Victor Wembanyama has ripped off some very impressive dunks, but he has some work to do to make this top 5.
With the arrival of San Antonio Spurs phenom Victor Wembanyama, the NBA is filled to the brim with big men who know how to throw it down. Between ferocious paint beats like Joel Embiid and Giannis Antetokounmpo, there hasn’t been much to complain about when it comes to dunking.
Although we’ve entered a new age of basketball where centers have once again taken over, it’s easy to forget that many big men of the past had the ability to dominate the interior just as well as — if not better than — those of the modern era.
In a trip to the past, GIVEMESPORT ranked the five best dunking big men in the history of the NBA based off their ability to score in the paint and their highlight dunks, both in-game and in Slam Dunk Contests.
5: Darryl Dawkins
Played for: Philadelphia 76ers, New Jersey Nets, Utah Jazz, Detroit Pistons
Darryl Dawkins throws down a dunk
Darryl Dawkins first broke onto the scene as an utterly dominant center at Maynard Evans High School in Orlando, Florida. He was hotly recruited by all the major programs in the country, but instead opted to enter the NBA and was drafted fifth overall by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 1975 NBA Draft, allowing his family to escape from their impoverished conditions.
Darryl Dawkins – Career Statistics
Points Per Game
12.0
Rebounds Per Game
6.1
Field Goal %
57.2
Dawkins played sparingly for the Sixers over his first few seasons. He was a still-developing teenager who had to go against the likes of Dave Cowens, Moses Malone, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. As he filled out, the center became an important player for the contending team, which also featured Julius Erving and Doug Collins.
One of Dawkins’s most infamous moments came in 1979 against the Kings when he broke the backboard dunking the ball. A natural showman, he named the slam “the Chocolate-Thunder-Flying, Robinzine-Crying, Teeth-Shaking, Glass-Breaking, Rump-Roasting, Bun-Toasting, Wham-Bam, Glass-Breaker-I-Am-Jam.” After he broke another backboard in a game against the Spurs, the NBA announced that any player who broke a backboard during a game would be subject to a fine and suspension. That penalty only made Dawkins’s jams more famous.
R.I.P Chocolate Thunder !!
Aka Darryl Dawkins 😇👼🏻 pic.twitter.com/vr1rK9NBQ8— Just The Messenger 🕵🏿♂️ (@ColdPieceCITY) February 6, 2023
While he wasn’t an All-Star, Dawkins was still one of the most recognized players in the league. Stevie Wonder, who often attended Sixers game, dubbed him Chocolate Thunder. Always remembered for his ferocious slams, Dawkins would be invited back to judge NBA Slam Dunk contests during All-Star Weekends.
4
Larry Nance
Played for: Phoenix Suns, Cleveland Cavaliers
Larry Nance dunking the ball
Born and raised in Anderson, South Carolina, Larry Nance played college ball at Clemson University. After being selected 20th overall in the 1981 NBA Draft, the power forward joined the Phoenix Suns. After playing only 14 minutes per game during his rookie season, Nance became a full-time starter in 1982.
Larry Nance – Career Statistics
Points Per Game
17.1
Rebounds Per Game
8.0
Field Goal %
54.6
Just a few years larer, in 1984, the NBA held its very first Slam Dunk Contest. Nance would go on to win that contest, besting competitors like the high-flying Clyde Drexler, Dominique Wilkins and Julius Erving. During the competition, Nance broke out several “cradle dunks,” which would soon become a staple at future competitions. The big win earned him the nickname, the High-Ayatolla of Slamola.
Nance could do more than dunk, however. In 1985, he made his first All-Star game and in 1986-87, he had his best season, averaging 22.5 points per game. A few years later, Nance was dealt to the Cleveland Cavaliers and his fine play continued; he was named First Team All-Defense in 1989 and made the All-Star game in that season and in 1993.
His son Larry Jr. has since followed in his footsteps, becoming an above-average dunker in the league. He took part in the 2018 Slam Dunk Contest and recreated his Dad’s iconic cradle dunk.
3
Shaquille O’Neal
Played for: Orlando Magic, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat
Shaquille O’Neal dunks against the Spurs
In 1992, Shaquille O’Neal declared for the NBA Draft. The center had grown up an Army brat, playing his high school ball in both Germany and Texas. He attended LSU and became one of those once-in-a-generation prospects where every team knew whoever got him would be bringing in a superstar. The Orlando Magic were that team, and it didn’t take long for their fortunes to change.
Shaquille O’Neal – Career Statistics
Points Per Game
23.7
Rebounds Per Game
10.9
Field Goal %
58.2
O’Neal was voted to be an All-Star starter during his first year in the league, making his immediate impact known to the world. In the 1994-95 season, O’Neal’s third year, he led the league in scoring, notching more than 29 points per game, and was able to help bring the Magic reach the NBA Finals, where they were swept by the Houston Rockets.
When O’Neal dunked, it wasn’t graceful like Michael Jordan or acrobatic like Vince Carter. It was pure power, like a sonic boom. Like Dawkins, O’Neal could dunk so hard that he would break the backboards. In fact, in one game against the Nets, the seven-foot-one center pulled down the entire basket. His dunks were thunderous and aided in demoralizing his helpless opponents.
2
Blake Griffin
Played for: Los Angeles Clippers, Detroit Pistons, Boston Celtics
Blake Griffin
Blake Griffin is the shortest player on this list at six-foot-nine, but he was a thunderous dunker. The front-court player starred at the University of Oklahoma and was selected first overall by the Los Angeles Clippers in the 2009 NBA Draft. The Clippers couldn’t wait for their new superstar to take the court, but they had to wait. Griffin fractured his kneecap in the last preseason game and missed the entire season.
Blake Griffin – Career Statistics
Points Per Game
19.0
Rebounds Per Game
8.0
Field Goal %
49.3
When Griffin came back in 2010, he was everything the Clippers had dreamed of. He was named Rookie of the Year after averaging 22.5 points per game to go along with his 12.1 rebounds per game. He made the All-Star game in his rookie season, his first of six appearances. Griffin was instrumental in transforming the Clippers, one of the NBA’s most moribund franchises, into a contending team.
9 years ago today, Blake Griffin jumped over the hood of a car and won the Dunk Contest in his rookie season 🔥
(via @NBA) pic.twitter.com/p4AtsXpSOm
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport)
February 20, 2020
The early 2010s Clippers, which featured DeAndre Jordan and Chris Paul, became the most exciting team in the league. Thanks to their breakneck pace and unavoidable alley-oops, they rightfully earned their “Lob City” nickname. Griffin’s combination of power and athleticism made him one of the best dunkers of all-time, which propelled him to winning the Slam Dunk Contest in 2011.
1
Dwight Howard
Played for: Orlando Magic, Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers
Dwight Howard rebound
Dwight Howard already seemed fully grown early on in his high school career. The teams he faced while playing for Georgia’s Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy didn’t seem to be much of a challenge for him. While colleges drooled over his potential, the center instead opted to declare for the NBA Draft and was taken first overall by the Orlando Magic in 2004.
Dwight Howard – Career Statistics
Points Per Game
15.7
Rebounds Per Game
11.8
Field Goal %
58.7
Howard was a well-above-average player as a teenager and grew into a dominant force as he entered his 20s. He made the first of eight consecutive All-Star appearances in 2007 and used his incredible athletic ability to become a brute force on defense. He was named the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year for three straight seasons, from 2009 to 2011.
It wasn’t exactly a surprise when he earned his “Superman” nickname, as he had the ability to fly high, just like the superhero after whom he got the title. He took his ferocity to the 2008 Slam Dunk Competition and emerged victorious. Howard set the standard for big men who could pull off monstrous dunks despite their height and size.
