Former Texas Tech standout Mac McClung is turning heads throughout the NBA after taking home the crown in the Slam Dunk contest held as part of the Saturday night festivities at All-Star Weekend in Salt Lake City.
McClung was the first G-League player to participate in the event, according to The Washington Post. He bested Trey Murphy III (Pelicans), Kenyon Martin Jr (Rockets), and Jericho Sims (Knicks) with nearly perfect scores in every round — including perfect scores on his first and final dunks.
Current and former players across the league reacted to his performance, including Shaquille O’Neal, who claimed McClung “saved the dunk contest,” according to NPR.
McClung had been called up from the G-League, the NBA’s developmental league, on February 14 after signing a two-way deal with the Philadelphia 76ers.
He had been playing for the 76ers’ G-League affiliate, the Delaware Bluecoats, where he averaged 19.1 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 4.7 assists in 18 games this season.
McClung also participated in Friday night’s Rising Stars Challenge. He was scheduled to represent the Bluecoats as a G-League All-Star in the G-League Next Up Game but backed out on Saturday night, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.
He has yet to join the 76ers for an NBA practice, but he can play in games for Philadelphia and Delaware as a two-way player. Little is known about his role with the parent club, as he has only played two NBA games in his career.
He will likely play for both squads as needed as he tries to stick in the NBA permanently.
After signing an undrafted deal with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2021, McClung spent the 2021-22 season with the South Bay Lakers and Windy City Bulls of the G-League, averaging 21.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, 7.6 assists, and 1.4 steals while making NBA appearances with the Lakers and the Chicago Bulls.
McClung was Texas Tech’s leading scorer in his only season at the school in 2020, as he posted 15.5 points per game and won Newcomer of the Year in the Big 12.
Before he arrived in Lubbock, he played for two years at Georgetown. There, he finished among the team’s leading scorers in both seasons and was a member of the Big East Conference All-Freshman team.
McClung played high school basketball in Virginia and is the state’s second-all-time leading scorer with 2,801 career points.
He donned his high school jersey as he went in for the winning dunk attempt.
Anthony “Spud” Webb’s winning of the NBA Slam Dunk contest back in 1986 catapulted him to fame, as he told The Dallas Express in a recent interview.
As the Dallas native explained, being a champion “opened a lot of doors for me, and I had a good career.” Webb has been the president of basketball operations for the Texas Legends G-League team in Frisco for the past 13 years.
