How Mac McClung, an undrafted player who was dropped by G League teams, became ‘saviour’ of NBA’s Dunk Contest
Just before the Dunk Contest at the 2023 NBA All-Star Weekend started, basketball legend-turned-analyst Shaquille O’Neal filmed himself telling Mac McClung: “This is where you steal the show. Nobody knows your name. Make them remember your name. And don’t miss a dunk!”
Over the course of four dunks, McClung did all of that at Salt Lake City. He did so well, in fact, that Shaq and Magic Johnson later said that McClung had ‘saved the dunk contest’. LeBron James went even further in his praise, putting McClung’s defiance of gravity on par with the iconic performances in the past by Michael Jordan and Vince Carter. With their praise, the three NBA superstars had put on a lofty pedestal a man who, until a week before the All-Star Weekend, none of the 30 NBA teams had deemed worthy of even a ...