15. Jameer Nelson’s Dunk
Jameer Nelson has one dunk in his NBA career. Just one. Maybe he has more. That does not matter. The maybe-6-foot point guard is not a dunker by any means. But in his second year in the league, he got one. And Steve Francis could not have been happier.
14. Dwight ices the Cavs
For those that do not believe Dwight Howard had any post moves, Game Six of the 2009 Eastern Conference Finals should be Exhibit A to debunk that. And his jab step, spin move dunk over Anderson Varejao late in that game is even more evidence of an advanced post game. That dunk epitomized Howard’s dominance in the series and finished the Cavaliers off.
13. The bounce dunk
Sometimes a dunk is so strange and too much like a dunk contest it ticks people off. Steve Francis got the ball in a runout and opted to bounce the ball off the floor to himself and jam it in. Larry Brown was not happy. He picked up a technical foul and then the league banned the move, instructing refs to call it a travel from now on.
12. Finishing the steal
Everyone remembers Nick Anderson stealing the ball to set up the Magic’s game-winning dunk in Game One of the 1995 Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Chicago Bulls. No one really talks about the finish. No one except Horace Grant. Grant has said Anfernee Hardaway delivered the perfect bounce pass to him to set up the game-winning dunk. Grant himself had to make a great play to receive the ball in some traffic and go up with one hand over Toni Kukoc to secure the win.
11. With Malice Aforethought
This was the only dunk by a Magic player to make Fansided’s list of the top 30 in-game dunks of all time. Perhaps I am valuing impact too much in creating a Magic team-specific rankings. But this dunk is not even McGrady’s top dunk on this list (let alone in the top-10). It is a ferocious dunk though from McGrady, displaying his power. But is nowhere near as memorable as some other dunks coming later on.