“Nobody Is Beating Mac McClung”: Shaquille O’Neal Predicts a Slam Dunk Contest Three-Peat

Aakash Nair | 29/01/2025
Shaquille O'Neal (L) and Mac McClung (R)

Without Charles Barkley on the dais for TNT Tuesdays, Shaquille O’Neal takes on the responsibility of delivering guarantees. This week, he confidently told Vince Carter, Candace Parker and Adam Lefkoe that Mac McClung will walk out of the All-Star weekend with his third straight Slam Dunk contest trophy.

The remaining participants, rookies Stephon Castle and Matas Buzelis will join sophomore guard Andre Jackson Jr. in San Francisco on Saturday, February 15th for the contest. They’ll need to gun on all cylinders to prevent McClung from becoming the first player to three-peat in the Slam Dunk contest.

However, Shaq believes they will not be able to hold a candle to the high-flying guard. “Nobody is beating Mac McClung. You heard it here first,” O’Neal said on TNT last night.

In 2023, the Orlando Magic star became the first G League player to participate in the Slam Dunk contest. He would make history by becoming the first G Leaguer to win it too. But before he even made it to the final round, he was blessed with some words of advice from the backboard breaking Hall of Famer.

“This is where you steal the show. Nobody knows your name. Make ’em remember your name, and don’t miss a dunk,” Shaq told McClung.

The big man was on Team McClung the following year too. The four-time NBA champion stood under the basket for the 26-year-old’s final dunk, helping him earn a perfect score of 50 for elevating over the 7-footer.

If he wins the 2025 Slam Dunk contest, not only will McClung become the first player to win three consecutive contests, he will join Nate Robinson as the only other play with three wins in NBA history.

Vince Carter wants stars to participate in the Slam Dunk contest

What’s interesting though is that McClung has only played five NBA games in his career thus far, one of which came this season. This would never fly two decades ago when Vince Carter was competing with the likes of Tracy McGrady.

The lack of starpower in the Slam Dunk contest has been a returning criticism of the format. Last season, the NBA managed to land Jaylen Brown as a participant, making him the first All-Star to appear in the contest since 2017.

However, Vinsanity would like to see more involvement from the league’s stars in future iterations of the All Star Weekend event. “There’s four guys that I would like to see in the dunk contest,” Carter said on TNT before the official list was announced.

“First is Shaedon Sharpe. Just watched him. He’s a guy that I think is very capable of winning. Jalen Johnson, another athlete that I think has some tricks. Obviously, Ja Morant. Very athletic. And lastly, Jalen Green.”

https://twitter.com/NBAonTNT/status/1884481753911316563

However, for now, we’ll just have to wait and see if Mac McClung makes Slam Dunk contest history in two weeks.

Post Edited By: Satagni Sikder
Mac McClung NBA All-Star Dunk Contest Shaquille O'Neal

About the author

Aakash Nair

Aakash Nair

NBA journalist Aakash Nair has followed the game for nearly a decade. He believes that basketball today is just as alive during the off-season with podcasts, interviews, articles and YouTube videos constantly providing fans with new insights. Aakash closely follows the game of narratives, of who will have a breakout year and who might be on the slump. As a fan, he is interested in all the context and behind-the-scenes moves that go into making a championship contender. As a writer, he intends to bring that same context to the forefront.

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