All-Star Saturday night is arguably the best night of the NBA All-Star Weekend. Sure, the Rising Stars Game is fun and the actual All-Star Game has everyone's favorite players on display, but the events on Saturday night often seem to steal the show.
And we have high hopes for this year's Saturday night festivities, particularly the Dunk Contest, which will include two rookies, Donovan Mitchell and Dennis Smith Jr., as well as Victor Oladipo and Larry Nance Jr.
As we count down the hours and minutes until All-Star Saturday night gets underway, it's only right that we treat ourselves to some of the best performances in Dunk Contest history.
In some instances it was just one particular dunk that stood out. In others, it was the entire performance as a whole, consisting of several jaw-dropping dunks, or the rare occasion when two competitors went back-and-forth trading jabs above the rim.
Scroll down for some of the best dunk contest performances in NBA history.
Michael Jordan vs. Dominique Wilkins
The 1988 Slam Dunk Contest was the second time that MJ and Dominique went head-to-head, three years after 'Nique took home the crown in Jordan's rookie season. The sequel of Jordan vs Dominique proved better than the original, as MJ completed a foul line dunk in front of his home crowd to secure a 147-145 final-round victory.
Was Wilkins robbed? That's up for debate. Was it one of the best dunk contest performances in NBA history? Absolutely.
Vince Carter
Vince Carter's performance at the 2000 Dunk Contest in Oakland, California set the bar for every other player who has competed in the Dunk Contest since then. V.C. was lights out.
He kicked things off with a flawless, reverse 360 windmill. He followed that up with another windmill, this time from behind the hoop. Then he caught a bounce pass alley-oop from his cousin, and fellow Dunk Contest participant, Tracy McGrady, which he proceeded to put between his legs before dunking it.
The next thing you knew, Vince was hanging from the rim by his fucking elbow, aka the "Honey Dip Dunk."
Listen to V.C. describe the legendary dunk contest in the video below.
Dee Brown
Boston Celtics guard Dee Brown took home the 1991 Dunk Contest crown in style.
Wearing his signature Reebok Pumps, Brown outlasted Seattle Supersonics legend Shawn Kemp with a series of impressive dunks including a "No-Look" lefty jam that capped off the night and became one of the most memorable moments in the event's history.
Zach LaVine (2015)
Zach LaVine's performance at the 2015 Dunk Contest in Brooklyn revitalized the competition which had seen a steadily decline over the years prior.
LaVine, a rookie at the time, showcased a plethora of between the legs dunks from all angles of the court and even threw in an off-the-bounce behind-the-back jam for good measure.
And he made it all look so damn smooth.
Gerald Green vs Dwight Howard
Back when Dwight Howard was still a fan favorite, he went head to head against Gerald Green in the 2008 Dunk Contest in what proved to be one of the best performances in the event's 34 year history.
Dwight had perfect scores on each of his first two dunks, which included an off-the-back-of-the-backboard windmill and an off-the-shot-clock alley-oop that he literally threw into the hoop, after taking off from just inside the free throw line, while wearing a Superman cape. His final two dunks were equally as impressive, and he went on to win his one and only Slam Dunk title with ease.
Of course, this was also the Dunk Contest when Gerald Green put a candle in a cupcake, lit the candle, and then blew it out while dunking a bounce pass oop from Rashad McCants. Impressive, but not nearly enough to compete with Dwight on this night.
Check out both of their performances in the two videos below.
(Dwight's dunks appearing at :45, 2:22, 5:16, 7:40)
(Green's dunks appearing at :30, 3:50, 5:50, 7:00)
Spud Webb
The 1986 Dunk Contest was all about the Atlanta Hawks 5'7 guard, Spud Webb. In a time long before guys like Nate Robinson and Dennis Smith Jr, it was rare to see a little man with hops like Webb.
He won the competition this year by beating out his teammate, Dominique Wilkins, who had won it the previous season.
Nate Robinson vs. Dwight Howard
In 2009, one year after Dwight Howard stole the show at the 2008 Dunk Contest, the Orlando Magic's 7-footer met his "Krypto-Nate."
While Nate won the contest, Dwight once again wowed the crowd with his ridiculous display of athleticism, which included dunking on a 12-foot hoop. Of course, Howard's chances of repeating as the NBA's dunk king ended when Nate jumped over him in the finals. It was Robinson's second of three Dunk Contests titles.
Zach LaVine vs. Aaron Gordon
2016. The best dunk contest battle of all time, period. Aaron Gordon vs the defending champion, Zach LaVine.
LaVine repeated as champ but there's a real case to be made that Gordon was deserving of the crown, thanks to some help from the Orlando Magic mascot.
This isn't about the scores though, this is about the dunks. And the 2016 contest had ALL. Of. The. Dunks.
Jason Richardson
Jason Richardson won back to back dunk contests in 2002 and 2003 but his most memorable throw down came in the 2004 contest, which he lost to Indiana Pacers guard Fred Jones.
Rather than only highlighting his ridiculous off-the-glass-between-the-legs dunk from '04, or his wildly impressive dunks from '02, or '03, I've decided to combine them all into one J-Rich appreciation post.
Enjoy.