by There are dunks… and then there are DUNKS — the kind that shake arenas, break the internet, and live forever in highlight reels.
You know the ones I’m talking about. Those rim-rattling, soul-crushing, career-defining slams that make you immediately call your friends, rewind the replay seventeen times, and still get goosebumps years later.
These aren’t just two points on the scoreboard — they’re seismic moments that shift momentum, humiliate defenders, and become the stuff of basketball legend.
Every basketball junkie has their personal Mount Rushmore of dunks. Maybe it’s that poster your favorite player threw down in high school, or that time you watched Vince Carter leap over a human being at the Olympics.
But some dunks transcend personal preference and become universal touchstones for what makes basketball beautiful, brutal, and addictive.
We’re counting down the 10 most unforgettable, era-defining, and goosebump-inducing dunks in NBA history — the slams that didn’t just score points, but scored permanent places in basketball folklore.
Top 10 Most Iconic Dunks in NBA History
From vintage Dr. J magic to modern-day poster sessions, these are the dunks that remind us why we fell in love with this game in the first place.
The Countdown at a Glance
| Rank | Player Name | Victim/Team | Year | Game Context | Why It Was Iconic |
| 1 | DeAndre Jordan | Brandon Knight | 2013 | Regular Season | The ultimate poster – pure destruction |
| 2 | Julius Erving | Michael Cooper | 1983 | Regular Season | “Rock The Baby” – basketball artistry |
| 3 | Shaquille O’Neal | Chris Dudley | 1999 | Regular Season | Disrespectful dominance personified |
| 4 | Dwyane Wade | Kendrick Perkins | 2011 | Regular Season | Big 3 era statement slam |
| 5 | Paul George | Solo Performance | 2014 | Regular Season | 360 windmill perfection |
| 6 | Baron Davis | Andrei Kirilenko | 2007 | Regular Season | David vs Goliath masterpiece |
| 7 | LeBron James | Jason Terry | 2013 | Regular Season | The King’s ruthless poster |
| 8 | Kobe & Shaq | Trail Blazers | 2000 | Playoffs | Most iconic alley-oop ever |
| 9 | Gerald Green | Solo Performance | 2012 | Regular Season | Head-over-rim windmill magic |
| 10 | Derrick Rose | Goran Dragic | 2010 | Regular Season | Peak athleticism on display |
The Legends That Shook the Rim
#1: DeAndre Jordan Ends Brandon Knight’s Life (March 10, 2013)
“You cannot be serious!” – Every basketball fan’s reaction to witnessing this absolute annihilation.
Picture this: It’s a regular Tuesday night in Los Angeles, and Brandon Knight — all 6’2″, 182 pounds of him — is just trying to play some defense. What happens next can only be described as a crime against humanity, witnessed by thousands and replayed millions of times across the internet.
DeAndre Jordan catches the lob, rises like he’s defying gravity itself, and posterizes Knight so thoroughly that scientists are still studying the physics of what happened. The stank face DJ throws afterward? Chef’s kiss. This wasn’t just a dunk — it was a cultural moment that spawned countless memes, reaction videos, and therapy sessions for Knight.
The beauty of this dunk isn’t just the athleticism (though Jordan’s head was practically at rim level). It’s the perfect storm of circumstances: young player trying to make a play, an athletic freak in his prime, and timing that would make Shakespeare weep. Knight deserves credit for even attempting to contest it, but DeAndre Jordan turned him into a poster that still hangs in dorm rooms across America.
#2: Julius Erving “Rocks The Baby” (January 5, 1983)
Before there was YouTube, before there were highlight packages, there was Dr. J doing things that seemed to exist outside the laws of physics and good taste.
This legendary slam on January 5, 1983, set the basketball world on fire and gave us something unlike anything fans had ever seen. Michael Cooper, who was no slouch defensively, found himself on the wrong end of basketball history as Dr. J elevated, extended, and executed what would become known as the “Rock The Baby” dunk.
Philadelphia exploded. The crowd went absolutely bananas, and you can understand why — they had just witnessed the birth of modern highlight culture. This wasn’t just a dunk; it was performance art with a basketball. Dr. J didn’t just throw it down; he cradled that ball like a newborn before gently placing it through the rim with the kind of flair that made basketball beautiful.
This dunk paved the way for every flashy slam that followed. Without Dr. J’s artistry and showmanship, we might never have gotten the aerial ballet that modern dunking has become. Thirty years before social media, this dunk was going viral the old-fashioned way — through pure word of mouth and endless replays on sports highlight shows.
#3: Shaquille O’Neal Disrespects Chris Dudley (March 28, 1999)
Sometimes a dunk is about more than just the slam itself — sometimes it’s about the complete and utter disrespect that follows.
Shaq was already an unstoppable force of nature in 1999, but what he did to Chris Dudley transcended basketball and entered the realm of psychological warfare. The Diesel caught the ball in the paint, powered through Dudley like he was a traffic cone, threw down a vicious two-handed slam, and then — and then — he dared to swing toward Dudley and give him a little push to the ground.
Dudley was NOT having it. The man was so heated that he hurled the basketball at Shaq as he jogged back on defense, which only made the whole sequence more legendary. You could see the exact moment Dudley’s soul left his body, and honestly, who could blame him? Getting dunked on is one thing; getting dunked on and then disrespected in front of millions is quite another.
This dunk perfectly encapsulated peak Shaq: dominant, playful, and completely unstoppable. At 7’1″ and 325 pounds, he was playing a different sport than everyone else, and this dunk served as a reminder that sometimes, physics just isn’t fair.
#4: Dwyane Wade Destroys Kendrick Perkins (2010-11 Season)
The Miami Heat’s first year of the Big Three era was all about making statements, and D-Wade delivered one of the loudest with this nasty poster on Kendrick Perkins.
Wade was in his absolute prime during this season — quick as lightning, explosive as dynamite, and with just enough attitude to make every dunk feel personal. Against the young and upcoming Oklahoma City Thunder, Wade put together a sequence that belonged in the Louvre: a nasty spin move that left defenders grasping at air, followed by a two-handed poster on the 6’10” Perkins that rattled the entire building.
The best part? Wade’s classic taunt afterward. The man stood over his work like an artist admiring a masterpiece, which, let’s be honest, is exactly what this was. This dunk represented everything the Heat were trying to be that season — flashy, dominant, and completely unafraid of anyone in their way.
This wasn’t just about the athleticism (though Wade elevating over a 270-pound center was pretty impressive). It was about the Heat announcing their arrival as a superteam with style and swagger that would define an entire era of basketball.
#5: Paul George’s 360 Windmill Perfection (January 18, 2014)
Some dunks happen in traffic. Some happen in crucial moments. And some happen when a 6’8″ small forward decides to put on a dunk contest performance during an actual NBA game.
Paul George was coming into his prime in 2014, leading the Pacers to be one of the league’s best teams, when he decided to casually break out a 360 windmill that would make contest judges weep. Against the “Lob City” Clippers — you know, the team with Blake Griffin — PG-13 picked the perfect moment to remind everyone that Indiana could get vertical too.
The sequence was pure poetry: fast break, all alone, nothing but green grass ahead. Most players would settle for a simple two-handed flush. Paul George said, “Hold my cornbread,” spun like a tornado, windmilled like a helicopter, and landed like he’d just performed the most natural thing in the world.
Indianapolis went absolutely ballistic. And why wouldn’t they? Their star player had just delivered a dunk that belonged in a video game, not a regular season NBA game. This was the kind of moment that reminded everyone why PG was considered one of the most exciting young stars in the league.
#6: Baron Davis Defies Size Logic (2006-07 Season)
Sometimes the most memorable dunks aren’t about who got dunked on — they’re about who did the dunking. At 6’3″, Baron Davis had no business posterizing a 6’9″ power forward, but somebody forgot to tell Baron about the laws of physics and common sense.
During the Warriors’ unlikely playoff push in 2007, Davis caught Andrei Kirilenko sleeping and delivered a poster that defied every reasonable expectation about height, leverage, and gravitational pull. The Bay Area crowd erupted like they’d just witnessed a miracle, which, considering the size differential, they basically had.
This was David vs. Goliath with basketball shoes, and Baron Davis was slinging stones with the fury of a man possessed. The dunk itself was phenomenal, but the context made it legendary — an undersized guard on an underdog team throwing down on a bigger, more athletic defender during a season when nobody expected the Warriors to do anything special.
The roar from the Oakland crowd was otherworldly. These fans had waited years for a moment like this, and Baron Davis delivered it with the kind of authority that turned a regular season game into an instant classic.
#7: LeBron James Ends Jason Terry (2013)
When LeBron James was in his Miami Heat prime, he was basically a basketball-playing superhero, and this dunk on Jason Terry was his most ruthless display of power.
The setup was perfect: Dwyane Wade to Mario Chalmers to Norris Cole to LeBron James. A beautiful display of ball movement that ended with The King rising up and absolutely obliterating Jason Terry, who honestly deserves credit for even attempting to contest it. This was LeBron at his most dominant — 6’9″, 250 pounds of pure athletic fury descending from the heavens.
But the dunk was only half the show. LeBron’s stare-down afterward was the stuff of nightmares, as he looked down at Terry like he’d just conquered a small nation. This was peak “villain LeBron” — ruthless, confident, and completely unbothered by the destruction he’d just caused.
Many consider this The King’s greatest dunk, and it’s easy to see why. It had everything: perfect teamwork leading to individual brilliance, a helpless defender getting posterized, and LeBron’s trademark intensity on full display. This was basketball at its most athletic and most intimidating.
#8: Kobe to Shaq – The Most Iconic Alley-Oop Ever (June 4, 2000)
“Kobe to Shaq!” Three words that instantly transport every basketball fan back to one of the most iconic moments in NBA history.
Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals. Lakers versus Trail Blazers. Everything on the line. Bob Costas on the call, and then it happened — a perfectly executed alley-oop that became the symbol of an entire dynasty. The lob from young Kobe, the thunderous finish from prime Shaq, and the pure joy on both their faces afterward.
This wasn’t the most athletic dunk ever or the most disrespectful, but it might be the most important. This was the moment that cemented the Kobe-Shaq partnership and launched the Lakers toward their three-peat. The dunk itself was beautiful, but the context was everything — two superstars in perfect harmony during the most crucial moment of their season.
Shaq’s pointing at Kobe afterward became one of the most iconic images in basketball history. It captured everything great about that Lakers team — the talent, the chemistry, and the clutch gene that separated champions from everyone else.
#9: Gerald Green’s Head-Over-Rim Windmill (March 10, 2012)
Some dunks make you question the laws of physics. Gerald Green’s windmill off the lob made you question whether he was actually human.
It’s not every day you see someone jump so high their head is literally above the rim. It’s even rarer to see someone catch a lob at that height and somehow have the presence of mind to throw in a windmill for good measure. But that’s exactly what Gerald Green did in New Jersey, creating what might be the most athletic dunk in NBA history.
This was a career bench player putting on an absolute show for the ages. Green rose like he had springs in his shoes, caught the lob like he was plucking fruit from a tree, and windmilled it home with the kind of authority that made everyone in the building question what they’d just witnessed.
The reaction was immediate and universal — jaws dropped, phones came out, and highlight producers everywhere started salivating. This was the kind of dunk that reminded everyone why Gerald Green was such a cult favorite among basketball fans who appreciated pure athleticism.
#10: Derrick Rose Makes Goran Dragic Question Everything (January 22, 2010)
Before injuries changed everything, Derrick Rose was a basketball-playing rocket ship, and this dunk on Goran Dragic perfectly captured his explosive prime.
Rose on a fast break was practically unguardable in 2010, capable of jumping out of the gym and making plays that seemed to defy basic human limitations. Against the Phoenix Suns, the future MVP put together a sequence that was equal parts athletic and artistic, rising for a two-handed poster that left Dragic flat on his back and Bulls fans losing their minds.
The Bulls commentator said it best: “You cannot be serious! I wanna go higher!” It was the perfect reaction to an impossible dunk from a player who was redefining what point guards could do athletically.
The tragic part? NBA fans would only get to see Rose at this level for about one more year before injuries changed everything. This dunk serves as a beautiful reminder of what we lost when Rose’s knees betrayed him and why his brief peak was so magical to witness.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is considered the most iconic dunk in NBA history?
DeAndre Jordan’s poster on Brandon Knight takes the crown for pure destruction and cultural impact. It spawned countless memes and reaction videos, becoming the gold standard for modern poster dunks. However, Dr. J’s “Rock The Baby” and the Kobe-to-Shaq alley-oop are also in the conversation for different reasons.
- Who is the greatest dunker of all time?
It’s a debate between Vince Carter, Dominique Wilkins, and Michael Jordan for pure contest dunking. But for in-game dunks, players like Shaq, LeBron, and Dr. J dominated through power, athleticism, and artistry, respectively. Each era had its style of greatness.
- Has anyone dunked over a 7-footer in-game?
While not on this list, Vince Carter famously dunked over 7’2″ Frederic Weis during the 2000 Olympics, though that was international play. In NBA games, most “poster” dunks involve players jumping over defenders rather than going over their heads.
- Are poster dunks still common in today’s NBA?
They’re less common due to better defensive positioning and players being smarter about not getting caught in compromising positions. Modern players often avoid being posterized by fouling hard or getting out of the way, making clean poster dunks more rare and special.
- Which playoff dunks were the most unforgettable?
The Kobe-to-Shaq alley-oop in Game 7 of the 2000 Western Conference Finals is probably the most iconic playoff dunk ever. LeBron’s dunk on Draymond Green in the 2016 Finals and Michael Jordan’s numerous playoff posters are also legendary.
- Do dunk contest dunks count as iconic NBA dunks?
While contest dunks are incredible, in-game dunks hit differently because of the stakes, the defense, and the spontaneous nature. Contest dunks are planned performances; game dunks are pure basketball poetry happening in real-time.
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These ten dunks represent more than just athletic achievements — they’re cultural moments that transcend basketball and become part of our collective memory.
Whether it’s DeAndre Jordan breaking the internet, Dr. J creating art in mid-air, or Shaq just being completely unfair to normal-sized humans, these slams remind us why dunking remains the most electrifying play in basketball.
The beauty of a great dunk isn’t just the athleticism or the power — it’s the emotion, the context, and the way it makes everyone in the building (and watching at home) lose their minds for a few seconds.
These are the moments that turn casual fans into basketball junkies and make highlight reels worth staying up until 2 AM to watch.
What’s your personal favorite dunk of all time? Maybe it didn’t make this list, but every basketball fan has that one poster that still gives them chills.
Drop your picks in the comments — because let’s be honest, debating great dunks never gets old.
If you want to catch the next jaw-dropping dunk as it happens, head over to Scorecard Stream — your go-to source for live NBA action, game stats, and electrifying moments that’ll have you jumping out of your seat.
The next legendary poster is happening somewhere tonight. And when it does, we’ll all be reaching for the replay button, trying to figure out how human beings can do things like this.
Because that’s what great dunks do — they make us remember why we fell in love with basketball in the first place.
