shooting guard Vince Carter put in a performance with so much consummate elegance that if there’s a desired script or a bar for the rest of the players to follow, Carter would be an exemplary model for all things called Slam-Dunk. Remember his between-the-legs dunk in Oakland in 2000 that forced the judges to go over the table and props him? And of course, his iconic ‘it’s over’ moment!

But for the next good decade and a half, for some reason unknown, the Slam Dunk contest at the All-Star weekend, barring Jason Richardson’s 2002, 2003 and 2004 performances or maybe the 2008 edition, lost all its charm.

S U P E R M A N R E T U R N S 🙌

2008 NBA Slam Dunk Contest champion @DwightHoward is back in the competition for 2020. pic.twitter.com/0BfIuEdFyz

— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) January 24, 2020

Even the NBA seemed to be lost and with no idea about what to do with the slam dunk contest. In fact, it became a mess, so much so that the NBA threw in the amateurs into the competition, reserving it for the young players only.

Then emerged the then Minnesota Timberwolves guard Zach LaVine — now with the Chicago Bulls. He put in an Oscar-winning show in 2015, after producing one of the best all-round performances which included two perfect scores of 50 points.

But the best came a year later, for he found an opponent in Aaron Gordon who pushed him to his very limits. The contest was a breathtaking display of what a human can do and the ordinary weaklings can’t do. It was out-of-the-world, with both Gordon and LaVine defying the gravity and commonsense. It was the best and the greatest Dunk Contest since Vince Carter’s “it’s over” in 2000.

Zach LaVine vs. Aaron Gordon

One of the greatest dunk contest showdowns of all time turns four today 💥 pic.twitter.com/cVi4TratpO

— ESPN (@espn) February 13, 2020

However, there’s won’t be a rematch of the 2016 “super-human slam dunk contest”, as, according to NBC Sports’ K.C. Johnson, the Chicago Bulls guard will not be flying on the court at the 2020 All-Star Weekend.

“I could’ve done the dunk and 3-point contest. I just chose to do the 3-point contest,” said LaVine.

“If I had made it, I would’ve wanted to put on a big-time show for the crowd. I would’ve tried to do all three of them, the All-Star game, dunk contest, and three-point contest. It didn’t happen.”

LaVine couldn’t make the cut for the All-Star team, despite averaging 24.9 points on 44.2% shooting from the floor, 37.6% from 3-point range and 82.8% from the free-throw line. He is also racking up 4.1 assists, 4.9 rebounds, and 1.4 steals per game. Good numbers, but Chicago’s stuttering 19-33 record this season robbed him of a spot on All-Star team.

But don’t be disappointed if you are a fan of Slam Dunk contest, for Eric Gordon will be there, and so will be the Superman Dwight Howard.