10) Chase Budinger (NBA – Rockets): Budinger gets our nod for dedicating one of his dunks to Woody Harrelson’s character in White Men Can’t Jump. Budinger soared over hip-hop impresario Diddy during this year’s dunk contest. ‘Billy Hoyle’ would be proud. (Photo: Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)
9) Josh McRoberts (NBA – Blazers, Pacers, Lakers): Don’t sleep on McRoberts. He’s been on the receiving end of plenty of alley-oop highlights, especially during his stint with the Indiana Pacers. McRoberts first made dunks his forte as a Duke Blue Devil. (Photo: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
8) Chris Anderson (NBA – Hornets, Nuggets): Anderson’s hair style may make him the “Birdman”, but his dunks and defensive energy keep him on the floor. Anderson’s high-octane dunks have made him a fan-favorite in Denver. He’s also a 2X slam dunk participant. (Photo: Doug Pensinger/Getty Images)
7) Dan Majerle (NBA – Sonics, Suns, 3 other teams): “Thunder” Dan was a fierce dunker early in his career before he became mainly a 3-point-threat for both the Suns and the Miami Heat. He didn’t need much room, either – Majerle was quicker to the rim than most. (Photo: Ken Levine /Allsport)
6) Rex Chapman (NBA – Hornets, 3 other teams): Chapman was a double digit scorer in 13 of his 14 NBA seasons. His ‘flip’ dunk may be pedestrian by today’s standards, but Chapman gets props for creativity. And he could knock down a 3 pointer at will. (Photo: Aubrey Washington/Staff)
5) Bob Sura (NBA – Cavaliers, 4 other teams): Unfortunately, Sura is known more for getting dunked on by Michael Jordan than his own vertical prowess. Sura competed in the ‘97 dunk contest and had his fair share of high-wire acts for the Cavaliers. (Photo:Brian Bahr/Staff)
4) Jacob ‘Hops’ Tucker (Harlem Globetrotters): Tucker makes our list as the only non-NBA dunk specialist. They don’t call him ‘Hops’ for nothing. He won the 2011 NCAA dunk contest and his You Tube dunk compilations have attracted millions of views. (Photo: Dennis Cotton/Harlem Globetrotters)
3) Tom Chambers (NBA – Sonics, Suns, 4 other teams): Chambers makes the list for his 1989 poster dunk on Knicks guard Mark Jackson alone. The Suns retired his #24 jersey. Chambers was a four-time All-Star and averaged 18 points per game for his career. (Photo: Stephen Dunn /Allsport)
2) David Lee (NBA – Knicks, Warriors): Lee isn’t flashy but his athleticism is undeniable. Lee’s been posterizing folks since high school, when he won the McDonald’s All-American dunk contest in 2001. Ask Gerald Wallace if Lee’s got hops. (Photo: Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
1) Brent Barry (NBA – Clippers, 5 other teams): Barry still gets no love for winning the NBA’s dunk contest in ‘96. A lot of hoops fans don’t even know Barry took off from the free throw line – twice. Barry remains the only non-black player to win the event. (Photo: Todd Warshaw /Allsport)
With one emphatic dunk, Woody Harrelson turned stereotypes upside down in the classic basketball film White Men Can’t Jump. The film, which was released 20 years ago today, also starred Wesley Snipes as Harrelson’s African-American hoop partner.
Together, the pair hustled and hollered their way around Los Angeles’ pick-up basketball circuit — cashing in and creating problems along the way.
TheGrio: The 15 best dunkers in NBA history
Rockets forward Chase Budinger payed homage to the film in this year’s Slam Dunk Contest. Budinger soared over hip-hop mogul Diddy, wearing a backwards cap just like Harrelson’s character Billy Hoyle in the movie. Sure, the NBA is still majority-African-American — but here are the league’s top ten greatest dunkers who look like Woody, but jump like Mike.
