5 NBA players who could win a 35-and-older dunk contest
By John Buhler
Age is only a number, unless your knees don’t work anymore. Here are five NBA players over 35 years old that could win a 35+ slam dunk contest.
The NBA All-Star game needs some work. No star player is going to play defense in this glorified exhibition, as nobody wants to get hurt for the NBA Playoffs. The three-point contest and skills competition are neat, but we have to make All-Star Weekend better.
Here’s one crazy theory to get the fans fired up. Let’s add a 35-and-older division to the slam dunk contest. Of course, it’s caveat emptor for these aging NBA veterans, but we want to be entertained. If there are five guys in the NBA today that are 35-and-older who can get this done, here are the ones who can win this slam dunk contest.
It doesn’t matter if he can’t jump over a phone book, Memphis Grizzlies power forward Zach Randolph would claw and grit his way through a slam dunk contest because that’s the type of player he is.
Because leaping ability is not his strong suit, should Randolph get a foot or two off the ground, the slam dunk panel would absolutely give him the benefit of the doubt in a 35+ slam dunk contest. Randolph has been an ultra-physical frontcourt player in the NBA since 2001 with the Portland Trail Blazers. He turned 35 years of age back on July 16, 2016.
Would Z-Bo be above using a prop to win the 35-and-older slam dunk contest? How about no. Let’s get Randolph, Memphis mascot Grizz, and a fold-out picnic table and just see what happens.
Breaking a picnic table on an alley-oop from the Grizz would have to be Randolph’s best dunk in this 35-and-older slam dunk contest. Randolph won’t win on finesse maneuvers above the rim. His best shot is with Raw Power like he’s Iggy Pop … and destroying a fold-out picnic table to send the crowd into a frenzy. The world needs this to happen in the 35+ dunk contest.