Inside The Heat

Ja Morant Now Receiving Similar Pressure As LeBron James To Enter Dunk Contest After Highlight-Worthy Slam

Like LeBron, everyone wants to see Ja Morant in the All-Star weekend competition

Shandel Richardson

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During his early NBA years, LeBron James was often asked why he would skip the slam dunk contest. 

"When I first came into the league, I expected that I would do it," James once said "I did. I did for sure. But it just never happened. I don't know why. There was times when I wanted to do it and didn't do it and there was times when I just didn't really care about it too much. But it definitely would have been pretty cool to do."

Now, another player is getting the same questions and pleas to compete during the All-Star event that has lost its fizzle for the past decade or so. Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant sparked the discussion after his amazing dunk over Indiana Pacers forward Jalen Smith. 

The questions have come from fans, NBA analysts and players, including Donovan Mitchell of the Cleveland Cavaliers. 

Morant is unlikely to participate because the league's top-tier players think it's an injury risk. That was among the reasons James chose to avoid despite participating in dunk contests during warmups and practices when he played with the Miami Heat from 2010-14. 

"It's over with. I'm getting too old for that," James said back then. "There were times when I wanted to do it. But I came into All-Star Weekend a few times banged up and I didn't want to risk further injury."

The good news for everyone is Morant has no problem producing dunk-contest worthy slams during games. He is now linked with Vince Carter and Michael Jordan among the best in-game dunkers. 

Still, it would be a treat to see Morant, and even LeBron James, participate at some point before their careers end. Even at 38, James has proven he can slam with the best of them. 

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Shandel Richardson covers the Miami Heat for Inside The Heat.

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Shandel Richardson
SHANDEL RICHARDSON

Shandel has covered the NBA since 2010, with previous stops at The Athletic and South Florida Sun-Sentinel.  He has covered six NBA Finals, one Super Bowl, the NCAA basketball tournament. He has also been a beat writer for the Miami Hurricanes and contributed on every major beat in South Florida since 2003, including the Miami Dolphins and Miami Marlins. He can also be read in the Sportsbook Review for gambling coverage from around the NBA. A native of Bloomington, Illinois, Shandel attended Southern Illinois University in Carbondale. He's also worked for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Kansas City Star.  TWITTER: @ShandelRich EMAIL: shandelrich@gmail.com You can subscribe to our YouTube channel here Follow all of our Miami Heat coverage on Facebook here

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