10 Sickest Dunks of the Week in the NBA

You're probably disappointed by the players who were selected to go to the NBA dunk contest. Paul George, Derrick Williams, Iman Shumpert and Chase Budinger are all athletic players who can throw down a mean dunk, but this year's contest just lacks the star power that so many have had before.

It's tough to believe an event that used to feature Michael Jordan, Dominique Wilkins and Clyde Drexler performing in the same contest has come to this. With athletes like LeBron James and Blake Griffin wasting their athleticism for NBA games, the league appears to be scraping the bottom of the barrel with their selections this year.

Seriously, they couldn't even get Jeremy Evans?

Not to worry, however, as we're going to cheer you up with the past week's top dunks. A compilation that features the best slams from last Friday to Thursday, you're probably going to be more excited by these 10 ferocious slams than the dunk contest we're set to see within the coming weeks.

Featuring regulars in LeBron James and Blake Griffin and even newcomers in Nicolas Batum and James Johnson, these athletes certainly didn't conceal any of their strength and power on these ferocious and dynamic slams.

There were plenty of dunks that could have made it this week, but we managed to cut it down to 10. Go ahead and take a look at the top 10 dunks of the week before you cry yourself to sleep over how awful the dunk contest has become.

10. James Johnson Goes Coast to Coast

C'mon, Los Angeles Lakers, I know you're shorthanded without Lamar Odom, but that gives you no excuse for a role player like James Johnson to grab a rebound on one end and then proceed to run 95 feet for the slam dunk.

The Lakers weren't quick or smart enough to set up their defense, and Johnson took advantage. He's an underrated athlete that's not too well known outside of Toronto, but he'll certainly get some attention once this breakaway dunk makes its rounds.

Or not, because Kobe Bryant's game-winner in this same game was what really stole the show.

Sorry, James. You still get one of the top dunks of the week if it makes you and Raptor nation feel any better.

9. Josh Smith Spins and Wins Against the Phoenix Suns

Josh Smith didn't like the fact that he was snubbed as an All-Star selection.

Unlike many others who don't want to make a fuss about not making it, Smith has been adamant about letting the NBA know that it made a mistake. He's been making a convincing argument all year with the way he's keeping the Atlanta Hawks above water without Al Horford, while averaging 16 points, 9.5 boards, 3.5 assists and 2.1 blocks per.

He's let his game do the talking since the selections took place. Smith has been playing bonkers as of late with a 30-point, 17-rebound and seven-assist performance against Phoenix, 23 points and 19 boards against Orlando and 28 points and 12 boards against Indiana—all wins.

Smith's best game of the year happened to be that stat-stuffer against the Suns. The Hawks only won by two, but it was Smith's stellar outing that propelled his team to a well-earned road victory.

He capped it off with this sick spin on Channing Frye that was followed by a dunk over Marcin Gortat.

8. Derrick Williams Gives Us a Slam Dunk Contest Preview

As I stated in the intro, the 2012 dunk contest doesn't have the star power of previous years.

It's just as bad as 2010, when the top names were Shannon Brown and DeMar DeRozan. We're just hoping that this year's contest won't be as depressing and disappointing as that one, where we might have witnessed one of the worst performances in the contest's history by Gerald Wallace.

We won't rule anything out though. After all, rookie Derrick Williams is proving to us in his first year just how athletic and explosive he can be.

This putback slam against the Dallas Mavericks is clear evidence that not only is Williams deserving of making the slam dunk contest, but that he could be a winner too.

Not to mention that there is a portion of the contest where you need an assistant. We're going to guess that assistant will be Ricky Rubio, and there aren't many other point guards in the league you'd want throwing a pass or assisting you in a dunk in some way.

7. A Pair of Insane Dwyane Wade-LeBron James Alley-Oops

Oh, you know, it's just the standard LeBron James and Dwyane Wade alley-oops.

I would have chosen only one of these connections, but a random YouTube member managed to upload a video that conveniently placed the two alley-oops all in one video. It's crazy to think how far technology has come these days when you can place two separate events in one video.

Wade and James did this a lot in their rookie years, and they have yet to stop. They're still the most feared duo, the most entertaining and the best at running a fast break. Whether it's two-on-three or two-on-four, usually these two will have the advantage based on their athleticism and speed alone.

The first alley-oop was decent, but the second one was insane when you notice just how far James reaches back to grab the ball and then dunk it.

6. Vince Carter's Still Got It

So much for being down and out. Vince Carter hasn't appeared to have lost any of the hops that made him internationally famous.

Well, he can't jump like he used to, obviously, but it's still nothing short of amazing that a 35-year-old who has been playing since 1998 can still slam home a dunk as violent and dynamic as the one he threw down against the Los Angeles Clippers.

Poor Randy Foye was matched up with Carter and made the mistake of giving him the baseline. It was probably the worst thing he could possibly do, as Carter quickly took advantage and slammed home the reverse for the emphatic dunk.

Carter isn't having too bad of a year. He's started in 15 games and is averaging 11 points on 46 percent shooting while hitting 46 percent of his three-point attempts.

5. DeMar DeRozan Goes All Reverse on the San Antonio Spurs

It would certainly be nice to add DeMar DeRozan to this year's dunk contest.

Aside from obviously needing a Canadian influence, DeRozan is also one of the NBA's top dunkers and was arguably robbed of a victory last year due to the hype surrounding Blake Griffin. No matter what type of dunk DeRozan did, he still wasn't going to win as long as Griffin was in the mix.

Instead of showing off in the dunk contest, DeRozan is just going to unleash his fury in regulation games.

DeRozan may not top that epic poster he had on Tyrus Thomas last year, but this reverse alley-oop from Jose Calderon is easily deserving of a top-10 bid for the past week's worth of dunks.

4. Blake Griffin Throws Down the Windmill

Don't tell me you expected a top 10 list dealing with the best dunks of the week not to have Blake Griffin in it.

Seriously, that's all he does. When you throw down 10 dunks per game and play in four games, the chances are high that you're going to have at least one dunk that's good enough to make it into the top 10 dunks of the week.

It also helps that Griffin is an athletic freak and is probably the best dunker in the game. The 6'10" power forward can dunk from far out, get high enough to grab a stack of quarters on top of the backboard and manage to jump through the hoop all at the same time.

In a blowout win against the Charlotte Bobcats, Griffin was given a court all to himself as not one defender was between him and the rim.

He took full advantage of it by completing one of the better complete windmill slams we've seen in recent history.

3. Nicolas Batum Serves Up the Facial to Trevor Booker and JaVale McGee

The Washington Wizards are having a rough go this year.

However, this game against the Portland Trail Blazers was probably their most complete team effort of the year, as they shot 60 percent overall to score 124 points in a 17-point victory at the Rose Garden. Given that LaMarcus Aldridge got hurt early in the first quarter, it's still stunning that the Wizards could put on that outstanding of an offensive display.

Of course, no one will remember the game. Instead, they'll remember this huge dunk by Blazers small forward Nicolas Batum over the top of center JaVale McGee and power forward Trevor Booker.

It didn't seem like the most ferocious of dunks, but it takes a lot of strength for a small forward to rise up and dunk over a wide power forward and a lengthy center who is a notoriously good shot-blocker.

2. LeBron James Unleashes the Beast Against Milwaukee

LeBron James being LeBron James is always an entertaining thing.

He's the most athletic, exciting and entertaining player in the NBA today. While the majority of the NBA world has become enamored with Jeremy Lin or where Dwight Howard could be heading this week, James and the Heat have been quietly tearing the NBA apart, including a recent three-game stretch where they swept their back-to-back-to-back.

However, they did so much more than win three games in three nights. They won each of those games by at least 15 points, and all of the games were well decided by the start of the fourth quarter. The Heat became the first team since the 1970-71 Milwaukee Bucks to win three games in three nights on the road by double digits.

Anyway, just absorb LeBron splitting a double-team and then jumping from the dotted line for a ferociously violent throwdown against the Milwaukee Bucks.

1. Mike Conley and Rudy Gay Go Showtime on the Fast Break

Judging by the uniforms, this looks like a game between the Washington Generals and Harlem Globetrotters.

The only difference is that the team dressed in the Generals jerseys is playing like the Globetrotters.

Rudy Gay would make a fine Globetrotter. He's an excellent entertainer that can throw down a dunk better than the majority of the league, hit a jump shot from anywhere on the court and is creative enough of a player to make fresh ideas.

Take, for instance, this huge slam against the New Jersey Nets. Mike Conley initiates the play with a pass of the glass, but it's Gay who does the entertaining as he grabs the ball and throws down the reverse slam in the same motion.