Magic Johnson Hails All-Star As Best In-Game Dunker Ever

Minnesota Timberwolves shooting guard Anthony Edwards may have made his first All-Star team last season, but 2023-24 appears to be his breakout moment. The 22-year-old from Georgia’s supremely lethal athleticism has already made him a two-way superstar, as he has propelled his Minnesota club to a 47-22 record thus far and the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference, although the team is just a game behind the Oklahoma City Thunder and Denver Nuggets.

He became one of NBAThis is one of the most impressive dunkers in the game to witness. Magic Johnson, the Hall of Fame point guard for the Los Angeles Lakers, who has seen many great dunkers in the game in person (as he mentions), intervened after Edwards mauled the Utah power forward Jazz John Collins with a propulsive slam. Johnson had a pretty hot shot, a rarity for his presence on X:

In his eponymous show The Bill Simmons Podcast, Bill Simmons of The Ringer unpacked the statement. “That led me to try and figure out who my best dunkers in the game of all time were,” Simmons said. “Honorable [mentions]: David Thompson, who was sort of the first great dunker in the game… He was only 6’3″, 6’4”, but could go up and pass people. Darryl Dawkins, Clyde Drexler, Scottie Pippen, Jason Richardson, LeBron, Wade, Kobe. I would put Wemby [Victor Wembanyama] in there. Edwards is now in the conversation but I wouldn’t put him on the all-time list…And I don’t think so [Michael] Jordan gives me a five. I’m afraid I’m going to be hit by lightning, but Jordan can’t do it. Jordan had some great dunks in the game… But what made Jordan great was the way he operated in the air, levitated and bought that extra time.

“My five guys, going back: Shawn Kemp, No. 5… He was the first 6’10” guy who seemed to go out of his way to dunk on people, he had alley-oops,” Simmons said. “Dr. J. [Julius Irving], I can’t believe he’s fourth on my list. Dr. J had some classics…I can only judge from what we saw when he got to the NBA…Vince Carter [is No. 3]. some people would have Vince Carter first…Vince really had that race [the] first four years of his career… Number 2 is Blake Griffin, who is now forgotten as truly being the first great Twitter dunker… His first two years in Lob City… it was out of control, he was jumping so high… Blake Griffin was a real problem, people were terrified of being posterized by him.

“Number 1 is Dominique Wilkins,” Simmons concluded. “It’s one of those things [where] I will not accept debates on this subject. He threw himself at everyone. I remember doing a podcast with him for Grantland, that was one of the first things I wanted to talk to him about. Dominique loved to dunk on people so much that it was almost as if when he was in the air he would grab someone and put them under him so he could dunk on them. »