Why Mac McClung Was Against Linking With Iverson for Dunk Contest

Check out Mac McClung's journey to the 2023 NBA Dunk Contest.

For the first time since 2006, the Philadelphia 76ers had a participant in the NBA Dunk Contest as the team’s two-way guard Mac McClung accepted the invitation when he was thriving with Philly’s NBA G League affiliate, the Delaware Blue Coats.

McClung became the eighth player in Sixers’ history to participate in the contest. He joined a prominent club of names such as Shelton Jones, Clarence Weatherspoon, Tim Perry, Jerry Stackhouse, Larry Hughes, Andre Iguodala, and Julius Erving, who participated twice.

Up until this year, the Sixers didn’t have a Dunk Contest winner. 

But on a February night in Salt Lake City, Utah, McClung made team history.

Before he had a near-perfect Dunk Contest performance, nobody knew what to expect from the Sixers’ two-way guard in terms of props and potential guests that could get involved. 

Since McClung participated in the contest donning a Sixers uniform, the potential of somebody like Allen Iverson was apparently thrown out there. However, McClung took a different approach.

On the sixth episode of ‘The Break, presented by The General,’ McClung’s journey at All-Star weekend was documented. 

In a conversation between McClung’s parents, close friend Bradley Dean, and his agent Dan Poneman, it was revealed that names such as Allen Iverson and John Stockton were discussed briefly. 

Mac shut it down.

“When Mac told me when he first got into the dunk contest, the first conversations we were having were like, ‘Alright are you going to bring out Iverson, are you going to bring out John Stockton?’ He was like, ‘No, I’m going to bring out my boy Bradley.’” Poneman revealed. “I was like, ‘What?’ He was like, ‘Trust me.’”

Bradley Dean, a close friend of McClung’s and former teammate at Gate City High School, worked closely with the Sixers guard as he prepared to take on the contest. Then on the night of the competition, Dean was involved in McClung’s first dunk, which landed him a perfect score.

“It just makes total sense,” Poneman continued. “It’s so on-brand for Mac. That’s who he is. He touches everyone along the way. He’s like, I don’t need Allen Iverson, I got my boy from growing up. That’s who he is. That’s his character. That’s why people relate to him. That’s why he is who he is because he’s authentic.”

Although McClung’s had a notable following since his earlier playing days, as many of his dunks have gone viral on the internet in the past, he hadn’t quite reached this type of stardom. By becoming the first Sixer to win the contest and the guy that “saved” the event, according to future and current legends, McClung is one of the biggest names playing in the G League right now. 

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.