Group A of the new DunkMan League made its TNT Sports debut on July 21, and the six-man field lived up to the hype. Dengxing Chen, Doug Anderson, Joel Henry, Cam Hazzard, Shelby McEwen, and Jonathan Edwards all took turns trying to out-dunk each other, and by the end of the night fans weren’t just talking about the dunks — they were arguing about the scores. I broke the whole thing down on TikTok, and here’s the rundown for anyone who missed it.
The Seeding
Going in, Chen was the 1 seed, with Anderson at 2 and Henry at 3. Seeding aside, this was one of the deepest fields a dunk contest has put together in a while, and it showed from the opening round.
The Highlights
Cam Hazzard came out and threw down a 360 windmill that immediately drew comparisons to peak Vince Carter — that’s about as high a compliment as you can pay a dunker. Joel Henry had the crowd on its feet too, punching his way into the finals with dunks that kept the intensity high all night. Then there’s Chen, who at 40 years old is still doing things that guys half his age can’t pull off, including a move over a car that became the moment everyone was talking about afterward.
Was Doug Anderson Robbed?
Here’s where it gets interesting. Doug Anderson executed all 3 of his dunks nearly perfect, and didn’t miss a single dunk. Clean execution, no bobbles. After his first two dunks, Doug’s scores were near the top. But after their 3rd dunks, Chen’s push off over 6 people scored higher than Anderson’s. An interesting contrast, when Chen’s first two dunks of the contrast scored surprisingly low. Doug’s J-Rich eastbay seemed like it would ensure his spot in the finals, but the judges saw it differently
Fans Are Already Comparing It to the NBA
The reaction in the comments has been wild. People are saying this was better than the NBA’s own dunk contest, and more than one person floated the idea of dunk contests eventually making it into the Olympics. That’s exactly the kind of energy I want to see around this sport. Professional dunking deserves way more shine than it gets, and nights like this are how it happens.
What’s Next
Group A is just the start — there’s a lot more DunkMan League on the way, and I’ll keep breaking down every round right here and on our socials. If you caught the contest, let me know down in the comments who you had winning, and whether you think Anderson got robbed. Follow Dunkademics everywhere for the next breakdown.