The man known as Dr. J was asked about the NBA Slam Dunk Contest and said the performances aren’t what they used to be. Why? Because the people inside those fuzzy team costumes have mad skills.
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“The mascots messed it up,” Erving said, via ESPN. “It was great seeing regular human beings, even though they were 6-foot-6, 250 pounds, running and dunking a basketball. When mascots started doing it with all the trampolines and all the crazy stuff and falling on the floor, then it became more like the X Games. The players can’t live up to that.”
There are other reasons why the dunk contest isn’t great viewing. If some of the top players, such as LeBron James, participated it would make the contest more enjoyable. But no, Dr. J places the blame on the mascots.
Erving is going to be a judge Saturday night in the slam dunk contest. I’m assuming for a player to earn a 10 from Erving they’ll have to live up to the lofty expectations of the mascots.
