CONTESTANTS: Tracy McGrady (HOU), Hakim Warrick (MEM), Antawn Jamison (WAS), Andres Nocioni (CHI)
JUDGES: Spud Webb, Dee Brown, Dominique Wilkins, George Gervin, Clyde Drexler
ROUND 1, Dunk 1
McGrady,
Warrick,
Jamison,
Nocioni
Tracy McGrady got things going for the '07-08 Slam Dunk Contest in electric fashion. McGrady launched the ball off his knee which careened off the far jumbo-tron then caught it several feet away from the basket, brought it down to the knees and finished with a clean reverse flush. From that moment on the crowd knew they were in for a terrific show.
SCORE: 50
Not to be outdone, heavy favorite,
Hakim Warrick, would step to the plate and deliver in emphatic fashion. Known for ridiculous hops and powerful yet creative dunks, Warrick drew the
"Ooohs!" and
"Aaaahs!" by slamming the ball with his fist, which ricocheted off the jumbo-tron, then snatching the ball with one hand in full extension the slamming it with enough force to wake the dead. The contest was truly "on."
SCORE: 50
Next up was Wizard's Forward,
Antawn Jamison. Not really known for anything above 'average' dunk ability, Jamison would make jaws drop with an incredible dunk that started with a bounce pass between his legs, off the backboard which he caught then seemed to elevate with even higher into a 'Statue of Liberty' pose before bringing it down hard and jamming his whole arm into to rim to suspend his hanging body. A point to the crowd verified that he was in it to win it.
SCORE: 50
Andres Nocioni was last at bat and maybe tried just a little too hard to please the judges and crowd, given the perfect 50's set before him. The dunk itself was actually pretty nice, starting by facing away from the rim, bouncing it to glance off the glass then bringing it down to his knees and finishing with a wicked reverse; but maybe it was the awkward landing, or maybe the excessive showboating including the 'Airplane'... whatever it was, the judges weren't too impressed.
SCORE: 45
ROUND 1, Dunk 2
McGrady,
Warrick,
Jamison,
Nocioni
With the competition stiff on his heels, McGrady would lead off again and this time showcase some power. He started by hefting the ball high into the air seemingly into the crowd; but little did anyone know his target was the crane-cam and as it struck off it, McGrady evelated high to meet it, cocking it back with one arm fully extended then throwing it down with utmost authority. Nobody stayed in their seat from that moment on.
SCORE: 50
McGrady's 50 set the standard but didn't faze Warrick in the slightest. In fact, if anything it seemed to pump him up and he responded with a breathtaking second dunk - facing away from the basket, he bounced it hard off the glass while reversing direction before charging the hoop, then elevating and windmilling the ball for a vicious one-hand slam which drove the crowd into an absolute frenzy.
SCORE: 50
Jamison perhaps feeling the heat, decided to take a page from a previously successful dunk champ and fellow Tar Heel alumni, breaking out with a classic
"Jordan" pose after a baseline punt. But having seen it before, the judges eliminated any chance of Jamison reaching the second round.
SCORE: 45
With no statistical chance of advancing, Nocioni could've easily conceded defeat and hid under a rock after his earlier silly showboating; but instead he stepped up, left it all on the court and put on a show for the fans - off the jumbo-tron, caught mid-air then rocked down low between the legs ala 'Dominique' and finished with a rim-rockin' fully-extended reverse. A redeeming, crowd and judge pleasing dunk which set the stage for the final round showdown between T-Mac and Warrick.
SCORE: 50
___
ROUND 2, Dunk 1
Warrick,
McGrady
Having reached the final round, Warrick would have his chance to put the pressure on McGrady by going first. He played to the crowd and fellow players observing at courtside including New York's,
Stephon Marbury, Golden State's,
Jason Richardson and Denver's,
Carmelo Anthony. Starting with the ball behind him, Warrick launched the ball skyward, charged the baseline, caught the ball and brought it below his knees before hammering it down in a mean reverse. The crowd loved it, the judges loved it - but it wasn't perfect and left McGrady a tiny window of opportunity.
SCORE: 48
McGrady's killer instincts made him pull out all the stops in his final round opening dunk - bouncing the ball between his legs and off the glass, T-Mac took off just inside the freethrow line to meet the ball mid air; catching the ball far from the rim, McGrady seemed suspended in time as he floated towards the basket while he brought the rock under his legs, over his head then crashing down with authority through the hoop. Staring into the camera, even
he knew it was a perfect dunk.
SCORE: 50
ROUND 2, Dunk 2
Warrick,
McGrady (WARNING: large 1.4 MB)
Warrick seemed uncharacteristically frazzled by the crowd's reaction to McGrady's perfect 50 and with the pressure now clearly on his shoulders, he would settle for less than perfect on his final dunk - taking off from a running start, Warrick soared high to the basket and like Jamison earlier, brought his arm fully through it to suspend his body from the rim. It was nice but Jamison's was more difficult and had more style so judges took note and docked Warrick hard.
SCORE: 44
Victory clearly in his sights, McGrady refused to play it safe on his final dunk of the night - an incredible mid-air corkscrew that brought his torso near horizontal to the floor at the apex which he then finished thunderously with two hands. Immediately he raised a sole finger to point at everyone in the crowd to signify the #1 on his jersey and #1 status he knew he achieved as the baddest dunker of '07-08.
SCORE: 48
Shaking his head in disbelief the Knick's, Stephon Marbury, watching from courtside said,
"Man, that was like... incredible Superman sh!t. That last dunk, it like... puts lotta torque n' stress on yo' spine n' still wit' all the back probs T-Mac's had? he still went wit' it. Like I says - incredible."
"Man oh man oooh man," said Denver's, Carmelo Anthony.
"That was some great stuff. Tracy wasn't really the favorite because of his back but he really showed everyone he's fine and put on an amazing show"
The 2007-2008 Slam Dunk Contest Champion - Tracy McGrady
But T-Mac's got little time for celebrating... as he prepares for the evening's
3-Point Shootout!
by Clutch on Wed Oct 31, 2007 7:36 pm 
but yeah cpu vs cpu as usual but good catch - i did have to do a "do over" because i played a first game and didn't realize that there are no box scores for the game after you quit it; it sucked too because it was an awesome game where Tank almost had a triple-double and scored 35 points but the MVP trophy went to Sophmore Vince Dehere since the Sophs won by 2; because i had no stats/proof of Tank's incredible performance, i had to redo it and since i was annoyed having to redo the game i shortened it to 8 min qtrs thus the lower score
yeah maybe it's that pretty-boy-can-do-everything-steal-your-girlfriend kinda look; or the fact his head looks a little too small for his body;
