If last year's NBA Slam Dunk Contest was a snooze-fest, this year's event at NBA All-Star weekend was anything. That was largely in part because of Philadelphia 76ers guard Mac McClung who got fans and players out of their seats multiple times during his dazzling performance. McClung has been a dunking sensation since his high school days at Gate City and there was a understandable amount of hype and buzz when he was announced as a participant in the NBA Slam Dunk Contest. At the end of the event, he was the talk of NBA All-Star Saturday night as he walked away the winner. Afterwards, the Sixers guard revealed where his inspiration came from for his contest-winning dunk.

“I got to give credit, I actually stole that one from Jordan Kilganon,” McClung said. “So was just studying all the dunks and the professional dunkers and I saw he went up and brought it back down and dunked again. I was like, man I got to see if I can do that. So I got it a couple of times and I was like yeah this is the winner.”

Jordan Kilganon, the inspiration behind the Mac McClung's dunk contest win, is a professional dunker who has participated in various tours and shows. McClung just recently signed a two-way contract with the Sixers after a lengthy stint in the G League. He played last season with the South Bay Lakers before the Los Angeles Lakers signed him to a two-way contract near the end of the 2021-22 season.