The NBA All-Star Weekend was held in New Orleans over the past few days, and many exciting highlights from the three days worth of festivities have emerged.
Among them, the dunk that won Orlando Magic player Dwight Howard the NBA 2008 Slam Dunk Contest title. Video footage of the event, which you can view below, has been flooding services like YouTube since Saturday night.
Howard, who plays both center and power forward for the Magic, can be seen shedding his jersey and donning that familiar red cape with the Superman emblem as he readies to take his turn in the contest.
As the commentators make very clear in their excitement and during the 90 seconds of replays that follow this awesome feat of athleticism, Howard jumped high enough to not just dunk the ball into the hoop–he actually throws the ball through from his position above the net. That’s right, you heard me. Above the net. (Watch the slow motion replay at 1:23.)
The announcers immediately start screaming that Howard has won, so I am not sure if they even looked at the judges table for scorecards. They might have just been reacting to their own amazement or to the piercing screams from the crowd.
Surely, this moment will go down in NBA history, but you can bet it won’t be the only Dwight Howard moment to be remembered down the road. The 22-year-old from Atlanta has emerged as the team leader of the Magic in the mere four years he’s been playing. Howard, who chose to enter into the NBA right out of high school rather than play in college, has been an NBA All-Star selection for the past two seasons.
After watching this video, I don’t think anyone will doubt his ability to get picked again next season. Take a look:
Tags: Dwight Howard, NBA, basketball, Superman dunk, 2008 Slam Dunk Contest, NBA All-Star Weekend