Zach LaVine beats Aaron Gordon in instant classic Slam Dunk contest

10 years ago

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Zach LaVine reigns supreme, but it wasn't easy.

The Minnesota Timberwolves' superb sophomore went toe to toe with Aaron Gordon through four dunks in the final round of the Slam Dunk contest to defend his title Saturday in Toronto.

LaVine posted four straight 50s to remain champion after Gordon matched him with three perfect scores of his own, pushing the contest into two rounds of an impromptu dunk-off.

It got to the point where both contestants were making up new dunks on the fly, something LaVine confirmed after he threw down a between-the-legs dunk from the free-throw line on his final showing.

"This is ridiculous, man. I didn't even try half of them," LaVine said on the broadcast after shaking hands with Gordon.

LaVine becomes just one of six contestants ever to win multiple Slam Dunk titles.

"It was the best (Slam Dunk contest) ever," said TNT's Kenny Smith, who famously called Vince Carter's immortal performance in 2000. Given how the night unfolded, it's hard to argue with Smith's assessment.

Though Gordon lost, he arguably pulled off the two most impressive dunks of the night with a sideways under-the-legs windmill slam and another between-the-legs dunk after catching the ball off the Magic's mascot's head.

LaVine simply had a deeper arsenal. He opened the contest with an effortless behind-the-back reverse move, which earned him the first of his five 50s. He followed that up with an alley-oop, a windmill, and a between-the-legs jam, all from the free-throw line, to cap off a near-perfect night.