Looks like the Toronto Raptors will continue the trend of being represented in the Slam Dunk contest. About the only exposure Toronto gets in the All-Star weekend. Unfortunately Ross was snubbed from the Rookie vs Sophomore game which means the league doesn’t think he’s good enough to make the rookie team, but he’s a good enough dunker.

It will be interesting this season as they have made some changes and it will now feature an East vs West format. I wonder if this will help the contest/all-star weekend but regardless it’s always fun and full of highlights.



Terrence Ross Dunk Highlights

Here’s the break down:

2013 Eastern Conference Sprite Slam Dunk Competitors

Gerald Green (Indiana)

Terrence Ross (Toronto)

James White (New York)

2013 Western Conference Sprite Slam Dunk Competitors

Eric Bledsoe (L.A. Clippers)

Jeremy Evans (Utah)

Kenneth Faried (Denver)

The rules and format has changed a bit also. Here is the info regarding how the dunk contest will go down.

2013 Sprite Slam Dunk

SIX COMPETITORS

Three players representing the Eastern Conference and three players representing the Western Conference will compete in the two-round competition.

COMPETITION RULES

• TIME LIMIT — Upon receiving the ball from the referee, players will have a 1:30 to complete their dunk. Attempts resulting in missed dunks are unlimited during the 1:30 time period. However, once a made dunk is ruled by the referee, that dunk will be scored. There is no replacing a made dunk, even if time remains.

• FINAL ATTEMPT — If a player has not begun an attempt that results in a made dunk when the 1:30 clock expires, he will have one final attempt. An attempt is defined as the ball leaving the player’s (or an assistant’s) hand in an effort to finish the dunk (in any motion other than dribbling). The referee is the final judge and will advise the dunker when they have used their attempt.

• OFFICIATING — A referee will judge whether a dunk is considered a made dunk or a missed dunk.

• PROPS — Use of any props or people to assist in any way during the slam dunk competition must be approved in advance of the competition by the NBA Basketball Operations department.

• INSTANT REPLAY — At the discretion of the referee, television instant replay may be consulted for rules compliance.

TEAM ROUND

• Each competitor will complete two dunks which will be scored on a scale of 6 to 10 by a panel of 5 judges.

• Each dunk has a maximum score of 50 and a minimum score of 30.

• FIRST DUNK – All three Eastern Conference players will complete their first dunk, followed by the three West players.

• SECOND DUNK – All three Eastern Conference players will complete their second dunk, followed by the three West players. The second dunk order WITHIN each conference will be determined by first dunk scores (lowest to highest).

• The three Eastern Conference players will have their scores (all six dunks) added to get a TOTAL score.

• The three Western Conference players will have their scores (all six dunks) added to get a TOTAL score.

• 50 POINTS will be awarded to the conference that has the highest TOTAL score after the Team Round.

• Each time a player scores a perfect 50 for a dunk during the Team Round, his conference will have 10 BONUS POINTS added to its overall All-Star Saturday Night score.

• The East player with the highest combined score for his two dunks advances to the Championship Round.

• The West player with the highest combined score for his two dunks advances to the Championship Round.

CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND

• The highest scoring East competitor and the highest scoring West competitor from the Team Round will compete head-to-head to determine the competition champion.

• The competitor with the lower combined score for his two Team Round dunks will go first.

• The players will alternate, each completing two dunks in the Championship Round.

• At the beginning of the Championship Round, fan voting polls will open with four voting options:

1) SMS Text Message* – Text the player’s last name to 38657(DUNKS)

2) Twitter** – Tweet #SpriteSlam with the player’s last name

3) Vote via the NBA All-Star App

4) Log on to NBA.com from any computer or mobile device

• The player who has the highest percentage of combined votes from all platforms will be crowned champion.

• 55 POINTS will be awarded to the conference of the competition champion.

TIEBREAKERS

• TEAM ROUND — In the event both conferences achieve the same TOTAL score, the 50 points for the Team Round will be split evenly (25 points awarded to each conference).

• To Advance from Team Round — A tie amongst conference players after the Team Round will result in a one dunk “dunk-off” to determine the Championship Round participant.

• To Determine Champion — If each dunker receives 50.00% of the votes, a one-dunk “dunk-off” will take place to determine the champion. All “dunk-offs” will be judged by the panel of judges and the time limit rule will apply.

*SMS Text Message Voting — Number of votes per user is unlimited. Voting is available to users on all major wireless carriers in the United States, plus most 2nd tier carriers. Voting is also available to wireless users in Canada. Message and data rates may apply.

**Twitter Voting – Number of votes is limited to 100 votes per user. Voting is available to users with a valid Twitter account. If accessed from a mobile device, message and data rates may apply.