
NBA Slam Dunk Contest 2025 lineup: Players, judges, format, rules and tiebreakers
In 2025? We've got four participants that include the defending champ twice over — yes, a G League player is the current dunk king! — along with a pair of very intriguing rookies and a second-year player.
Here's a look at the entire list of participants, the judges, and the format and rules so you know how it's all going to go down:
Who's participating in the 2025 NBA Dunk Contest?
Mac McClung, Osceola Magic of the G League
Stephon Castle, San Antonio Spurs
Andre Jackson Jr., Milwaukee Bucks
Matas Buzelis, Chicago Bulls
Who are the Slam Dunk Contest judges?
Kevin Garnett
Tracy McGrady
Baron Davis
Jason Richardson
Fans will get a vote via the NBA app and Jesser will reveal their score
What are the rules and format for the 2025 NBA Dunk Contest? What's the tiebreaker?
In the first round, players will get two dunk attempts and the highest composite score wins. If there's a tie, per the NBA: 'Jesser will provide a tie-breaking pick on behalf of the NBA ID community.'
The top two dunkers move on. Each player will complete their two dunks. The best dunk score wins. The dunkers will have a minute and 30 seconds and three attempts total.
What time is the 2025 NBA Dunk Contest?
All-Star Saturday starts at 8 p.m. ET at the Chase Center in San Francisco.
What channel is the 2025 NBA Dunk contest on?
It's on TNT and truTV.
We occasionally recommend interesting products and services. If you make a purchase by clicking one of the links, we may earn an affiliate fee. FTW operates independently, though, and this doesn't influence our coverage.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


CBS News
28 minutes ago
- CBS News
White Sox's Colson Montgomery is confident as he thrives in the Major Leagues
As the White Sox got swept in Kansas City, Colson Montgomery cooled off — going 2-for-13 at the plate. But the 23-year-old slugging shortstop is one of the young talents sparking hope for the future on the South Side. Montgomery explained in a one-on-one interview with CBS News Chicago how he made up his mind to live up to the first-round pick hype. He was the No. 22 overall pick in the 2021 Draft, though he only made his first Major League appearance recently. "I feel like when I go up there and I try to do what I want to do, things usually — I'm a lot more comfortable up there than when you go up there and you're thinking about, what's his best pitch? What does he want to do to me?" he said. "So I think it's pretty much just doing what I want to do at the plate." Montgomery made the jump to the Big Leagues this year. In April, Montgomery was sent to the White Sox facility in Arizona for two weeks, and then returned to Triple-A Charlotte Knights before the White Sox recalled him in July. He said the adversity and struggles this season have all been a learning experience. "It's like I've told some people before — I'm not going to sit here and, you know, throw a little pity party about everything I had to go through, and feel sorry for me, because you know, I needed to go through that, you know?" he said. "Early in my career in the lower levels, I had a lot of success, so I kind of got punched in the mouth, and I feel like you can really respond two ways, you know? You can go in hiding, or you can kind of try to do whatever you can to get out of it, and I had a lot of support with the White Sox really believing in me, and that was kind of one of the big things that helped me." Montgomery made his Major League debut with the White Sox on July 4, and has taken off in the weeks since. He made an impressive diving, over-the-shoulder catch in the second inning in that game — which the Sox won 3-2 — and hit a 452-foot home run when the Sox took on the Cleveland Guardians last weekend. He was asked what his favorite moment in his short time in the Majors has been. "I think one of the best moments is just when we're winning. You know, my first series in Colorado — being able to win that series — that was pretty special. And then coming out of All-Star break — first sweep in the Big Leagues, you know, with the Pirates," Montgomery said. "So I think just all the moments with these guys in winning I think are the best." Montgomery also said he is sticking "100%" with torpedo bats, Torpedo bats Sticking with 100% "It's like a thing as a hitter, you know? Once you — it's like certain batting gloves, certain bats you just feel most comfortable in, and that's one of the biggest things in the boxes—just feel as comfortable as you can — and I don't know, when I feel like I have any kind of bat in my hand, I feel like I'm dangerous, you know?" he said. "But I don't know, I like the torpedo, and I guess it likes me too."
Yahoo
43 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Larry Bird knew he still had it after hitting 20 shots in a row in his 60s: "I can still play a little"
Larry Bird knew he still had it after hitting 20 shots in a row in his 60s: "I can still play a little" originally appeared on Basketball Network. Nothing ever stopped Larry Bird from retiring when he decided that he was done with basketball in 1992. Though he remained in the NBA as a coach and later as a team executive, Bird never felt the itch to suit up and play again. Unlike other retired former NBA stars, Bird was very much at peace with his departure from the game. He had no hang-ups, even though he was prompted to call it quits because of chronic back pain. However, Bird realized that his hot hand hasn't diminished one bit. It's worth mentioning that he was already in his 60s when he randomly decided to pick the ball up after an Indiana Pacers practice and discovered that he still had it. "I'm having a good time, I have the time to enjoy working outside, golfing, fishing, staying busy with various business and personal projects," the Boston Celtics legend told The Boston Herald in 2021. "I pretty much put the basketball down when I retired, but I did hit 20 shots in a row after a game practice a couple of years ago in my street clothes, so I am thinking I can still play a little," the Hall of Famer fondly revealed. Bird has a witness As it turns out, no lies were detected in Bird's story. Former Pacers star shooting guard Paul George once confirmed it. In fact, it was one of George's favorite Larry Legend moments during his time with the Pacers. Just like how Bird described it, George said the NBA icon was in street clothes that day. To this day, PG13 is still in disbelief at how a 60-something Bird could sink long-range shot after long-range shot. What's even more epic is that Bird just walked out like nothing happened after making those shots in front of the team. "One of my all-time favorite stories of Larry; it was after practice, right?" PG once recounted. "We're shooting, and he's like walking out of the gym, about to leave. I've never seen him play. I've never seen him shoot. I always had this vision of him from YouTube videos and old clips like that. But the ball rolls over to him. He's in slacks. He's in a button-down. He got his loafers on." "So, he picks the ball up, and I'm sure he probably hasn't shot the ball in like, I don't know, years at this point. Shoots that motherfu*ker, cash, and then just smooth walked out, bro," then Pacers star added. Bird's greatness is timeless What Bird did inside the Pacers' practice facility that day only goes to show that his greatness is timeless. While some of his contemporaries were already out of shape, Larry Legend could still casually drain jump shots without any practice or warm-up. At present, Bird was welcomed back by the Pacers and is working with the team as a consultant. He is already 68 years old, but it wouldn't be a shock to hear another story about him showing up in the gym, picking up a basketball and hitting long-range like it is the middle of the story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Aug 17, 2025, where it first appeared.


USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
Lakers jersey history No. 4 — Adrian Dantley
Through the 2024-25 season, the Los Angeles Lakers have had a total of 506 players suit up for them, going back to their days in Minneapolis. Some were forgettable, some were serviceable, some were good and a select few were flat-out legendary. As the Lakers approach their 80th season of existence (they were founded back in 1946 as the Detroit Gems in the National Basketball League), LeBron Wire is taking a look at each player who has worn their jersey, whether it has been a purple and gold one or the ones they donned back in the Midwest during their early years. Here's a look at a player who some may not know once played for the Lakers — Adrian Dantley. Dantley had a stellar individual stint at the University of Notre Dame, not exactly a school known for its basketball program. In three years there, he averaged 25.8 points and 9.8 rebounds a game, and he peaked at 30.4 points a game as a sophomore. When he was a freshman during the 1973-74 season, the Fighting Irish were the team that ended the University of California, Los Angeles' 88-game winning streak. The Bruins were led by legends such as center Bill Walton and forward Jamaal Wilkes and were coached by the iconic John Wooden. Just after his college career ended, Dantley earned an Olympic gold medal with the United States. He was taken with the No. 6 pick in the 1976 NBA Draft by the Buffalo Braves. Early in his second NBA season, he was traded to the Lakers. The Lakers were trying to build a championship team around Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and he didn't do too badly. In one and a half seasons with them, he averaged 18.3 points a game while shooting 51.5% from the field. But L.A. was simply too unbalanced to get over the hump. It had Dantley, a 6-foot-5 forward, and Wilkes, who was 6-foot-6, starting at the forward spots, and neither was able to support Abdul-Jabbar defensively or on the boards. With Magic Johnson coming on board as a rookie in 1979, the Lakers traded Dantley to the Utah Jazz for the talented but troubled Spencer Haywood. In Utah, he truly started to blossom — he would average 29.6 points a game in seven seasons with the Jazz and lead the NBA in scoring twice. He then played two seasons and change with the Detroit Pistons before getting traded to the Dallas Mavericks midway through the 1988-89 campaign. No matter where he went, Dantley made an impact with his immense scoring skills. Despite his less-than-ideal height as a small forward, he had an excellent low-post game, and he was also a free throw magnet who shot 81.8% from the charity stripe for his career.