On All-Star Saturday, perhaps the most hyped event was the Sprite Slam Dunk Contest.

And it wasn’t so much because of the event itself, but instead due to the inclusion of the most exciting dunker to come into the NBA in years – Blake Griffin.  Griffin’s repertoire of in-game dunks have been nothing short of amazing, and naturally there was a great amount of enthusiasm from fans regarding his participation in the competition.

So, now that all is said and done, did Griffin live up to the expectations?

Admittedly, I was one of the many who entered the night anxious to see what type of show Griffin would give us.  But I came away with the following thoughts at the end of the night:

Serge Ibaka pulled off the only legit dunk from the free throw line in the history of the contest.  The seven footer did something that Michael Jordan and Julius Erving weren’t able to do.  And he didn’t even get a 50 from the judges.  That was mind boggling to say the least.

JaVale McGee’s dunk attempts were creatively weird.  Sure, he did some unconventional dunks including the two rim dunk and the three basketball dunk, but they really lacked thunder.  And if we’re talking about a seven footer in the dunk contest, you cannot lack thunder.

Was there a little score tampering amongst the esteemed panel of judges?  It amazed me how Blake Griffin’s not-so-awe-inspiring second dunk (in the opening round) received just the amount of points that he needed to eclipse DeMar DeRozan and make it into the finals.

And finally, there was the ”car dunk.”  Now, in no way am I suggesting that leaping over any part of a car to dunk is child’s play.  While this may be something new to the NBA stage, any casual AND1 fan has seen this done before.  And to put the emphasis on the player’s vertical elevation, the player would jump over the body of the car…not the hood.  That being said, that dunk will be an All-Star Saturday signature moment for years to come.

And then there was the build-up for the dunk.  Bringing in a choir?  Apparently that was Baron Davis’ idea, and it was certainly over the top. 

All in all, Griffin achieved what we all expected and claimed the title in his first NBA dunk competition.  But he did not do something that we haven’t seen yet.  From his elbow in the rim off the lob (a la Vince Carter), to his toss off the side of the backboard and subsequent dunk (Dwight Howard, Andre Iguodala), Griffin was good…but not great or innovative.

T Lamont is the owner, administrator and author of all content for Ball or Nuthin\'. Feel free to contact T Lamont with a question or comment at ballornuthin@gmail.com.  All created Ball or Nuthin' content is the sole property of T Lamont. Read more from this author