Welcome to the Basketball Hangover. I write about what’s happening in the NBA daily, even when COVID has ravaged the league.
Miles Bridges had a poster for the ages.
(PHOTO CREDIT: Nell Redmond/AP.)
The poster dunk. Dunking on someone. It’s an art that has been in basketball forever. It’s a highlight that gets played forever in basketball montages. It’s an athletic feat to marvel. And we lose our minds whenever we see it.
It happened quite a bit on Sunday. We know how we felt when we saw it. It gives the dunker a surge of energy. It gives his teammates a boost. It gives their fans a rallying cry. It gives the basketball fans an orgasmic wave of emotion. Dunking on someone is like a right cross to the face. A statement that says you can’t stop me. A moment of invincibility. A battle that was won.
A dunk happening in an NBA game doesn’t happen very often. There are different kinds of dunks, though. There are the regular ones where you jump and dunk. There are the ones where you take off from afar and slam it with one or two hands. There are the ones that are contest-worthy and contort your body to do different sorts of things before dunking.
And there is always the wild card: someone trying to block your dunk. We always look at these as the best dunks.
It’s someone trying to stop a dunk. That raises the level of difficulty. One could block that dunk and it’s such a deflating moment. In turn, THAT provides the boost for the defender and their team.
But the amazing visual of slamming the ball in someone’s face. The dunker was challenged, sure. But the dunker wasn’t stopped. It was like saying I’m better than you in basketball form. Sure, it’s only worth two points. But it could very well be worth 30 as the wave of momentum goes the dunker’s way. The opposing team can recover by making a basket of their own. But it’s tough because what everyone else is talking about is the dunk. A poster dunk. Now it’s a YouTube moment. Or Instagram. It would be talked about for days. Weeks. Even years. A poster dunk is so powerful that no one cares who won the game. And if it’s done in a game with higher stakes, it’s immortalized.
That moment in time is a moment that will live forever. All hail the poster dunk.
Bullet Passes
We see you loud and clear, Zion Williamson. Another 38-point game by the Pelican monster.
We’re just going to be full of highlights in this entry. DeMar DeRozan gets so much crap for being a midrange dude but it helped him here.
(VIDEO CREDIT: House of Highlights.)
Big win by the Spurs over the Mavs.
This was not a poster dunk but if it’s Zach LaVine, you know it’s good.
(VIDEO CREDIT: House of Highlights.)
Dorian Finney-Smith caught Jakob Poeltl nappin’.
(VIDEO CREDIT: House of Highlights.)
Lonnie Walker IV skywalked all over Nicolo Melli.
(VIDEO CREDIT: Bleacher Report.)
Paul George gets a lot of heat but he provided that against Isaiah Stewart.
(VIDEO CREDIT: Bleacher Report.)
NBA Scoreboard
Apr. 11, 2021
Watch This Play
You saw that there were a ton of incredible dunks on Sunday. But this one might be the best of the YEAR. Miles Bridges puts one on Clint Capela.
(VIDEO CREDIT: House of Highlights.)
Good grief. Capela’s face must be burning after that.
Everyone, please take care of yourselves during this pandemic. And that goes for everyone involved with the NBA as well.
You can find Rey-Rey on Twitter at @TheNoLookPass.
You can also check out Rey-Rey’s podcast, Rey-Rey Is Fundamental, for more basketball content and, really, whatever else.
R.I.P. Nala.