Watch: Zion Williamson Jams 360 Dunk on His Hometown School, Only Rates It a '7 or 8'
Duke freshman Zion Williamson needs to compete in the 2019 NBA dunk contest during All-Star weekend. No sense waiting for him to go pro.
Why, you ask?
Against his hometown Clemson Tigers on Saturday, Williamson showed off what he can do with the kind of dunk that brings to mind Kenny Smith yelling “It’s over” after Vince Carter’s clincher in the 2000 NBA dunk contest:
Here it is again from the rim camera so you can truly appreciate the rotational momentum Williamson achieved. This time, perhaps you can imagine Kevin Harlan screaming, “With no regard for human life!”
A still shot, meanwhile, shows that Williamson could just about jump out of the building if he wanted to. Look where his hand is relative to the rim as he prepares to throw it down:
Williamson better be careful in the future. If he jumps that high again, he might miss the dunk and get an assist like Bucs star Giannis Antetokounmpo did on Christmas Day:
Seriously, go ahead and dream of a 2020 NBA dunk contest between Williamson and the Greek Freak. If that doesn’t make you salivate like one of Pavlov’s dogs, then maybe you should find a new sport to watch.
Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski was nonplussed after the game, concerned mainly with the fact that the dunk was, after all, only worth two points in the flow of a larger effort.
“I’m not amazed at that stuff,” Krzyzewski said, according to ESPN. “He can do that. We allow him to do it. There’s no ceiling on how high or how many times he can twirl — as long as he puts the d— thing in.”
Williamson, meanwhile, cited Krzyzewski’s willingness to let him put on a show as the reason he’s at Duke and not Clemson for his one-and-done NBA audition.
Clemson fans get to take solace in their school having a reputation for football like Duke has for basketball, but Williamson laid bare that the Tigers just aren’t up to scratch by a one-and-done player’s standards.
“It was a very hard decision,” Williamson said of choosing Duke. “Each school was a good fit. But when it came down to it, playing for Coach K, playing with other great players, I mean, I felt like I couldn’t turn that away, and these other players would make me better, and Coach K would let me be me. And so far, I don’t regret my decision at all.”
The best part? Williamson rated his own dunk a “7 or 8.” So what would a 10 be? “We’ve got to see. I can’t tell you yet,” he said.
Of course, the gold standard is this one from Paul George:
Go ahead, Zion. Beat that and you’ll get an 11.
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