Who is the only active NBA player with multiple Slam Dunk championships?

The NBA slam-dunk contest, currently sponsored by AT&T, was first held as part of the now-defunct ABA championship in 1976. The same year, the ABA merged with the NBA, which led to cancelation of the event until the year 1984, when the Phoenix Suns’ Larry Nance won it.

Since then, a total of 25 players have won the Slam-Dunk competition with former NBA player Nate Robinson holding the record of winning it the most times (3). Other than Robinson, a total of five players have won the Slam-Dunk Championship two times each, with two all-time greats in the form of Michael Jordan and Dominique Wilkins also making the list.

As far as active NBA players are concerned, only one player has won it twice, which happened back-to-back in 2015 and 2016. It is none other than the Chicago Bulls’ guard Zach LaVine, known to be one of the best dunkers in the game, who won the award twice for his previous team, the Minnesota Timberwolves.

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Zach LaVine: The only active NBA player to win two Slam Dunk championships

Zach LaVine, as mentioned above, won two straight NBA Slam Dunk championships in 2015 and 2016. The first year, his opponents included some elite potential stars, with the likes of 2021 NBA champion Giannis Antetokounmpo, Victor Oladipo, and Mason Plumlee vying for the title alongside LaVine.

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However, LaVine produced one of the most memorable performances with a between-the-legs reverse, a behind-the-back slam and a between-the-legs lefthanded dunk which he finished with a between-the-legs dunk after catching the ball off the pole behind the blackboard.

In 2016, LaVine found himself vying for the same title with his biggest rival proving to be the Orlando Magic’s Aaron Gordon, who has also made himself a bit of a reputation as one of the league’s best dunkers.

Will Barton and Andre Drummond were the other two players who participated in the Slam Dunk challenge that particular year. Regardless, the two titles were enough to land Zach LaVine’s name among some of the most elite dunkers that the NBA has ever seen, with only Nate Robinson having won more in this history of the league.

LaVine is still one of the elite dunkers in the NBA although his two injury-affected seasons (2016-17 and 2017-18) has made a major impact on his overall dunking skills. Regardless, LaVine has in the past two seasons posted a huge redemption and earned his first ever All-Star call-up after an exemplary 2020-21 NBA season.

Last season, Zach LaVine averaged 27.4 points, 4.9 rebounds and 5 assists per game to finish what was his third straight year in which he averaged at least 23 points per game. With the Chicago Bulls having enjoyed a brilliant offseason, LaVine will now be looking to take his career to the next level, and take his team to a deep Playoff run.

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