Grayson Allen dunk, top 10?

[rthomas]

I have list for top ten dunks for Duke and Grayson's dunk in the first half was pretty damn good. Given his toe issues thus far, that was a pretty damn good dunk.

[BLPOG]

I have list for top ten dunks for Duke and Grayson's dunk in the first half was pretty damn good. Given his toe issues thus far, that was a pretty damn good dunk.

For me, one of the top ten will always be JJ's first at Duke. See around 6:30 into this video (https://youtu.be/cM4KRLeRjTc).

Not spectacular, but after years of watching Redick, so satisfying.

[Selover]

I can't stop watching it. Everybody is getting in on the dunk party! Grayson's dunk from the left side was pretty nifty as well.

[Stray Gator]

Now THAT dunk by Grayson was a genuine candidate for Top 10.

[ipatent]

I thought Luke's earlier dunk was notable because I wasn't sure he could.

[SilkyJ]

I thought Luke's earlier dunk was notable because I wasn't sure he could.

Really?? Luke is 6'6 and has dunked many times since playing at Duke. Many times.

[MChambers]

Jackson's dunk on an offensive rebound was also pretty darned nice, as was DeLaurier's. This team is big and, well, athletic.

[Newton_14]

Really?? Luke is 6'6 and has dunked many times since playing at Duke. Many times.
Indeed he has, including a few power right handed dunks on the break similar to the Matt Jones left handed dunk earlier this season. That dunk was my favorite of the year until Grayson's today. (Although, Amile threw down a nasty right hand power dunk in traffic in the open practice that was awesome as well.)

Today we were treated to 3 great dunks from Grayson... the power right hander down the middle of the lane, the awesome two hand put back dunk off the Jones missed 3, and then the lefty dunk down the lane, along with the Frank Jackson put back dunk, and the Kennard two hander/hang on the rim dunk. I was glad the ref's didn't spoil the fun by T'ing up Grayson and Luke. I've seen less hang time T'd up in previous seasons. I personally hate the rule to be honest. Let the kids have a little fun there. It's harmless.

[Troublemaker]

It was the Sportscenter #1 play tonight.

[El_Diablo]

It was the Sportscenter #1 play tonight.

Along with the unsolicited assertion that Duke has "two villains" now, Allen and Kennard.

[BLPOG]

Along with the unsolicited assertion that Duke has "two villains" now, Allen and Kennard.

I haven't smiled so widely in weeks! It was great to hear that.

(In fairness to ESPN, they weren't malicious about it. It was along the lines of, "Well, we're already going to play into a trope, so....")

[subzero02]

I thought Luke's earlier dunk was notable because I wasn't sure he could.

It's possible there are some out there who can't, but I'd be surprised if there are any D1 basketball players who can't dunk(walkons included). If you are over 5'10" with remotely decent hops, you should be able to. Being able to dunk and being brave enough to attempt it in a game if you have pedestrian hops are two different things though.

[Devilwin]

Grayson also had a nice left handed jam, and Frank's put back jam was awesome as well.

[porkpa]

Who says white guys can't jump?

[Ima Facultiwyfe]

Jackson's dunk on an offensive rebound was also pretty darned nice, as was DeLaurier's. This team is big and, well, athletic.

YEP!!
Love, Ima

[Ima Facultiwyfe]

Grayson also had a nice left handed jam, and Frank's put back jam was awesome as well.

YEP!!
Love, Ima

[camion]

This was the first game in a while where Grayson looked like... well, like Grayson. It was good to see that the unathletic Grayson could still be a solid basketball player, but the athletic Grayson is scary, in a good way. :)

[rsvman]

Great dunk, to be sure, but for some reason I found Frank's put-back dunk to be more satisfying. Can't explain why, as both were great.

[Skitzle]

Jackson's dunk on an offensive rebound was also pretty darned nice, as was DeLaurier's. This team is big and, well, athletic.

Alarmingly athletic?

[uh_no]

Alarmingly athletic?

Now to Douggie G for his expertise on alarming un-athleticism!

[UrinalCake]

(Warning: an insanely stupid comment is forthcoming)

Grayson's dunk was insane but for me the fact that he fell down awkwardly on the landing detracted a bit from it. And by that I mean it took it down from a 15 to a 14 on a scale of 1 to 10. Obviously it didn't affect the dunk itself, but it cost him a style point from the Russian judge for not sticking the landing IMO.

Other dunks that belong in your top 10 list:
- Gerald Henderson dunk vs. Maryland as an "answer" to Nolan Smith getting concussed by that big dumb oaf
- Dahntay Jones push-up dunk vs. UVA
- Mason reverse follow slam vs. Maryland (I think this was their last game in Cameron as part of the ACC)
- Jabari one handed alley-oop vs. Kansas
- Grant Hill with an almost identical alley-oop, something like 20 years prior
- Corey Maggette slapping the top of the backboard
- Maggette follow up slam in the tournament where he outjumped like three guys. I think this was against Temple.
- Josh McRoberts had a dunk against NC State in the ACCT that I always remember


Those are just off the top of my head, and somewhat biased towards the last 20 years or so. Would love to hear some others that people have.

[uh_no]

(Warning: an insanely stupid comment is forthcoming)

Grayson's dunk was insane but for me the fact that he fell down awkwardly on the landing detracted a bit from it. And by that I mean it took it down from a 15 to a 14 on a scale of 1 to 10. Obviously it didn't affect the dunk itself, but it cost him a style point from the Russian judge for not sticking the landing IMO.

Other dunks that belong in your top 10 list:
- Gerald Henderson dunk vs. Maryland as an "answer" to Nolan Smith getting concussed by that big dumb oaf
- Dahntay Jones push-up dunk vs. UVA
- Mason reverse follow slam vs. Maryland (I think this was their last game in Cameron as part of the ACC)
- Jabari one handed alley-oop vs. Kansas
- Grant Hill with an almost identical alley-oop, something like 20 years prior
- Corey Maggette slapping the top of the backboard
- Maggette follow up slam in the tournament where he outjumped like three guys. I think this was against Temple.
- Josh McRoberts had a dunk against NC State in the ACCT that I always remember


Those are just off the top of my head, and somewhat biased towards the last 20 years or so. Would love to hear some others that people have.

wasn't there a double dunk with like ryan kelly and kyle singler?

[Ichabod Drain]

wasn't there a double dunk with like ryan kelly and kyle singler?

Wasn't Miles one of the players involved in that, or maybe I'm thinking of another one.

Also this one (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4ijEh2y13c)is one of my favorites.

[Richard Berg]

- Jabari one handed alley-oop vs. Kansas
- Grant Hill with an almost identical alley-oop, something like 20 years prior
DeMarcus had one that was even more similar

[Deslok]

A top 5 including one y'all forgot that is routinely mentioned, Phil Henderson's dunk on Alonzo Mourning...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rcHBAP6Dq4E

[subzero02]

Wasn't Miles one of the players involved in that, or maybe I'm thinking of another one.

Also this one (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4ijEh2y13c)is one of my favorites.

It was Miles who went over Kyle's back to dunk a rebound off of a fast break. This occurred during our dismantling of West Virginia in the 2010 final four. Miles earned a technical foul iirc.

[Sir Stealth]

Can never get enough of this topic. Dahntay was such a good dunker that some of his truly amazing dunks are rarely talked about. There are a couple that are very underrated from the Maui Invitational in particular that have been somewhat lost to memory, including the one at the :30 mark here where he fully jumps over the defender.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7yTWImiZR0

The Maggette backboard slap doesn't look quite as impressive on a replay as it did at the time, but that may have been my favorite one watching live. When it happened it felt like the hardest anyone had ever dunked a ball.

[jimsumner]

Phil Henderson against Georgetown over Alonzo Mourning in the 1989 Elite Eight and Gene Banks over Ralph Sampson in 1980 have to be on any short list.

And Mason Plumlee had one against The Ohio State University, 3/4 court pass in transition that bested his reverse dunk over Alex Len, IMO.

Maryland's last game at Cameron as a member of the ACC was in 2014, a 69-67 Duke win when a Charles Mitchell (IIRC) layup rolled off at the buzzer,

[Ichabod Drain]

Phil Henderson against Georgetown over Alonzo Mourning in the 1989 Elite Eight and Gene Banks over Ralph Sampson in 1980 have to be on any short list.

And Mason Plumlee had one against The Ohio State University, 3/4 court pass in transition that bested his reverse dunk over Alex Len, IMO.

Maryland's last game at Cameron as a member of the ACC was in 2014, a 69-67 Duke win when a Charles Mitchell (IIRC) layup rolled off at the buzzer,

This is the one I linked above, I remember thinking Quinn threw the ball out of bounds when he let it go and then Mason went up and slammed it down.

[COYS]

Can never get enough of this topic. Dahntay was such a good dunker that some of his truly amazing dunks are rarely talked about. There are a couple that are very underrated from the Maui Invitational in particular that have been somewhat lost to memory, including the one at the :30 mark here where he fully jumps over the defender.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7yTWImiZR0

The Maggette backboard slap doesn't look quite as impressive on a replay as it did at the time, but that may have been my favorite one watching live. When it happened it felt like the hardest anyone had ever dunked a ball.

Dahntay had a very good Duke career, but because he was only here for two seasons, overlapped with J Williams, Boozer, and Dunleavy in 2002, played on a good but not as dominant team in 2003 featuring freshmen S Williams and Redick, and then had a journeyman career in the NBA, I think he gets overshadowed . . . which is a shame because he really was a nasty dunker.

[SilkyJ]

It was Miles who went over Kyle's back to dunk a rebound off of a fast break. This occurred during our dismantling of West Virginia in the 2010 final four. Miles earned a technical foul iirc.

Miles had another memorable dunk in that tournament: a twisting, reverse alley-oop (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJTRnoT1rj0) from NdotSmitty. Lower points for total air than some other of his dunks, but high marks for degree of difficulty.

[Olympic Fan]

Phil Henderson against Georgetown over Alonzo Mourning in the 1989 Elite Eight and Gene Banks over Ralph Sampson in 1980 have to be on any short list.

And Mason Plumlee had one against The Ohio State University, 3/4 court pass in transition that bested his reverse dunk over Alex Len, IMO.

Maryland's last game at Cameron as a member of the ACC was in 2014, a 69-67 Duke win when a Charles Mitchell (IIRC) layup rolled off at the buzzer,

I agree with these, but also Kenny Dennard's reverse dunk in the 1978 Elite Eight against Villanova -- the first reverse dunk in a game that I ever saw.

[Indoor66]

I agree with these, but also Kenny Dennard's reverse dunk in the 1978 Elite Eight against Villanova -- the first reverse dunk in a game that I ever saw.

Kenny's was worth the price of admission just for the smile on his face.

[-jk]

I agree with these, but also Kenny Dennard's reverse dunk in the 1978 Elite Eight against Villanova -- the first reverse dunk in a game that I ever saw.

I have this vague recollection it was Bill Foster who, while leading the NABC, pushed to make the dunk legal. Obviously, he had an agenda!

-jk

[fuse]

I figured this thread would turn this direction :-)

Grant v. Kansas 1991 Championship game
Maggette v. Florida backboard slap technical in Cameron
Dahntay v. UVa push up dunk

Whatever else you want in a top ten is negotiable ;-)

[DukieInBrasil]

Wasn't Miles one of the players involved in that, or maybe I'm thinking of another one.
Also this one (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4ijEh2y13c)is one of my favorites.

That's one of my favorites too! MP2 showed off some amazing athleticism. What i also like is Quinn's little bunny hop while the ball is still in the air, like "Oh no! I threw it too high!?!?!" "SLAM!!!!" "Nope, ok!"

[BullBlue]

Also this one (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4ijEh2y13c)is one of my favorites.


This is the one I linked above, I remember thinking Quinn threw the ball out of bounds when he let it go and then Mason went up and slammed it down.

I like Quinn's expression at about 12 seconds in the video. Nodding his head - "Yeah, I meant to throw it over the top of the backboard - I knew Mason was going to flush it!"

[elvis14]

I figured this thread would turn this direction :-)

Grant v. Kansas 1991 Championship game
Maggette v. Florida backboard slap technical in Cameron
Dahntay v. UVa push up dunk

Whatever else you want in a top ten is negotiable ;-)

Gerald's payback dunk "F-you" to Neal after he crushed Nolan. That was bada** on a Nate James level.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p6-4b5jrun0

[NSDukeFan]

Gerald's payback dunk "F-you" to Neal after he crushed Nolan. That was bada** on a Nate James level.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p6-4b5jrun0

I love that one.

[luvdahops]

This one always seems to get overlooked in these discussions, but it was among the nastiest and most emphatic that I can recall, especially considering it was over a 7-1 NDPOY.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFzPgHdaSfM

[elvis14]

This one always seems to get overlooked in these discussions, but it was among the nastiest and most emphatic that I can recall, especially considering it was over a 7-1 NDPOY.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFzPgHdaSfM

I remember thinking back then "That Grant Hill guy might just have a future in basketball".

[jimsumner]

I remember thinking back then "That Grant Hill guy might just have a future in basketball".

It didn't take most of us that long. :)

[DukieInBrasil]

I remember thinking back then "That Grant Hill guy might just have a future in basketball".

I was at that game!!! It was an amazing play live, wow.

[jacone21]

Wasn't Miles one of the players involved in that, or maybe I'm thinking of another one.

Also this one (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4ijEh2y13c)is one of my favorites.

Mase is still at it. He just converted this oop from Lillard in the Portland vs OKC game a few minutes ago.. his second oop in a row. I paused and snapped this pic. He's been balling out the whole game.

6947

[NSDukeFan]

Mase is still at it. He just converted this oop from Lillard in the Portland vs OKC game a few minutes ago.. his second oop in a row. I paused and snapped this pic. He's been balling out the whole game.

6947

That looks like a horrible pass (except it's to Mason.)

[NYBri]

Great dunk, to be sure, but for some reason I found Frank's put-back dunk to be more satisfying. Can't explain why, as both were great.

I was unexpected. He came out of nowhere and who knew he had that ability and desire to rebound.

[JetpackJesus]

A top 5 including one y'all forgot that is routinely mentioned, Phil Henderson's dunk on Alonzo Mourning...

Since you mentioned dunking over Alonzo Mourning, I'm just going to go ahead and post Grant Hill's awesome dunk over Alonzo in here even though it wasn't a dunk while at Duke.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AuS2oJsVjeE

[Olympic Fan]

A lot of Grant Hill dunks mentioned here, but one of his best has been left out.

I was just watching a replay of the 1992 title game and late in the game, when Duke was clinging to a narrow lead, Hill drove down the left baseline, went under the basket and before Chris Webber or Juwan Howard (or Jalen Rose, who was supposed to be guarding him) could react, Hill explodes upward and throws down a 180-slam -- a play that sparked Duke's closing burst in that game.

BTW, Hill OWNED the baseline in that game. Michigan simple could not stop him going baseball all night. His stat line was inside -- 18 points (on 8-14 shooting), 10 rebounds, five assists, three steals ad two blocks.

[Neals384]

This one always seems to get overlooked in these discussions, but it was among the nastiest and most emphatic that I can recall, especially considering it was over a 7-1 NDPOY.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFzPgHdaSfM

Not only the drive and dunk, but the acrobatic one-handed hang on the rim. And he stuck the landing (and McIlvane is glad for that)!

[Tom B.]

You could make a list that consists solely of Grant Hill dunks.

He had a one-handed alley-oop slam against Georgia Tech in 1992 that was almost as impressive as the one in the 1991 title game against Kansas:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2hn2VUrzf8A


And here's Grant as a senior dunking on freshman Tim Duncan:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahBcTzWNXDc


Another memorable dunk from my undergrad days -- I can't find a video of it, but Tony Lang threw down a mean one-hander (and drew a foul, IIRC) against Iowa's 7-foot center Acie Earl during a game in Cameron in January of 1993. That game was also notable because it was the last game played by Iowa's Chris Street, who died in a car accident three days later.

[cato]

I still say that the line for greatest player ever to play at Duke forms behind Grant Hill.

[Acymetric]

I cannot recall the game but believe it was Nolan's senior year after Kyrie went down and he just completely blew up. The move to get to the basket was the more impressive part of the play but he did have a nice finish at the rim. Some of you with longer memories than I might be able to recall details (and it may have happened more than once). He sure was fun to watch, especially as a Senior.

[mkirsh]

You could make a list that consists solely of Grant Hill dunks.

He had a one-handed alley-oop slam against Georgia Tech in 1992 that was almost as impressive as the one in the 1991 title game against Kansas:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2hn2VUrzf8A


And here's Grant as a senior dunking on freshman Tim Duncan:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahBcTzWNXDc


Another memorable dunk from my undergrad days -- I can't find a video of it, but Tony Lang threw down a mean one-hander (and drew a foul, IIRC) against Iowa's 7-foot center Acie Earl during a game in Cameron in January of 1993. That game was also notable because it was the last game played by Iowa's Chris Street, who died in a car accident three days later.

Great highlights. Love watching Grant. Also reminds me that those 94 blue and white uniforms were the best Duke unis of all time

[slower]

Where Grayson's dunk ranks among the greatest Duke dunks is open to debate, but it's definitely the best-SOUNDING Duke dunk in recent memory.