Blake Griffin NBA Dunk Contest: 3 Reasons He Must Defend His Title

Blake Griffin exploded onto the NBA scene last year. Then he exploded again. Then he exploded again. It seems like every time he dunks the ball there is an explosion. You half expect the ball to pop the way he throws it down.

Perhaps a little anecdotal story says it best. I showed my wife the dunk on Kendrick Perkins that instantly went viral. Her reaction was a remarkably calm, "Play it again." So I looped back and replayed it four or five times. 

Matter-of-factly, she simply stated, "I've never seen anyone dunk like that before. It's so...what's the word?"

"Angry?" I suggested. 

"That's it!" she agreed, "Angry." 

Griffin is a special dunker, one of the greatest ever. The greatest ever should't be one-and-done in the dunk contest. Here are three reasons Griffin should be in the dunk contest. 

Give JaVale McGee a Rematch

There are those who feel that, theatrics aside, JaVale McGee actually did the better dunking in last year's contest. McGee, in terms of the actual dunking, arguably did a better job. 

Essentially, all Griffin did was jump with a prop. It was an impressive prop, yes, but take it away, and it's not that great of a dunk. 

McGee dunked three balls through one rim and two balls through two rims. From the pure dunking standpoint, McGee was better, and that's a slam dunk. 

Griffin should compete so that McGee can get a chance to win the crown from him.

He Only Won Once

The greatest dunkers at least defend their titles once. To not even defend the crown, and the reason he gave for his decision, perhaps sounds a bit arrogant. 

"As of right now, I don't plan on being in it," Griffin said. "Those dunk contests aren't my thing, I said that last year. There's a lot of guys that can put on a great show and do some good stuff."

Yeah, whatever. You're not too big for the dunk contest yet, Blake. If Jordan could do it, you can do it. If Howard could do it, you can do it. 

Don't be yellow. Defend your crown!

LeBron James vs. Blake Griffin Would Be Legendary

LeBron James has dropped hints that he is thinking about entering the dunk contest. With the two most legendary—wait for it—angry dunks of the year happening on back-to-back nights, you have to believe that Griffin vs. James would be the most anticipated dunk contest since Dominique Wilkins squared off against Michael Jordan.