20 Best NBA Dunks so Far This Season

When you plan to watch an NBA game in its entirety, you're obviously either a fan of the team, a fan of basketball in general or just a fan of highlights.

When it comes to basketball, there is no better sport at producing numerous highlights in a single game. Football is always a constant battle, but you hardly see any plays that will widen your eyes and drop your jaws. Baseball is occasionally fun when you see a diving catch or grab, which happens once out of every 27 outs. And soccer and hockey have highlights that come infrequently.

In a regulation NBA game, you know you're going to at least see one amazing play that's going to get you out of your seat. It doesn't even matter how good or bad the teams are that are playing because any player on any roster has the potential to pull off something captivating and electrifying.

Any highlight is amazing to see, but it is the dunk that truly puts fans in their seats and keeps eyes glued to the TV for the 48 minutes worth of basketball that are played by the world's greatest athletes. There's just something about a player rising up three feet in the air to dunk a basketball through a rim that never seems to get old.

Even teams like the Miami Heat and Oklahoma City Thunder that dunk all the time still never lose the redeeming value of a solid flush.

With the Slam Dunk Contest taking place this weekend, we honor it with the 20 best dunks of the year in the 2011-12 season.

20. Metta...World...PEACE

Lakers fans, just try and imagine that Metta World Peace is this type of player in every game.

Picture this World Peace instead of the one who's averaging five points on 33 percent shooting from the field and 20 percent from deep. Try not to remember the World Peace who's grabbing three boards and dishing out two assists per 22 minutes worth of game time, the lowest amount of minutes per he's played in his entire career.

I know it's tough to forget that World Peace has been awful at everything besides defense this year, but just remember that it's a long season and anything can happen.

19. Joakim Noah Becomes a Victim of Rudy Gay's Abuse

I didn't think there was much of a rivalry between the Chicago Bulls and Memphis Grizzlies.

However, that isn't the way Rudy Gay makes it seem.

Gay appeared to have a personal vendetta against the Bulls and one player in particular, Joakim Noah. He swats his shot on the defensive end and comes away with the ball. On offense, he somehow ends up getting matched up with the same player whose shot he just blocked.

Knowing Noah is much slower than he is, Gay takes it in and uses his long arms to throw down over the Bulls center.

Can someone give me a stat of the last time a player got swatted/ripped and then dunked on within 10 seconds?

18. Kobe Bryant Goes All Reverse Against the Suns

Kobe Bryant was well on his way to leading the Los Angeles Lakers to a victory over the Phoenix Suns, while scoring 48 points in the process.

What he was missing was a key play to remember it by. Courtesy of his own missed three-pointer, a rebound by Luke Walton and a beautiful pass from Matt Barnes at the three-point line, Bryant got his exclamation point by way of an alley-oop.

So much for him being done. What type of 33-year-old player with a bad wrist and fingers on his shooting hand would just wilt away?

Certainly not Kobe Bryant anytime soon.

17. C.J. Miles Makes Lamar Odom Hate Dallas Even More

This play is the exact opposite of everything that C.J. Miles has done this year.

Averaging 10 points on 38 percent shooting, while shooting 28 percent from deep as well, Miles is playing awful basketball and six more minutes per night than he was last year, when he posted career highs.

The Jazz had a vacant spot for Miles to take the starting position at the 2. He has responded by shooting less than 40 percent and dishing out less than an assist per game.

At least he's got this play. He starts off with the sick crossover on Shawn Marion before finishing over Mavericks swingman Lamar Odom, who comes in with a weak block attempt.

16. Blake Griffin Adds More Insult to Kris Humphries' Injuries

Poor Kris Humphries can't catch a break this year.

First, he gets dumped by reality superstar Kim Kardashian (although that might be a good thing). Second, he gets voted as the most disliked player in the NBA, ahead of the likes of LeBron James and Kobe Bryant. Third, he's on the New Jersey Nets. Last, he gets dunked on by Blake Griffin.

Blake, that is no way to treat the league's seventh-leading rebounder! You only made the 2011-12 season worse for the 26-year-old power forward.

15. Taj Gibson Goes Up and over Poor Jon Leuer

It'll only be a short time from now before Taj Gibson becomes the starting power forward for the Chicago Bulls.

It's not like Carlos Boozer wants that position anymore when you look at his play to start the season. He's averaging only 15 and nine boards per, nearly three points and a rebound per less than last year. His lack of defensive intensity and his inability to be recognized as a consistent threat on offense has warranted more playing time for Gibson.

In fact, the Bulls have run with Gibson and Omer Asik for the majority of the fourth quarter instead of Boozer and Joakim Noah.

Rookie Jon Leuer probably wishes that Boozer was in the game instead of Gibson.

14. Dwyane Wade Returns Stronger, Faster and Not Liking Landry Fields

Dwyane Wade was set to return from an injury, and the Miami Heat had to find the right game to bring him back.

Of course, there was a game against the New York Knicks that happened to fit right into the Heat's timetable. What better time for Wade to come back from an injury than a game against one of the NBA's most porous defenses?

Wade had a field day, dropping 28 points, with his huge slam over Landry Fields on the fast break being the most memorable two points of his night.

Wade and LeBron James put on a show this game. There were enough dunks to pepper this list with Heat highlights, but we didn't want to seclude this list solely to the theatrics of the Heat, so we went with other routes.

13. Carl Landry Goes Baseline on the Birdman

Since the New Orleans Hornets are so awful with Chris Paul in Los Angeles and Eric Gordon riding the bench due to an injury, you may have completely forgotten the team existed until you saw them playing your team on the schedule.

We're not blaming you for not watching them because they're absolutely awful to watch, especially without a pure scorer in Gordon.

However, Carl Landry has been keeping the team afloat and could be in competition for the NBA's Sixth Man of the Year award if the Hornets can manage some more wins. In 24 minutes per game, Landry is averaging 12 points on 47 percent shooting to go along with four boards per.

His sweet reverse slam over the Denver Nuggets' Chris Andersen was by far the best play of the year for this dismal New Orleans team.

Speaking of which, what happened to the "Birdman?" That guy went out of style really quick.

12. John Wall Dunks and JaVale McGee Screams

At 6'4", John Wall throwing down over 6'11" rookie Greg Stiemsma sure was impressive, but what on earth was with that scream by JaVale McGee?

There are so many questions behind that scream. Why did McGee scream for so long? Why was he screaming for the play that a teammate did? Why is he screaming so loud in the first place? It's a nice poster slam four minutes into the first quarter—give it a rest.

Could you imagine if McGee was Blake Griffin's teammate when he slammed in the dunk over Kendrick Perkins? He would have blown out the eardrums of everyone within the stadium and whomever was watching on television or listening on radio.

11. Who Said You Can't Teach an Old Dog New Tricks?

Man, were we wrong about Vince Carter early in the year.

After starting off slow on account of the lockout taking a toll on his 35-year-old body, Vince Carter has begun to come back into his element as a five-star athlete who can still dunk with the best of them.

He's had a few nice dunks already, but his poster slam over New Orleans Hornets center Emeka Okafor rekindled thoughts of the old "Vinsanity" who used to jump over opponents for slams.

10. Chandler Parsons Gives JaVale McGee the Business

The Washington Wizards are having a bad year, and JaVale McGee has been the anchor.

No, seriously, he's an anchor weighing this team down and keeping them sunk at the bottom of the Eastern Conference. He might be averaging career highs across the board, but it's his overall demeanor and immaturity that is hindering this team in one of their worst starts in franchise history at 7-25.

It certainly doesn't help that he got dunked on and embarrassed by a player with the name of an 18th century British nobleman.

9. Andre Iguodala Goes All Tracy McGrady on Us

One of the more underrated dunks of the young season happens to feature an underrated Philadelphia 76ers team.

The Sixers have easily been the surprise of the year thus far. At 20-12, the Sixers hold a four-and-a-half game lead over the second-place New York Knicks in the Atlantic Division, and they are five games behind the Miami Heat for the top spot in the Eastern Conference.

Coach Doug Collins is leading a balanced attack from his young squad, with leading scorer Louis Williams averaging only 16 points per game.

There wasn't much balance on this particular play, as Andre Iguodala decided to do it all. He makes the mistake of jumping when looking to pass, but smartly throws it off the glass, grabs the pass and slams it in to avoid making the turnover on the fast break.

8. Tyreke Evans Throws Down a Huge Dunk and No One Notices

I've got quite the problem with announcers who either display emotion for the home team or neither team at all.

NBA TV has this problem. Compared to the announcing of TNT and ESPN, with the likes of Kevin Harlan and Marv Albert, NBA TV is pathetic when it comes to the play-by-play.

For example, just listen to the lack of enthusiasm from the commentator as Tyreke Evans takes it coast-to-coast before finishing with the huge slam over the Utah Jazz's Earl Watson.

It's like listening to National Geographic commentary.

7. Blake Griffin Goes Up and Under the Los Angeles Lakers

For anyone who wants to complain about Blake Griffin being featured on this list too much, can you at least take note that this is basically the only way he can consistently score?

Griffin has no jump shot, and he's averaging 21 points per game, so the points have to come from somewhere. When you find yourself in the lane and dunking as much as an athlete like Griffin does, you're bound to have at least two or three slams that are going to stand out.

It's not like these dunks aren't worthy, either. These slams—and the plays that accommodate them—are nothing less than amazing.

Griffin starts off with a pump fake on Laker Pau Gasol. By that point, Griffin has already got the two points and is wondering how he's going to get those points. Double-pumping over Andrew Bynum was a solid idea.

Why would Pau Gasol even attempt to deter the jump shot of Griffin anyway? He might have thought that Griffin's dribble had stopped, but there's still no reason to even acknowledge his jumper.

6. Veboshiraptor

If Chris Bosh is soft, then why haven't I seen this dunk from LaMarcus Aldridge, Kevin Love, Dirk Nowitzki, Pau Gasol or any other power forward in the NBA?

Bosh has been having a terrific season with the Miami Heat, averaging 18 points and eight boards on account of how much more aggressive he's playing. Bosh's sudden aggressiveness stems from the irregular passive play that he exhibited last season when attempting to make the transition from first to third scoring option.

He hasn't had too much of a problem this year. His monstrous poster dunk on the Charlotte Bobcats' D.J. White in the fourth quarter of a tight game should be enough to discredit a certain few "analysts."

5. Rudy Fernandez and Kenneth Faried Give Their Miami Heat Impersonation

You would think an alley-oop such as this one would be completed by the likes of LeBron James and Dwyane Wade.

Not this time. Instead, it's Rudy Fernandez and rookie Kenneth Faried hooking up for one of the best alley-oops of the year.

The dunk is nice, but Fernandez truly did complete a no-look pass.

4. Paul 'Human Highlight Reel' George

Paul George was predicted to be one of the NBA draft's steals from 2010 and just may be in the middle of a breakout season.

Given 31 minutes per and possessing the current starting shooting-guard job for the playoff-bound Indiana Pacers, George is averaging 12 points, six boards, two assists and converting on 40 percent of his four three-point attempts per game.

He's been excelling at every aspect of the game in his sophomore season, and he put an exclamation point on it with his Dominique-esque slam on the fast break against the New Jersey Nets.

3. Deron Williams Gives New Jersey Something to Be Excited About

Deron Williams is 6'3", and Roy Hibbert is a lot taller than that. What more can I say?

Had Williams been listed at 6'2", he would have been one of the few players in NBA history to dunk over someone who's listed as an entire foot taller, since Hibbert is listed at 7'2".

The New Jersey Nets needed something to get excited about. Not even Anthony Morrow's 42 points was as exciting as this huge slam from arguably the NBA's top point guard.

2. Blake Griffin Throws Down, Kendrick Perkins Cries in a Corner

What exactly is a dunk?

Once again, this is the topic of a slow NBA night following the aftermath of an event featuring Blake Griffin throwing in yet another slam—this time over Kendrick Perkins.

Griffin's dunk over Timofey Mozgov last year certainly was impressive, but he raised the bar even higher with a ferocious slam over the Oklahoma City Thunder center. Despite Perkins throwing his entire body into Griffin and doing all in his power to make sure that Griffin doesn't get a dunk off, Blake proves to be entirely too strong.

The result? A candidate for poster of the year, which would have easily taken the No. 1 spot if not for a dunk far more difficult.

1. LeBron James Hurdles an Opponent

Blake Griffin's dunk was amazing. The fact that it was over an imposing threat like Perkins, who's listed at 6'10" and 280 lbs., is nothing less than stellar.

However, that was a poster dunk. We see those a lot. You might not see a poster slam as emphatic as Griffin over Perkins, but you will see some that are nearly equivalent.

You won't see anyone else do what LeBron James did on this play. There have been so few occasions where a player has jumped over another in a regulation NBA game that the only time we can recollect it happening wasn't even in the league. It occurred when Vince Carter dunked over Frederic Weis in the 2000 Olympics.

James didn't jump over the 5'11" John Lucas. He did so much more than that, as you will see when realizing that the 6'8" James' knees are eye level with Lucas. Not to mention this wasn't just a dunk, either; it came off an alley-oop, making the dunk even more difficult.

Seriously, imagine how difficult it is to jump over someone who's equivalent to the average height of an American male, catch a ball being thrown from 25 feet away and then slam it in the same sequence.

It's not as good because Lucas is only 5'11"? If you're 6'0", go do it over someone who's 5'1" and let me know how it went.