Zach LaVine defended his Slam Dunk contest crown on Saturday night, but he had to go two extra rounds to get it.
His opponent, Orlando Magic forward Aaron Gordon, pulled out all the stops, and threw down perhaps the best dunk of the night when he sat in midair, but LaVine's series of four straight 50s won out in the end.
It was a heavyweight bout, a clash between a muscle-bound power dunker in Gordon and a lithe, aerodynamic flyer in LaVine. It's only fitting that they needed two extra rounds to decide the winner.
It was like something out of a movie, LaVine told Clay Skipper of GQ, saying it was better than his first Slam Dunk appearance.
"Yeah I feel like it's better cause I went up against probably the best competition I ever been in. I definitely think it was one for the ages. I felt like it was the Rocky and Apollo Creed scene, where they both punch each other at the same time. Somebody's getting hit, but both of y'all are getting hit."
LaVine said he was absolutely blown away by Gordon's dunks - especially his under-both-legs, over-a-mascot dunk - and felt the win was momentarily in doubt.
"Professional dunkers do that. He did it one time, one try. And he's freakin' 6-10 man, so for him to get up over a mascot on a little hoverboard? That's like 45 inches in the air plus vertical," LaVine said.
He would eventually answer with a 50 of his own on a windmill from the free-throw line, but Gordon punched back with yet another 50. LaVine somehow matched that with a between-the-legs reverse from behind the basket. But after that, LaVine was out of ideas.
That is, until fellow contestant Will Barton suggested he go between the legs from the free-throw line. LaVine hadn't even attempted it before, but he stuck it on the first try.
"I just kept coming back with jabs. The longer it went, we just had to get creative," LaVine said.
