In the past, NBA Slam Dunk contestants had free rein to decide what dunk to do. However, that changed in 2002 with the implementation of a wheel of dunks which a contestant had to replicate. Charles Barkley wasn’t a fan of the idea then—and still isn’t one now. He brought up his own limitations to poke holes in the fairness toward the players.
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In 2002, the NBA decided to add more flavor to the dunk contest by introducing a wheel that indicated the dunk the participant had to replicate. There were six categories available: Human Highlight Reel (Dominque Wilkins), His Airness (Michael Jordan), Dr. J Classics (Julius Erving), 1980s, 1990s, and a mystery section.
In the middle of the wheel was a big screen. Once the wheel stopped moving, the screen would give a visual representation of the dunk the contestant had to do. The winner of the competition, Jason Richardson, had to emulate Wilkins’ iconic windmill dunk.
Author Mike Sielski recently published a book titled Magic in the Air, which details the history of dunks. Ernie Johnson read a passage on The Steam Room podcast. Shortly after, Barkley gave an in-depth breakdown of why the wheel gimmick was a failure.
“The reason I dunk with two hands is because I couldn’t palm a ball,” Barkley revealed. “This is the stupidest idea ever. Depending on if a guy is a one-leg jumper or a two-leg jumper, they can’t do the dunks.”
What makes the dunk contest exhilarating is that different players can perform remarkable dunks differently. Michael Jordan and Dominique Wilkins are both legendary dunkers. However, Jordan’s approach was more graceful, while Wilkins had more power in his slams.
The implementation of the wheel handicapped players who didn’t have the physical ability to complete the selected dunk. Barkley highlighted his physical hindrance as an example. He has small hands, so he could only dunk with two hands.
In the 2002 dunk contest, Rockets guard Steve Francis fell victim to this handicap. The classic dunk he had to replicate involved him palming the basketball en route to a 360 slam. However, he couldn’t palm the ball. He still found a way to finish the dunk, but it was nowhere close to the original.
Coincidentally, Barkley was on the broadcast team for that dunk contest and was very vocal about his distaste toward the wheel. The NBA abandoned the idea immediately. They have tinkered with different gimmicks but have come back to the contest’s roots in recent years.
