Kobe Bryant and Vince Carter Ruined All-Star Dunk Contest, Not LeBron James: Gilbert Arenas

NBA All-Star Weekend is supposed to be a celebration of the greatest athletes in the world, but in recent years, it’s turned into a microcosm of all that ails what is, in many other ways, a very successful league.

The All-Star Game itself has turned into a joke, for one simple reason: players don’t try. There’s not just no defense played in these games, it’s almost like the very idea of getting in a stance and trying to stay in front of somebody is offensive at its core. It’s only gotten worse as time has gone on, to the point that players basically just trot up and down the court attempting dunks and long 3s with zero opposition.

It’s been embarrassing for the league, which is why commissioner Adam Silver has tried everything to fix it. He’s made captains that select teams, hoping to tap into that old schoolyard pride to inspire guys to play hard. Didn’t work.

He tried a round-robin format with one team composed of rising stars. That also fell flat. Now he’s implemented a USA vs. the world format in the hopes of capturing the magic that drove the 2024 Olympics.

The All-Star Game itself isn’t the only once-prestigious event that has fallen on dark times. The dunk contest has struggled for years to get stars to compete, often relying instead on G Leaguers and relatively unknown rookies to fill out its roster. Big names just don’t want to participate any more.

Some people, such as Stephen A. Smith, have blamed LeBron James for this phenomenon. Silver is the commissioner, of course, but in reality, for over two decades now, it’s been LeBron’s league. The all-time leading scorer has never participated in the dunk contest, though, despite being one of the game’s most prolific dunkers for years. His opt-out has emboldened other stars to say no, as well.

Gilbert Arenas has a different take. He doesn’t blame LeBron for not participating, he blames the big names who once competed and then called it quits after just one attempt.

“You won it, defend your title,” he said on the latest episode of The Gilbert Arenas Show. “Kobe won one in ’96, he never went back. Vince Carter won his, he never went back.”

“You have these guys, where Vince Carter, Tracy McGrady, they could have been in the dunk contest three or fours years, which then would have enticed the LeBron Jameses when he was coming in, and the Dwyane Wades to enter the dunk contest,” he continued.

“So when you look at the best dunkers in the league not entering, you’re like, ‘Eh, I’m good too then.’ And that’s what this new generation is doing. They’re looking at these names and they’re not interested,” Arenas argued.

This feels like a ‘chicken or the egg’ conversation, because while Arenas may be right, it can also be argued that if someone like LeBron decided to do it even once, it could have triggered a wave of interest from other stars, too.

There’s also a fair question to ask of whether stars want to go against other stars? There’s a pervasive feeling around the league now of not wanting to be embarrassed. If you’re a star and decide to do the dunk contest, then you come out and put up a bad performance, that will live forever on social media. You’ll be the object of ridicule. Is it worth it then to even try?

That’s also the reason why the much-discussed 1-on-1 tournament will probably never happen, because the losers will be grilled mercilessly for it. These are prideful guys, and nobody wants to get cooked in front of millions of spectators.

If the dunk contest is ever going to make a comeback, it’s either going to take a brave superstar without a fear of failure, or a collective agreement that the event is all in good fun and the online haters will keep their weapons stowed.

In today’s toxic online environment, the latter is probably never going to happen, so either someone will have to step up or the event will continue its slow descent into irrelevancy. Playing the blame game won’t change that.