'The GOAT dunk': NBA rookie's insane leap over Shaq
He didn’t exactly have a ton of competition, but it was Hamidou Diallo who shined the brightest during the 2019 NBA Slam Dunk Contest on Saturday.
The Oklahoma City Thunder guard won the event with a litany of guest stars beside him, with Russell Westbrook, Migos and Shaquille O’Neal all making appearances.
The highlight of the night was undoubtedly the dunk featuring Shaq, in which Diallo jumped over the seven-footer and landed an incredible elbow dunk.
“Atmosphere was great,” said Diallo, who ripped his jersey to reveal a Superman t-shirt after leaping over Shaq.
“I just came out and gave the crowd what they were looking for.”
The elbow landing called back to NBA great Vince Carter – the incredible difference being Diallo jumped over an NBA legend to do so.
Hamidou Diallo not only channeled Vince Carter, but dunked over Shaq too 😱 pic.twitter.com/p2DTWwmZnb
— ESPN (@espn) February 17, 2019
Shaq after Hamidou Diallo dunked over him 😮 pic.twitter.com/X81pCPlSWJ
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) February 17, 2019
WE ARE ALL SHAQ AFTER THAT DUNK FROM DIALLO pic.twitter.com/XXHS7xEN5k
— The Rush (@therushyahoo) February 17, 2019
Over Shaq AND the arm in the hoop, Vince Carter style? Diallo not only deserves to win this thing, that just may be the GOAT dunk
— Trevor Lane (@Trevor_Lane) February 17, 2019
Holy crap, Diallo!!!
— David Aldridge (@davidaldridgedc) February 17, 2019
That was super
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpearsESPN) February 17, 2019
That’s crazy. I spoke to Dennis & Diallo yesterday at the Jr NBA Day & they said they had some tricks for us tonight 😱😱😱
— IG: BDahtTV (@BDAHT) February 17, 2019
No Diallo didn’t go arm in the rim over Shaq, that’s silly boy!
— Doms (@DamierGenesis) February 17, 2019
That Diallo dunk is iconic. I hope he breaks out as a legitimate starting caliber player so that dunk lives on
— Chris Lewis (@ChrisLewisTweet) February 17, 2019
All-time great coughs up victory
Brooklyn’s Joe Harris outgunned Golden State’s Stephen Curry to win the three-point contest.
Harris made 12 consecutive shots at one point in the final round on his way to a score of 26 points.
Curry was second with 24 in the finals and Sacramento’s Buddy Hield was third with 19 points.
Two-time NBA MVP Curry made his first nine shots of the final round but missed three of five shots from the top of the key.
He won the first round with 27 points out of a possible of 34. Hield was second with 26 points, and Harris finished with 25 to grab the last spot in the finals.
Joe Harris goes perfect on his money ball rack and wins the #MtnDew3PT contest with a final round score of 26! #NBAAllStar #WeGoHard #StateFarmSaturday on @NBAonTNT pic.twitter.com/xw7WABBHeW
— NBA (@NBA) February 17, 2019
There were 10 players in the event, and seven went out in the first round.
Defending champion Devin Booker made his final seven shots but was eliminated in a tie for fourth with Danny Green with 23 points.
The other competitors who did not advance were Dirk Nowitzki and Damian Lillard (17), Curry’s younger brother Seth (16), Kemba Walker (15) and Khris Middleton (11)
Celtics star takes out skills title
Boston’s Jayson Tatum hit a three-pointer from just beyond midcourt to beat Atlanta’s Trae Young in the final round of the skills competition.
Tatum was slightly behind Young going into the three-pointer, the final shot of the event, and decided he needed to try the long shot to get one in before the Hawks guard could shoot for the title.
“Trae was already ahead of me,” Tatum said. “I just tried to have fun. Threw one up, and it went in,” Tatum said.
The 20-year-old revealed the trophy will go to his mother’s home.
Jayson Tatum defeats Trae Young in the Finals to win the #TacoBellSkills challenge! #NBAAllStar
WATCH #StateFarmSaturday on @NBAonTNT pic.twitter.com/Vj3jSunoNd
— NBA (@NBA) February 17, 2019
Tatum defeated Memphis’s Mike Conley in the first round, then topped Denver’s Nikola Jokic in the semi-finals.
Young beat Dallas ace Luka Doncic in the semi-finals in a battle of the rookies.
Jokic defeated Orlando’s Nikola Vucevic, Young beat Sacramento’s De’Aaron Fox and Doncic topped the Los Angeles Lakers’ Kyle Kuzma in other first-round match-ups.
with agencies