Derrick Jones Jr. Beats Aaron Gordon In Controversial Dunk Contest

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Derrick Jones Jr., Aaron Gordon, Dunk Contest
Derrick Jones Jr. battled through two tiebreaking dunk-offs to notch the dunk contest win over Aaron Gordon during All-Star weekend.

It was a battle that ended in conspiracy, tiebreakers, unbelievable dunks, and more: Miami Heat's Derrick Jones Jr. won the NBA dunk contest in a neck-and-neck battle with Orlando Magic's Aaron Gordon. 

After two tie-breaking dunk-offs, the judges awarded Jones Jr. the victory-- a decision they claimed afterward was made in error: "We thought it was going to be tied. We were like, 'This is a tie!'" Common, who was judging for the event, told ESPN's Ramona Shelburne. "But somebody didn't do it right. I don't know who it is."

Candace Parker, who was also on the judges' panel, confirmed they had intended the second dunk-off to end in a tie as well.

The final score was decided after Jones Jr. earned a 48 for a free throw line (close enough) windmill dunk and Gordon notched only a 47 for dunking over 7-foot-5 Boston Celtics rookie Tacko Fall.

"I did four straight 50s -- five straight 50s," Gordon said. "That's over. It's a wrap. Let's go home. Four 50s in a row in an NBA dunk contest, it's over. But I don't know. Who's running the show?

"It's a wrap, bro," he said. "I feel like I should have two trophies."

The NBA All-Star Game tips off Sunday at 8:00 PM EST.


About The Author
Cole Blake is currently an Editor at HotNewHipHop based out of Brooklyn, New York. He began working at the site as an intern back in 2018 while studying journalism at St. John’s University. In the time since, he’s graduated with a bachelor's degree and written extensively about a wide range of topics including pop culture, film & television, politics, video games, sports, and much more. He’s also covered music festivals such as Gov. Ball and Rolling Loud. You can find him publishing work for HNHH from Monday to Wednesday or on weekends. On the sports front, Cole’s a passionate NBA and NFL fan with his favorite teams being the Indianapolis Colts and Los Angeles Lakers. He also roots for the Yankees whenever he finds himself at Yankee Stadium or the Red Storm when in the company of other SJU alumni. His favorite hip-hop artists are billy woods, Earl Sweatshirt, Cam’ron, MIKE, and Mach-Hommy.
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