OKC’s Hamidou Diallo leaps over Shaq to win dunk contest
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA – FEBRUARY 16: Hamidou Diallo #6 of the Oklahoma City Thunder dunks during the AT&T Slam Dunk as part of the 2019 NBA All-Star Weekend at Spectrum Center on February 16, 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Streeter Lecka/Getty Images/AFP
Oklahoma City’s Hamidou Diallo is the NBA’s slam dunk champion.
Going over Shaquille O’Neal in the first round, then getting a boost from rapper Quavo in the finale, Diallo soared to the crown by topping New York’s Dennis Smith Jr.
Article continues after this advertisementDiallo topped Smith 88-85 in the finale. Charlotte’s Miles Bridges and Atlanta’s John Collins went out in the first round.
Smith leapfrogged Miami’s Dwyane Wade and took a lob from Stephen Curry to give himself a chance with his last dunk, getting a perfect score from the judges — and a round of boos from the crowd, many of whom weren’t that impressed.
That left Diallo as the night’s final participant.
Article continues after this advertisementDiallo pulled off a dunk that will be talked about for years in the first round — dunking over O’Neal, hanging on the rim by his elbow, then tearing open his jersey to reveal a “Superman” shirt underneath. And then he plucked the ball from Quavo as he went airborne for the dunk that sealed the title.
