SAN FRANCISCO — About a year ago at this time, Mac McClung thought his dunk contest days were done. He’d been in the contest at the NBA’s All-Star weekend twice, won it both times with plenty of flair and figured there was nothing else to prove.
Then a week later, he found himself practicing new dunks. And that’s when he quickly realized that he has one — and, he insists, only one — dunk contest left in him.
“I love the contest, man,” said McClung, who played briefly for the 76ers in the 2022-23 season. “It’d be an action in fear not to do it again. So I’ll do it — one last time.”
The 6-foot-2 McClung — a standout guard in the G League who has appeared in only five NBA games — is headed back to All-Star weekend, looking to become the first person to win the league’s dunk title in three consecutive years. Nate Robinson is the only three-time dunk champion, though his didn’t come in back-to-back-to-back years.
McClung breathed new life into the dunk contest and got rave reviews from some of the NBA’s biggest names when he first won it in 2023, then went airborne over Shaquille O’Neal to win it again last year. He’ll go for three in a row Saturday night in San Francisco, with San Antonio rookie Stephon Castle, Chicago rookie Matas Buzelis, and Milwaukee second-year wing Andre Jackson Jr. providing the competition.
“I’m not going there to lose,” Buzelis said.
Added Jackson: “I just want to be myself and put on a show.”
Castle is confident as well, though he acknowledged he expects to feel some nerves on Saturday night.
“I get nervous for most games,” Castle said. “I think it’s just going to be another event for me.”
When this weekend is over, they’ll all head back to their NBA jobs. McClung, for now, continues to wait for a real opportunity.
His five NBA games have come with four NBA teams — one with Chicago, one with the Los Angeles Lakers, two with the Sixers, and one with Orlando. He has scored 33 points in those games, 20 of which came in one contest with the Sixers at Brooklyn on April 9, 2023.
He hasn’t scored an NBA point since that day.
“The easy answer is opportunity,” McClung said. “It’s not just Mac McClung. There’s a lot of G League guys that can play in the league. There’s a lot of guys I’ve seen in the G League and then they get an opportunity in the [NBA] and people are like, ‘Man, he got so much better this last year.’ And I’m like, ‘No, he’s been good.’ I really have my faith in God, and believe I’m always right where I’m supposed to be.”
For now, that’s with the Osceola Magic. He is on a two-way contract with Orlando, and McClung is averaging 24.5 points and 6.1 assists during this G League regular season. He’s been rookie of the year, he’s been a G League champion, and this season, he’s the reigning G League MVP.
“I take pride in the G League,” McClung said. “Each year it’s so hard because when you’re on a two-way people are like, ‘Be ready, stay ready.’ But I’m trying to win in the G League. That’s important to me. Winning a championship is always the standard, and hopefully we can do that this year in Osceola and apply even more pressure.”
Winning back-to-back dunk contests has brought fame. People recognize McClung more now, but he hasn’t changed. He is comfortable in jeans and T-shirts, drives a Ford Bronco, has the same group of friends that will smack him back in line if need be. He is proud to be the small-town kid from Gate City, Va. — who just happens to be able to jump higher than most people and has become one of the most famous dunkers in the world.
He has been offered chances to play in Europe for bigger money than he is making in the G League, too. But the dream remains the NBA, and McClung isn’t ready to give up on it. He always has been the underdog and typically has found a way to turn his hopes into reality.
“It’s funny. I don’t even look at myself as a dunker,” McClung said. “The people that know me best know I’m a competitor first. Obviously, I haven’t made an impact in the league yet or anything like that, but that’s who I want to be and where I want to be. That’s truly where my heart is.”
He’ll be back on the NBA stage on Saturday, with a shot at dunking his way into history.