Griffin Simply Given Dunk Title

Blake Griffin could have just showed up, done run-of-the-mill, recycled dunks and been handed the Dunk Contest trophy Saturday night. And that's exactly what happened.

In today's dunk contests, it's rare to do anything - ANYTHING - that hasn't been seen before. Creativity is essential but now it's all props and gimmicks. JaVale McGee's two-basket, double-dunk was impressive but when you have to wheel in another basket, it's not a true dunk. Dwight Howard's from 2009, with the extended 11-foot basket, was also new but very gimmicky. And that's what the dunk contest has become. 

DeRozan should have made finals

Maybe that's why I felt DeMar DeRozan got hosed on his scores. A between-the-legs dunk from the baseline off a pass off the support system deserves higher than 44. Missing the first few attempts probably hurt that particular dunk and the fact it was the first dunk of the night didn't help his score. McGee and Griffin missed even more attempts yet weren't dinged on their scores. 

DeRozen didn't need any props for his attempts. He was the only one that didn't use any, or he was saving them for the final round. DeRozan scored one of the two 50s in the first round with his second attempt, yet didn't make the finals. That's not a surprise when Griffin had already been penciled in for one of the spots.

Griffin's dunks weren't anything new or impressive. He moved on through the competition based on the fact everyone wanted to see him win. His first dunk attempt looked like it was going to be very impressive. However, after two misses he modified it to a standard 360 cock-back dunk. Every person in the contest can do that dunk. His second attempt was even more run-of-the-mill. A baseline windmill from a pass off the side of the backboard.....after seven attempts. And the worst part is it got a 46, better than DeRozan's between-the-legs dunk. It was clear at that point, the fix was in. No matter what Griffin did he was going to win. He shouldn't have even made the finals. DeRozan and McGee were the two best dunkers of the first round.

The one Griffin dunk I did like was his rendition of Vince Carter's arm-in-the-rim dunk. Griffin tossed it off the backboard before powering it through. Even though we've seen that type of dunk before, I'll take it because he tweaked it and added some of his power to it. 

Good idea but jumping the hood isn't that great

And that brings me to maybe the most overrated dunk there's ever been. When you say "he dunked over a car" it sounds impressive. Unfortunately it wasn't in this case. The small Kia they wheeled out was placed under the basket so he didn't have to jump far. Going over the hood meant he didn't have to get very high. The whole thing was set up long before the event even started. They would use the "official car of the NBA" to bring down the house with everyone's "favorite dunker", Blake Griffin. Cue the choir singing "I Believe I Can Fly." (Another low-light.) 

Of course Griffin would have to be in the finals. Sorry, better dunker, you're gone. The Blake Griffin cash cow must be milked. It's been set up for months now.

At least Chuck called it like he saw it.

"I hate to say this but that's not the greatest dunk," Barkley said. 

"But the presentation was pretty fun," Kevin Harlan said. 

"Yeah, but that's like when you have a pretty girl. If she's dumb, it don't matter."

The other dunker, Serge Ibaka, didn't 'wow' me with his rendition of the "free throw line" dunk. He took off right at the line, which is further back than we've seen, but he's 6'11" so it cancels out. Brent Barry could take off from near the free throw line. Grabbing the toy with his mouth hanging at the rim, and especially the kid actor, was silly. 

I watch the dunk contest every year. I get what the league is trying to do with it - get people watching and create a spectacle. However it's getting a bit out of hand at this point, which is hurting the event. The contestants don't need "coaches", especially yelling at the crowd and commentators, and pumping up the crowd. No more bringing extra baskets out. No more cars. It's time to eliminate the props. 

The real "best ever"

Maybe I'm a stick in the mud but I know what I'm looking for and I haven't been seeing it lately. Maybe I'm not embracing the new-school dunk contests. But I saw the highlights of MJ and Dominique battling. There were no props there. Just high-flying, power dunks.

I saw the best dunk contest ever in 2000 with winner Vince Carter and Steve Francis and Tracy McGrady. There were no props used. Vince Carter didn't miss one of his dunks. They were fresh and incredible. Jason Richardson did some amazing dunks that hadn't been seen before when he won back-to-back titles. The closest thing to those two is DeMar DeRozan. He is doing some dunks no one else playing right now can do, and he's doing them so easily I think it's hurting his scores. And he doesn't have the name recognition, that's his biggest problem. And being a good player should factor in to it. 

I'll keep watching All-Star Weekend, always. The dunk contest has the ability to be great. It just wasn't Saturday night, and it hasn't been great in the past few years. Maybe my standards are too high. 

(Photos: ESPN, Getty Images)

Phil Jackson on Dan Patrick Show

I don't listen to the "DP Show" too often. I won't go into a diatribe here about how his comedy stylings and talkative crew turn me off to the program, I'll just say he does a nice job with interviews. Phil Jackson called in this morning. Thanks to my twitter feed (from @AndrewSiciliano), I got the rare national interview by Phil on my radar. I needed an appointment to catch the appearance because he's rarely, if ever, on the shows I frequently listen to (The Herd, The Jim Rome Show). Any Phil interview, at any time, is intriguing. Including those in-game interviews.

Phil Jackson's thoughts on the Lakers and league, courtesy of the Dan Patrick Show, Feb. 16 [AUDIO].

Some excerpts:

On Blake Griffin: "He's going to be a multi-dimensional player, and doesn’t look like he’ll be content just doing those whirly-twirly dunks he can do. We all hope he’ll have the ability to monitor when it’s important to do that type of slam because there’s a reason his knee gave out last year. You can only exhort and expend that body that way so often and sometimes it’s going to get you in trouble…. You learn that as you grow and age in this league.”

Last season? "I'm fully determined to end my career as a coach. (pause for laughter) Did you like that?"

Another Quotable: "I have to watch Modern Family. That's what my kids tell me I have to watch."

Jackson says the only thing the Lakers need to add is Matt Barnes back to the lineup, who's been out 4-5 weeks with a knee injury and his absence has affected the second unit. Jackson also talked about the long road trip and Jerry Sloan.

The Lakers have one more game tonight at Cleveland, which will be a nice break after two bad losses, before resting for the All-Star break. I don't read too far into the losses at Orlando and Charlotte. Four games in five day, three on national TV. The Bobcats "have the Lakers' number", whatever that means. Los Angeles has dropped 8 of last 10 in Charlotte.

Bad News for Griffin

Blake Griffin is out for the year. He hasn't played one game. Uh-oh! That isn't good for anybody. Not for him, not for the Clippers and certainly not for the fans.

 

The non-contact injury to his knee-cap is troublesome. A career that starts this way typically never takes off. Griffin answered questions during last week's Clippers/Lakers game on ESPN. He said he felt fine, but was just doing what the doctors told him. I guess it wasn't going as planned and they decided it wasn't worth playing this year and opted for surgery now.

I'm hoping for a complete recovery. I was excited for Griffin to get into the NBA and hope to see him reach at least some of his potential.

•  Dirk Nowitzki passed 20,000 career points Wed. night against the Lakers. Without a doubt, the most accomplished European player in NBA history. 
• Kobe grinded through back spasms during that game.  Played sparingly in the first half, but finished with 35 minutes. Hit the go-ahead jumper with :28 seconds left. The Lakers have beat the Mavs twice in the last 10 days.
• Corey Brewer hit an amazing shot to send the game at Houston into overtime. The Rockets prevailed in triple overtime, 120-114.