Kentucky Wildcats Basketball: The 10 Best All-Time Dunkers

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The University of Kentucky—a school I proudly attend—has a rich basketball history.  For anyone who watches college basketball, that's common knowledge.

However, when you get down to truly examining some of the aspects of how past Wildcats have played, there is also a rich history of guys who know how to get into the air and onto the rim.

There are certainly guys this season that have the potential to make this list by the time April rolls around.

In the meantime, these ten men have the honor of being in what I have dubbed Kentucky's "Dynamic Dunkers Club."

10. Joe Crawford

Joe Crawford debuted as a Wildcat in 2004 and made a definitive name for himself over his four years.  After his final game with UK, Crawford was ranked 19th all-time at Kentucky in points scored with 1,448.

At 6'5", Crawford certainly had enough height to get up to the rim, and a natural jumping ability to top it off. Two of Crawford's best assets were his running starts and his long arms, which he used to to jam the ball into the hoop.

You can see one of his best dunks here.

9. John Wall

John Wall's biggest downfall on this list is that he was only on the floor for one year.

In an overall sense, he could have headed this list had he stayed for even one more season. Alas, we'll live with what we have.

Wall was one of the most agile and quick players on the floor throughout the 2009-2010 basketball season. He had such natural ability and used it to fight his way to the rim quite a bit.

While he was a great shooter, Wall had plenty of jams to make him a tremendous all-around scorer. 

8. DeMarcus Cousins

Just look at the picture—Boogie didn't even have to completely jump to dunk the ball!

Like Wall, DeMarcus Cousins' position on this list suffers because he was only in school for a single year.  Given his size and strength, he had the power to tear down the glass and everything.

Cousins never was much of a field shooter, so dunking was quite the specialty for the big man. As I've mentioned, when you don't have to use your full jumping capacity to slam the ball, you earn the right to be on the list.

7. Dirk Minniefield

Dirk Minniefield played back in the early 80s, so he's the first one to appear on the list from a different era.

Still, his jamming ability and show-stopping athleticism ranks toward the top of the list in UK basketball.

At 6'3" on a good day, Minniefield had to get up quite a bit to get to the rim. He was well known for stealing the ball and dunking on a breakaway.

To see just one of Minniefield's best, click here.

6. Jeff Sheppard

As a high school high jump champion, it's no surprise that Jeff Sheppard was able to get off the court and into the air. Dunking was one of Sheppard's many draws as a player at UK.

The underappreciated Wildcat used his jumping abilities to consistently reach the rim.

He had many highlights throughout the 1998 NCAA Tournament, where he was the Most Outstanding Player for the national champions. 

5. Rex Chapman

It's surprising that this is the best picture I could find of Rex Chapman, but this isn't a photography article. 

Chapman had great form when he used both hands to dunk the ball. At 6'4", the fact that he could dunk regularly makes him impressive in that sense.

With breakaway speed and a natural ability for the game, Chapman ranks among Kentucky's most athletic players.

4. Derek Anderson

Before his ACL injury in 1997, Derek Anderson was dominating the rim with the best in the nation. 

He dunked with such great power, which was highly intimidating to opponents. If intimidation were the list's main criterion, Anderson would sit at the top.

For now, Anderson's pure strength and ability to get through defenders is good enough for top five, still a prestigious spot.

3. Rajon Rondo

Flying through the air from nearly the free-throw line is a purely beautiful site. Rajon Rondo is a man who mastered that craft in Lexington.

While Rondo isn't known as an NBA dunk artist, he certainly made some noise in his two years at Kentucky. His major blows came in the form of the breakaway dunks.

A man that can shoot threes AND dunk? Sign me up.

2. Kelenna Azubuike

Kelenna Azubuike was a major staple on the UK basketball team in the early 2000s, and his thunderous dunking brought the house down every time.

He could run the floor and dunk on the breakaway.

He could catch an alley-oop.

He could even dunk off a putback.

Azubuike is one of the more distinguished dunkers that the game ever saw, at least at the NCAA level.  He'd head this list if someone else hadn't actually been nicknamed for his dunking...

1. Kenny "Sky" Walker

If you thought anyone else was going to head this list, you are outside of your mind.

He didn't earn the nickname "Sky" for no reason. 

Sky Walker made a name for himself flying through the air and throwing down dunks more times than anyone can count.

He's legendary and represents this list better than any other man could.